Money can be hard to manage and having more freedom in college can lead to recklessly overspending money. Keeping a budget is a useful tool to help manage your spending. There are many other benefits to budgeting besides learning how to manage money, and by reading this article you will learn 6 important benefits.

1) Teaches you how to manage your money

A budget is a great idea, especially when you are a broke college student. Saving as much money as possible while still being able to treat yourself is the goal of having a budget and by tracking your money you will learn when it is okay to spend some or when you should just save it. It definitely is a useful skill that will help you later in life when you leave college. Also, it’s better to mess up a budget and learn money managing skills in college then when you are completely on your own after graduating.

2) You always know how much you spend and what you are spending it on

When keeping a budget I suggest you make some sort of way to organize your spending. It’s probably easiest to make a spreadsheet where you track the amount and place you spend your money per month. If you set up your budget by months then you can make a set amount that you can spend each month which will help you keep you from overspending. Also by writing down where you are spending money you can look back and see if you think you spend too much at a certain place. For example, maybe you get coffee at Dunkin Donuts every morning and only notice the small charges, but when you look at it after a month you’ve actually spent quite a bit on coffee. By tracking payments it will help you decide what you need to cut out from your monthly spendings so that you have more room for necessities. Unfortunately this might mean you have to say goodbye to Dunkin coffee and just get the dining hall stuff instead.

3) Helps you spend less

By having a set amount to spend each month means you may be spending less than normal. You can control the amount you want to aim to spend under a set amount. By looking at how much you make per month or how much is in your bank account you can make a yearly plan that won’t leave you broke by the end of the year. By doing so it may make you think twice before you impulse buy a bunch of clothes that you don’t really need. Forcing yourself to stick to the budget will make you smarter about your purchases, and you will be less impulsive with your money.

4) Learn when it’s okay to go over

Although the goal of a budget is to manage money and hopefully spend less, it teaches you when it is okay to go over for a month. That being said, if you go over one month that means you will have less money to spend in other months if you want to stick to a set amount. I chose to go over in my budget at the beginning of the school year because I needed to buy all my textbooks. I tried to space them out as best as I could, but they were something I needed for class so I didn’t have much of a choice. Due to overspending in the beginning months, I learned to spend less and be more conscious about my money so that I can’t stay on track with my money, which is a very useful skill.

5) Will notice mistakes with your account easier

If you are constantly keeping track of your spending then you are probably looking at your bank account pretty frequently. It’s always a good idea to be checking your account, but I find that being on a budget means I check it way more. This is helpful if you ever get charged for the wrong amount or double charged for something. It also makes you aware of unwanted activity on your card. Since you are keeping track of exactly what you’re spending and when, catching problems with your bank account will be a lot easier to spot, which will help you out in the long run.

6) Encourage you to work more if you’re a big spender

If you notice that you tend to spend a lot of money on a monthly basis then maybe you should consider getting a job before you run out. By keeping track of how much you spend it will encourage you to want to work so you cans till afford the items you buy regularly. This will help to improve your attitude at work because you have something to look forward to once you get that pay check. Also, if you have a job that you really hate this will help you make it through the shift a little bit easier. Working tends to be more enjoyable when you are excited for the money that you can either save or spend.