I detest the word “budget” so let me call it a Spending or Dollar Allocation program, a monthly software program.

With retirement here now, my situation is changing, financially speaking, and for the better, it seems.

I’m ok using old fashioned pencil & paper, many years ago I used a software named DOME, but times have changed. Loved the Dome program.

I’d like to get a software program, inexpensive or even free, to track all my expenses & income, trends, etc.

I do NOT want to link it to bank accounts, I’ll input.

And I don’t want one that snoops around on my computer, spies and ends up selling and misusing my data. Simpler the better.

Thanks in advance.
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Dome still exists. Probably not the version you used.

I use Checkbook Pro to keep track of my overall spending and items that I consider budget items (utilities, insurance, gasoline etc.) Believe its free but I'm not sure anymore.
Set up for budget items when I retired. Works well for my needs. I also manually enter all information.

I'm curious about this too.

Are any of these available as an iPhone application? I'm just thinking that since I have my phone with me all the time, it would be easier to enter info as it happens.

Sorry for the hijack.

^^^^^^ No hijack at all, glad you brought up that idea. Thanks
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I use EveryDollar. It's free, but your data is stored on their server. Access is via a website or app. Both the wife and I have it on our phones (she set up the account and we both log in to it so the data is shared across devices).

I have recommended a product called MoneyDance on this forum, and will continue to do so. It may be overkill for the OP's intended use, but it does handle budgeted vs. actual expenditures quite well.

One thing I'll mention WRT over-the-net integration with banking and credit card transactions, the fact that my credit card transactions are available almost as soon as the merchant charges them makes it very easy to pick up bogus or inaccurate charges. Back when I was simply reviewing monthly statements, a question might arise (what the heck was that charge for?) that might take weeks or months to resolve. Now, when it shows up within a few days, it is nearly always obvious.

Being able to pick up unauthorized bank withdrawals is similar, although this has never happened to me, in this day of ACH transfers, and anyone who has your banking data being able to "pull" a transaction, I'm sure it is just a matter of time.

We have used Intuit products for years with no privacy concerns. TurboTax, Quicken, etc.

Quicken is a wonderful program with all the bells and whistles. You can use as many of them as you want.

I used to like Quicken. Now I tolerate it. They moved to a subscription model, which I don't like. The version I'm using now is still stand-alone, but it nags the heck out of me to upgrade, and you can't turn off the nagging.

Take a look at Chronicle. I've been using it for several years. I liked it well enough to move from the free version to the paid version.

Probably missing something here, but I use a simple spreadsheet, keep EVERY receipt in my Patented Shirt Pocket Filing System while I'm shopping and then do the data entry as soon as I get home, listing every purchase in the appropriate category. I have 12 years worth of them on this computer, been doing it longer than that, at least all the way back to Windows 95. What categories you need/want will be come apparent with a little use.

I can't even imagine trying to do any kind of expense tracking, regardless of the software used, on that itty-bitty screen on my phone.

But then I'm old, and still MUCH prefer a desktop to one of those new-fangled laptops...

One of the primary benefits of the various budget software programs is that they automate the onerous task of manually entering every income/spending data point by linking to your bank accounts, investment accounts, etc. and pulling all that data for you.

But since you don't want it to link to your bank accounts, this means entering every bit of it by hand.

So if you're going to have to do that part manually anyway, you might as well just use a generic spreadsheet program (Excel, Google Sheets, etc.). If you don't know how to use those well enough, there are any number of online tutorials and Youtube videos that will show you enough of the basics to make your own simple spreadsheet to accomplish what you're wanting.

I'll second the suggestion for Money Dance. it's good and not expensive. They offer lots of free updates also.

Thank you guys for your comments and suggestions.

I may give the spreadsheet idea a try.

I took a 4 hour College class on Microsoft Office about 13 years ago, just for kicks and grins, and to keep my brain engaged. It covered all the programs in Office, not just the Excel. I did ok, got an A, but never really applied and used that knowledge, now I can't recall a thing about how to do Excel.

I do not have Microsoft Office, I thought the price was too much for my limited needs at the time I bought this laptop 4 years ago, so I downloaded both Libre and Open Office so that should not make any difference.

I guess I'll jump into some YouTube tutorials and see if I can get something working.

If you guys have any suggestions for that, I'd be glad to see them.

Thanks again
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The Dave Ramsey Every Dollar app is pretty good, the basic version is free and does not link to bank accounts. You can upgrade to the premium version that will link to your bank if you so choose.

Gene, I can send you a copy of the Open Office spreadsheet I use. If you like it and think you can adapt it to your needs it'll save you some time and brain sweat.

Let me know at the email in my profile.

^^^ Done, email sent. Thank you
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quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
^^^ Done, email sent. Thank you
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And replied.

You don't want to connect to your bank accounts and you don't want it snooping on you, then you can either use a spreadsheet (Excel or Google sheet) or use paper and pencil.

Looking to use a financial software to track your spending but you don't intend to connect it to your financial accounts is like looking for a chain saw to cut down trees but you intend to run the engine.

I've been using Quicken Deluxe 2000, since, well since 2000. I tried a few of the newer versions, but 2000 does everything I want it to. And since it is so old, it won't connect to any online financial intuitions, which is fine with me. And it will still run on Windows 10 and 11.