Budget
Practical information to help you budget.
Getting started
Calculate how much money you have coming in, by using any of these:
- pay slips
- bank statements
- Centrelink Deduction Statement.
Work out how much you’re spending. To do this, look at any of these:
- bills
- credit card statements
- receipts and shopping dockets
- costs for annual and one-off expenses, like insurance and car registration.
Use the simple money manager to do your budget.
You can then see if you have money left over. You could use this for your savings. Set savings goals, that way you’ll know how much you need to save on a regular basis to reach it.
Remember to review your budget often to make sure it’s still working for you. A change in your income or expenses can affect your budget.
Simple money manager
More services we offer
Centrepay is a free and voluntary service you can use to pay bills as regular deductions from your Centrelink payments. Read about how Centrepay works.
Our Rent Deduction Scheme is a convenient, secure and free service. It allows you to pay your state or territory housing authority rent, through regular deductions from your Centrelink payments.
Centrelink Deduction Statements help you track your deductions.
We have tips and tricks to help you build savings.
Talk to someone
The National Debt Helpline offers free financial counselling. Call them now if your money is worrying you.
It’s worth getting free expert advice to get a clear picture of your finances. Find a financial counsellor in your area, on the National Debt Helpline website.
Related subjects
Page last updated: 1 May 2020
This information was printed 21 January 2021 from https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/subjects/manage-your-money/budget. It may not include all of the relevant information on this topic. Please consider any relevant site notices at https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/site-notices when using this material.