YNAB Savings Guide: How To Budget Your Savings

[@en3mes]

I've been watching all your videos, and hope you get those kayaks.

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, thanks! I appreciate it :)

[@taramullen6806]

Anyone else watched enough of this videos they just want to buy Nick a kayak?

[@mappedoutmoney]

Bahahah! Appreciate it Tara :)

[@mrrobinson10]

I swear.... I've watch this video at least 30 times, and I'm still learning stuff🤦🏾‍♂️

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, good to see you back J 10! Glad that the video still finds ways to help :)

[@sriramjce]

I am on my YNAB trial period and without this video I would not have thought about continuing. Good video my friend!

[@candicecrawford2996]

Same. The app does not make sense without the videos.

[@RyanVandeWetering]

@@candicecrawford2996 100% agree...YNAB needs to hire Nick!!

[@mishka.a]

#3 method is best for me! Love love love this tutorial! Thank you!!!

[@kirrenagallagher3883]

Ok. So I have had YNAB since 2011. I have watched a few of your videos and I swear my brain feels so much smarter. I think I can finally use YNAB for more than just a tool to track my spending. I think I can actually start budgeting!! I think I just got excited. Thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Kirrena!! So glad that it's helpful for you. Pumped that you can actually start budgeting. Woot woot! :) Thanks for watching.

[@RyanPhillipsATX]

Thanks Nick. I was frustrated with YNAB on not knowing how to handle savings, but your video clears it up nicely.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Ryan! So glad that this cleared it up, my man. I know how confusing it can be. Happy to help :)

[@markeshiaricks]

Great job breaking down what so many people find confusing about YNAB. It really is trying to help you keep it simple. And if you keep it simple, you'll keep doing it because then it's fun.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Bingo! You're absolutely right about the importance of keeping it simple. Thanks so much for watching Markeshia :) I really appreciate it. So glad you enjoyed the video!

[@yazelldj]

I was about to not subscribe to YNAB because I have not been able to crack how to track savings. The third method of setting it up as a tracking account was EXACTLY what I needed. Now YNAB has a yearly subscription from me. Thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Well awesome, so glad that worked for you! Appreciate you watching :) Nick

[@samantharocker8797]

I decided to try YNAB because I found your videos when I was looking for reviews on the service. So I am a newbie, but I am going to give the third way to handle savings a go. I'm that person with 7 accounts to keep track of each category of savings & chequing. My fiancé works seasonally and if I don't have stuff sectioned off into accounts we would likely burn through it too quickly. When it comes time to spend the money I will come back and rewatch that part of your video to make sure I don't mess up! Thank you so much for taking the time to produce these tutorials. YNAB and your tutorials are my new budgeting weapons. :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Well awesome Samantha! I'm so glad to hear that my videos have been helpful for you. I super appreciate you taking the time to comment and let me know. Good luck with your savings and reach out if there's ever anything I can do to help!

[@chriskirsch441]

I use the “lazy” method throughout the month and then do one transfer at the end of the month to make it all match. I like that because the info is always close and I don’t have to do so many transfers. Otherwise I would be transferring to savings each week and probably get transfer fees. Thank you for the informative videos!

[@mappedoutmoney]

That's awesome Chris! The lazy method combined with the YNAB is awesome. That makes a ton of sense to me. I like that. Super smart. Thanks for sharing!

[@thebonafidebeasley]

Hi, Nick. I just started using YNAB again after taking an almost two-year break (completing my master's degree and budgeting was a bit too much to do simultaneously). I've been frustrated about how to track my savings accounts without having them reflect in the budget. Using the previous version of YNAB, it was a no-brainer. However, with the all-web version, there's a learning curve. I think your video answers my questions, though you went so fast, I had to repeat several parts to get a clearer understanding. That said, I think that method #3 is the best option for me. I'm a visual person, so when what's showing in the budget doesn't match what's in the side-lined account, I just shut down. Thank you for your expertise!

[@JohnThePA]

I've watched your whole series and it was instrumental in getting my YNAB up and running. Thanks Nick

[@mappedoutmoney]

That's awesome John! Thanks for the comment man. So glad that the series was helpful for you :)

[@paulineherder5416]

Nick.... I have been using YNab for a few years and your clear explanation s have made me decide to stick with it.... I just about gave up but I'm a believer. Thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Pauline Herder that’s awesome! I’m so glad to hear that these videos have helped you stick with it. I really appreciate you watching and commenting Pauline. It means a ton to me :)

[@chele850]

This video has addressed the primary reason I wanted to start a regular account of where my money is and what to do with it. What you said in the first video I watched is exactly what had happened: hated the tedious and aimless endeavor of assigning every transaction to a category that I was already paid in order to move forward, as the rules of the platform. I have funds that cover months of expenses, and all I want/need to do is ensure my short term goals align with my long term financial plan. Thus, contributions to retirement is the primary goal I want to focus on. As you showed, I called it quits after a couple hours, where I was budgeting Jan expenses, creating havoc in YNAB complying to the rules, without any clear picture of my retirement goals sort or long term (though debating if I should link my actual retirement accounts because I have no clue). Expenses exceeding income isn’t my problem, it’s what do do with that money and what to use it for. I’m going to dive back in after watching a few more of your videos in the event it addresses this: Sincerest gratitude.

[@TaniaMukai]

3 years ago and it keeps good and sound! Thank you for this Nick!

[@markandaprilhardwick564]

I literally spent 15 min with YNAB chat trying to figure this out today. I told him I felt like I what worked for me was a tracking account and he tried to talk me out of it. From now on I'm just going to watch your videos when I have a question!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

hahaha, that's funny! Yeah, I would just do whatever works best and makes sense for you April :) I've personally used all three methods at different points. And I still use tracking for a couple of accounts, and on budget for the other. Just gotta find what makes sense in your head and roll with that! :) Always happy to help. Thanks so much for watching and commenting!

[@X3N14]

The third way works best for me, but I didn’t understand why it would double spend. I kept entering the money from the off budget savings account into the Inflow category. This was so helpful!

[@exoticbean.-.6830]

This video really helped to clear up how to conduct savings in YNAB. Best demonstration by far. Also for those who need separate savings I would highly recommend Ally savings. You’re able to create different buckets to give you a visual of your savings breakdown without physically having all of those savings account. I have a bucket in my Ally to mimic my buckets in YNAB. And the great thing- its only one account. I even have a DO NOT TOUCH bucket in ally and in YNAB

[@angelammathews82]

My God, your video helped me so much more than the YNAB vids. I've inadvertently been using Option 2, and my budget has been thrown off, but I understand why now. Thank you!

[@garydunken7934]

Brilliant Nick. I prefer option 1 to avoid unnecessary transfers between Budget and Tracking accounts. People should NOT be tempted to look at how much balance balance is left in the bank; instead look in the budget allocation before spending. It requires mindset change and a little bit of discipline to get used to it. But it's totally worth it.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Love it. I totally get that. Option 1 is definitely a great way to go and I'm a big fan of switching your mindset to pay the most attention to YNAB. Thanks for watching!

[@judithscanlon9024]

after two failed attempts at using YNAB, I finally have a working budget - all I needed was the introduction and this savings video. You are amazing, thank you!

[@JonWood]

I've been looking around on how to do this exact thing and this video answered all of my questions,. Thank you for making this!

[@mappedoutmoney]

No problem Jon, so glad it helped!

[@sjsnr]

I just set up my YNAB and this helped tremendously. I am one of the one’s that has several savings accounts.I was really stuck on this and you have helped. Thank you

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Jacqueline! So happy to hear that it was helpful for you!

[@mdg682]

Thank you for this video! I recently goofed up my budget due to adding a small savings account inside of the budget which made me think I had about $100 more to be budgeted than what I really did. This video helped me identify what I did wrong and how I was going to manage savings from this point on.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Sweet! Marian :) So so glad that the video helped you out. Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting. I really appreciate it! Good luck with Savings and with YNAB!

[@erakkovaatainen148]

Thanks, as someone on YNAB trial I learned a lot from this lesson. I tried Toshl Pro on trial, but I felt like it was too complicated and too manual. If I overspend, the app was mad at me. On YNAB I just transfer from envelope to envelope in seconds compared to too manual Toshl Pro. I use just one checking account and one savings account at different bank with 1% interest :) As you said it is so much easier to do this was as you can have other savings on your checking account. Budget will keep everything in order. Thank you for this lesson.

[@TrueLoveTarot]

I have spent so much time trying to make this work before finding this video!! Thank you 🙏🙏

[@eileenm.7644]

Thank you Nick. I have had my savings accounts on budget and have been frustrated with the reporting of income expense. I’ve saved for moving, transferred Money from savings back into checking and paid with credit card. Though the money was available the reporting indicates a net going “over budget”. I will make adjustments to for savings off budget. Thank you again for your clear explanation, instruction. It’s appreciated!!!

[@FreddieFabregas]

The third option (Tracking) is perfect fo me!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Perfect, glad that helped Freddie!

[@creatorbrain]

man thank you so much for making these videos. Started using ynab about a year ago because of you and it completely changed the way i handle money. Starting to add tracking accounts now and anytime i need to know something about this program you're the person i come to.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey thanks Hunter! That means a ton to me man. So glad that the videos have been helpful for you.

[@braddahg]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. YNAB budget accounts was driving me nuts with the "don't need to categorize" transfers between accounts. Thanks Nick, you helped me out a lot. I hope YNAB is compensating you, I was a few days away from canceling my membership because of this confusion you helped solve. YNAB should to hire you.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Grant! That means a ton to me. I really appreciate you saying that. So glad that the videos have been helpful to clear things up for you. Thanks man!

[@wamsaldon]

Bless this video. I am brand new to YNAB, literally on the 3rd day of the free trial, and was super confused on how to actually determine what I'm saving with it, and this cleared up a lot for me. Also cleared up a lot on how to use YNAB in general. Thank you!!!

[@mzlyzs9863]

TY TY TY! 4 days into my trial and I was about to end it. your videos are solo helpful. I hope they appreciate you... I know I do!

[@michaelfitzgerald999]

Thanks Nick, I was really struggling with how "savings" worked. You're 3rd/tracking method is exactly what in needed. YNAB needs to make you head of their education section. Way better than their in-house videos.

[@nancyrowe5307]

Before this video, I didn't even realize there was an "out of budget" savings option. The YNAB way works good for me for my regular savings (I pay myself every month to supplement my income as I'm a FT student at the moment), but now I realize I can add my two retirement accounts as TRACKING, so that I can finally see my FULL financial picture in one place!! THANK YOU!! P.S. you should put your cute animals in every video. :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Boom! So glad that it was helpful for you Nancy :) Really appreciate you taking the time to comment.

[@Weezieweeks]

I like the Tracking way for the savings and adding to Assets! I am going to use this and, over time, maybe transition to one account. Thanks for this video!!

[@ytemg]

Thanks, Nick. You're a lifesaver! I'm a multi-savings account guy and this was sinking me until your video explained it so well.

[@mappedoutmoney]

No problem Eric! Super glad that the video was helpful for you man. Good luck YNABing!

[@samanthamcneil3158]

I'm new to YNAB (second week) but the tracking method is the only one that makes logical sense to me for savings I'm not planning to use soon, like my retirement, emergency fund, and car replacement. Also, I really want to see reports on my savings for these. And then I think I'm gonna use the second method for saving for little things that I'll buy in the next six months. I had to watch it twice just to absorb everything, but you are such a good teacher and I really appreciate your videos. Thanks!

[@gidiess7880]

I've been using YNAB for a number of years and finally committed to the web-based version last week. Found your videos - they are amazing! Concise, clear, and so easy to understand. I thought I had little more to learn about YNAB - I was wrong! Setting up my many savings accounts off budget was a revelation! Method 3 is a game changer!! To think I almost didn't watch this video. I just made the changes and feel better already. Messed up things royally trying to move existing accounts from On Budget to Tracking, but thankfully I'm not afraid of a Fresh Start. On a totally related note - a future video idea: how to move an account from On Budget to Tracking and vice versa. I'm sure it would have been painless process with your excellent instruction! Thanks for all you do.

[@ian.irabaganje]

Wow Nick! I just had a lot of "Ah ha" moments watching this! I was also quite confused with how to handle savings in YNAB and this video totally cleared up the confusion. Thank you so much. I'm going to be trying the 2nd YNAB method and the tracking method and see which one works best for me. Thanks again for taking the time to make this. Keep up the great work! 🙏🏾

[@juliedudgeon2685]

Wow! Thank you so much for creating this video! I have multiple savings accounts for different reasons and I was wondering how to do the transferring! Absolutely briliant!

[@jmbourey9256]

The YNAB beginner video taught me to only budget as income is available (I was trying to budget entire month and not understanding why that couldn't work) and this video finally explained how to manage and track credit card payment including interest in a way that works. Thank you Nick!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Boom! So glad to hear it J B :) Thanks so much for kind words. Pumped that the videos were helpful for you. Keep on YNABing my friend!

[@Colorsofshae]

I couldn't figure out why my numbers were off and canceled my subscription out of frustration. I had tried YNAB's videos and googled articles, but something was just not right. Now I'm following your videos to set up my budget and get a fresh start. Thank you for these videos!

[@Proximian]

You are talented at teaching. I truly appreciate your method of explaining how things work.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey thanks for that. It means a ton!

[@adrianloh9295]

Fantastically explained. This helps a lot. So many different ways to meet people's needs. Thank you very much

[@MultiBearful]

Very helpful! This is my 4th attempt to set up ynab and this is the very best assistance I've seen so far.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Well I’m so glad to hear that :) Thanks for the comment and letting me know that the video was helpful. Good luck YNABing!

[@alonafyshe6785]

Your videos are amazing! These are the videos YNAB should be making, it’s crazy they don’t have anything anywhere near as clear as yours. Thanks for taking the time to make them!

[@venereveritas]

Thank you for this! I've been watching your videos all day because I'm trying to seriously make a change with how I spend my money. Your videos are incredibly helpful.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks Ren!! I'm super glad to hear that :) I really appreciate the comment.

[@Sara-uy2nr]

On the advice of some of your other videos, I have multiple savings accounts for my multiple different goals. Although #3 method does have its advantages, I still think I personally fit with method #2, which is how I ended up setting them up to begin with. Thanks for all the great info! (also I found it funny that I'm watching the video exactly one year after the posting date lol)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Woo! That’s awesome Sara. So glad to hear that you found a good method for you. I personally use method #2 as well. Thanks so much for the comment!

[@carrjar]

Ahh! I'm torn between method #2 and method #3. 😁

[@karinowens7750]

Haha! I just realized from reading your comment that I am watching exactly two years from posting date and one year from your comment. LOL New Year beginnings!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

***UPDATED VIDEO HERE: **kzbin.info/www/bejne/hGW2gq2uib9kq7M*** For reference, you can download my YNAB beginner's checklist here: mappedoutmoney.com/ynab-checklist/ And here's the Quick Jump Sections for this video 0:38 The Lazy YNAB Way 0:53 Difference between the Budget vs. Accounts 10:51 The YNAB Savings Way 17:55 What to do if you don't want to budget your savings 19:11 The Tracking Way 20:09 Budget accounts vs. Tracking accounts 28:59 My recommendation for which savings method to use

[@Pottering12]

Thanks for this Nick. I am definitely one of those people who like multiple accounts and need to use tracking. This process has made YNAB so much easier and more intuitive for me. Thanks for the tutorial and all of your work in this space

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks Craig! Really glad that the video was helpful for you. Appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment.

[@dmitryclarke2127]

This was amazing! Obviously i'm doing the hardest option #3 but that's what i was looking for so now i know how to do it

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Dima! Glad that was the solution you were looking for.

[@landonmiller209]

Thanks Nick, these YNAB videos are a life saver. Really enjoying this fresh view of our finances. Keep up the awesome work!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Great Landon! I'm so glad the YNAB videos have been helpful for you. It's an awesome tool once you get the hang of it. I'm glad that I could help in a small way. Thanks for watching and commenting man! Good luck YNABing!

[@carolynmadvig4705]

I was referred back to this video (somehow I missed it!) with your mention of it in the YNAB and Profit First video posted this week. As a result, I've stopped working on the latter, and am going back in and changing some of my savings accounts to "Tracking" vs. "Budget" accounts - things like retirement, etc. You cleared up a HUGE question I had that seemed so weird - i.e., trying to budget monthly while dollars from EVERY account (including retirement, etc.) was rolling up into the total available! Let's face it, It's hard to make it work logically when you're showing $ as available that you KNOW you can't really spend! :) As usual thanks for clarifying a question I wasn't even sure I had! YNAB keeps getting better and better the more I learn. I appreciate it, and look forward to finishing the small business video after I move around our savings to the way I really want it! Carolyn & Don Madvig

[@nicolebabcock1977]

This is a GREAT video. I learned exactly what I wanted to figure out. Thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks! Glad it helped

[@missdarajay]

Your videos are extremely helpful. I was almost ready to give up. Thanks!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Well good Dara! So glad that the videos have been helpful for you :)

[@gamer386]

Thank you! This gave me some insight and allowed me to simplify my budget a bit. I never thought to deal with my children's allowance accounts and my HSA as tracking accounts. So much easier!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Jenny Larue yes! That’s so great Jenny :) I’m glad to hear that. You’re absolutely right about kids allowance and HSA. Those work a lot better as tracking accounts :)

[@chee1989]

I been using the tracking way for years on YNAB4 and now just recently found your channel. very informative since I found out there are other ways to use YNAB

[@mappedoutmoney]

Great Kirin! Really happy to hear that the videos have been helpful for you. Super appreciate the comment too!

[@GreysonDKB]

This is another great YNaB tutorial. I tried and failed at YNaB twice on my own. On the third try I got it down with help from your excellent videos! I am gonna be a YNaB budgeting monster, now. Thanks again. #liked #subscribed

[@Joeylikecoffee]

This video seriously cleared up my confusion from the first tutorial. I’m thinking, why the hell do I need to budge all of my money, I only want to budget the checking account. Anyway, thank you thank you.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome, so glad that helped!

[@stevenle6811]

THANK YOU! I was confused a few weeks in not realizing I was in the first method that didn't rub my conscience right when my balances weren't lining up. I'm using 2 savings accounts in addition to 1 joint savings. So method three will work with me since my wife adds into our joint savings and I'd like that to be outside my budget. Great clarification. You need to get sponsored Nick. Cheers. Slowly going through your videos!

[@Jace30981]

This video was SOOOO helpful. Method #2 will make it so easy to track different goals. Thanks!

[@freya7084]

This is a great idea matching the emergency account to the emergency savings and the other savings account to other savings. I’ll short this out in mine now, as I have two saving accounts (physical) and I want to start my emergency fund and save money for other stuff :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Iratxe! So glad that the video was helpful for you. Really appreciate the comment and you taking time to let me know. That means a lot :)

[@greggschroeder]

Wow, this is great - it's given me insight as to how to handle my freelance income, which I currently keep completely separate (paying myself a monthly salary). There are tedious overlaps (like, when I pay for a business taxi I don't carry a business coin purse around - it comes from my personal wallet and then I have to reimburse myself and I'm giving myself a headache just typing about it). Once I get the hang of this (it's my first few YNAB days!), I may add a business account as a separate Tracking bucket.

[@MartinVelichkov-rs8in]

Nick, I am grateful for your work doing these videos. You have a way of explaining that makes it so easy for me to understand YNAB.💯 I have been using YNAB for almost a month so far and the third option (The tracking one) really clicks for me.

[@chuckycol]

Nick, one thing missed. The tracking way is simpler if you start from scratch and you have 0 savings to start off. If you already have savings and you set up the starting budget then you won't have a "spending" for this. If you were to spend the money and do a transfer it won't show up in the reports. The only way would be to: 1. Add 10K (example) to your checkings as a virtual starting money 2. Create the tracking account 3. Set spending category immediately and transfer to tracking. This might be really hard because you may not know in what you are spending this.

[@wissensagentur]

Wohoo! That was AMAZING! I've never got the thing with on and off budget accounts correctly. I've created a "inbetween-categorie" to get this outside the budget and back to the budget thing work. Thank you so much for your clear explanation! Greetings from Germany ;)

[@homerenjan]

Best explanation Nick! I use the 3rd way and keeps things separate since I do the profit first method and set up automatic bank transfers to different accounts.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Nice! Awesome job Eric. Super glad that you found a way that works for you. Thanks for taking the time to comment.

[@michellemackay336]

Thank you for this. This has really cleared everything up for me and how to use YNAB to match the way I have been budgeting in real life. Now, YNAB really works for me and my family's financial goals

[@ritzzemog]

Thanks for your videos Nick. I'm 2 weeks into the YNAB journey and your videos have been a God-send. Question: When you say you have multiple savings accounts, do you mean "different" savings accounts as opposed to Ally's one savings account with different "buckets". I have the latter (Ally with buckets).

[@mappedoutmoney]

Ahhh, good question. I would treat Ally with Buckets as multiple savings accounts. Even though they "aren't technically" they are as far as YNAB is concerned. So for the language of this video, the buckets would be comparable to separate accounts. Hope that makes sense!

[@vanessatanicien3267]

Thanks for this tutorial! You've been instrumental in helping me understand YNAB. This video was exactly was what I was getting stuck on. I appreciate having the savings accounts outside of the budget so I can strictly focus on spending what comes into the account. This is especially true since I have my paycheck's direct deposit split into many different savings accounts.

[@nosirrahm]

This is what I have too. It was so confusing and creating all these category groups. I have 2 checking and multiple savings accounts some that are funded directly from my paycheck. There’s one account I didn’t even add (a 3rd checking/savings 🤦🏽‍♀️ that is totally offline as it is what I use for vacation spending). Nick has given me the idea to keep a SEPARATE budget for that account to maintain vacation spending so I’m not a Queen on days 1-3 and a pauper on days 5-6. 🥴

[@CornflowerBlues5]

This was incredibly helpful! Thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks Elmi!

[@nectarinepie952]

Thanks for another great video. I use a mix of methods 1 and 3: Method 1 for short-term savings goals, method 3 for long-term savings/investments (true "do not touch" accounts). The example in method 3 where someone would actually spend the amount in that tracking account seems messy to me. That person probably should use one of the first two methods, in my opinion!

[@itsGabrielaCristina]

Thank you! I was doing it the “Lazy Way” but I actually prefer the YNAB way. I have one savings account for my big Savings Goals and one for my True Expenses, so having those separate category groups is very helpful

[@grantmcalpine6364]

Love your videos Nick. I love using method 3 and have been doing so for years. A great explanation of all the methods. You are an incredible You Tuber. Cheers.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Grant McAlpine thanks man! I really appreciate that. It means a ton. Glad you’ve been able to make method 3 work for you! That’s awesome. Keep up the YNABing my friend.

[@thouyang9314]

Awesome... new to YNAB and watched your Quick Start video.. during the Quick Start video was thinking to myself how the money in accounts were tracked into the categories? --this video answered my question!

[@bajadevi7027]

Thank you so much! I have been struggling to figure out that last method and you explained it perfectly!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Baja! I'm so happy that this video helped you and solved that last method for you :) Good luck! And happy YNABing!

[@courtneymiller2768]

Your video was what turned me on to YNAB- I only wish I noticed you have an affiliate link for 2 months free! I already signed up for 1 free month :( I've been saying I'll get better at tracking money forever... and I'm hoping this will be the tool that helps me change- along with your videos! Thanks again for being so thorough and helping everyone!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Ah, well dang. At least you're getting it figured out now. Thanks so much for taking the time to watch and comment. I'm so glad that the videos have been helpful for you! :)

[@ChristopherHelkey]

This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you, Nick, for making the world a better place :) Now my savings are in a tracking account and I like that my savings payments are reflected in the reports each month.

[@mariagault1278]

Genius! I was struggling with how to handle my savings in YNAB. I wanted an account where I kept a bucket of money that would not be available for budgeting unless I moved it to my checking account. But of course YNAB is not set up that way, which is fine. Your explanations make it so clear and easy on how I can accomplish that. I also had entries where I would move money from checking to savings every month to grow that account. Talk about confusing, trying to keep all the transactions straight! I was about to delete all my savings accounts from YNAB and give up! Thank you, thank you!

[@mappedoutmoney]

haha, I TOTALLY know what you're saying Maria! So glad that this helped you out :) I really appreciate you taking the time to comment and share that it helped. That means a ton to me. Good luck YNABing! Glad you're here!

[@gregandcindylaporte4479]

Fantastic Video Nick!! I just started on YNAB in the beginning of this month..I am very engaged with this process and hoping to reach my goals in a faster way. So I chose to follow your option 2. I have a Savings Acct and I created a Christmas goal of about 50.00 per month. I bank with BofA and I want to leverage my "Keep the Change" option as part of the funding for my monthly goal. So if I moved, let's say, 20.00 throughout the month via "Keep the Change", I will budget the remainder to achieve that Goal from my checking to Savings just as you explained on your video. So far everyday there is an outflow from Checking into my Savings Acct with a Payee named "Keep the change" along with a Christmas Savings Category (makes sense) and then the next day I have Savings Inflow with the same Payee and Category (again makes sense). I am reconciling by EOD to the penny (Finally every penny or dollar is being accounted for). However, the issue I am now encountering, is that the balance of my Savings Account inside the Budget on the left side, is not matching with the overall Balance of the Savings inside my Budget. What I found out is when I click on the Christmas Savings Activity field, I am seeing both the Debits (from Checking) and Credits(Savings) which basically nets out to 0.00. I see that you explained the process around the 14 min mark, but I am accounting for the Outflow from my Checking automatically so I do not need to do the manual entry. Any insight would be much appreciated. Some other Online comments mentioned to cancel the Keep the Change feature, and just budget the money straight forward. I would hope YNAB could account for this option, and maybe it is a Payee or Category assignment issue on my part. Again, thanks for making all these videos, and I will reviewing more of them.

[@KarlaKoebernick]

Thanks, Nick. I put off joining YNAB because of the multiple savings and transfers. When I asked them about it, they said how about just use one, though? I'm more ready to do that now, but it's so helpful to see you delineate the options through to reporting.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Karla! I totally understand that struggle for not liking the way they handle savings and transfers. I’m glad the video helped you see the multiple options you have! Let me know if there’s anything I can help with!

[@Dmitrioligy]

ayyyyyy method 3. Hell yes

[@mappedoutmoney]

👊 glad that works for you!

[@nadia_salima]

Thank you so much for these tutorials! I’m so excited to start saving with my ynab budget :)

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Nadia! So glad the video was helpful for you :)

[@lisacarreno2915]

Thank you so much! This was very helpful. I have 3 different savings accounts and was getting very confused how to track the actual balances. Method #2 will work for me!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Lisa! So glad to hear that. I like Method #2 as well. So glad that it will work for you :) Thanks so much for watching and for the comment!

[@RyanVandeWetering]

EXCELLENT VIDEO!!!! thanks for all your help Nick!

[@katherineshipman8971]

Thanks Nick! I am so grateful for your VERY helpful videos. I am only a couple days into trying out YNAB and was getting frustrated. You are convincing me already what a great tool this is. Thanks! Keep up the fabulous work!

[@rachelspohn]

Maybe I’m not supposed to do this but I have my “savings“ category on YNAB aligned with my savings account. So any big ticket things like my emergency fund, buffer money, and house down payment all live in my savings category which corresponds to my savings account and the balance matches perfectly. Everything else in my budget which would include bills, true expenses or sinking funds, discretionary money… All of that comes from the checking. So I know in my mind most all of my spending is coming from my checking account… The only reason I would ever a dip in or do a transfer from savings is if I needed to use the emergency fund or once per month when I release my buffer money. This made it so much easier for me to keep my account balances straight.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey Rachel! I think this is great. It's sort of a mixed approach of what I explain as way number two in this video. This sounds like a good way to do it, especially if it works for you. No reason to change it. I think that's great. Keep on keeping on :) Thanks for watching!

[@OnyxLifeChronicles]

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[@MartinAlmond]

Brilliant video, shame I did not find this a while ago. I have been using YNAB for many years, before they even put accounts into YNAB. I currently have my savings accounts with a matching category in my budget showing the same balance, I had never thought of using the savings account as a master category and then giving the money a job within the category , another lightbulb moment, so my job today will be to sort that out. I also have some of my credit cards on budget and some off, I need to change them so they are all the same but there is no easy way that I know if doing it, other than putting it is as a new account but I would lose all the transaction history, a job for another day. Thank you though, fantastic.

[@ine388]

Nick thank you so much for your tutorials!! I have been using YNAB for 2 months and purchased it with your affiliate link!! Thank you!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Ines! I'm so glad it was helpful for you. And I really appreciate the support and encouragement. Just keep on keeping on! Good luck YNABing!

[@jims724]

Nick and Hanna's MappedOutMoney is a great resource-for learning to use YNAB and for other financial life hacks. Nick covers a lot of stuff so I have to listen fast. I have used Quicken for years. I could use Mint but like Quicken better. I have learned not to Link it to my financial institutions. I use the export function on my bank's (etc.) website to update my account files quickly. Excellent tracking and is clean and very little work. However, I needed a clean way to budget so I am exploring YNAB and I like it. I use both, one for tracking the other for budgeting. KISS.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Hey thanks J Swanger! So glad that the videos have been helpful for you. I really appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment.

[@adriankasa4339]

Beautifully explained. Thank you very much.

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks so much Adrian! So glad the video helped. Thanks for the comment.

[@jesselapadula9250]

These videos really helped me learn the program. Thanks for taking the time, Nick!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome Jesse :) So glad that it was helpful for you!

[@jcepri]

Thank you for suggesting changing the Savings group to Quality of Life. I had changed YNAB's heading to Savings and it was confusing me because I was equating it to what's in my savings account. When I changed it to "Quality of Life Planning" it clicked. ("Planning" because I intend to spend those dollars on the categories in that group.)

[@c0smoKram3r]

Emergency fund or anything not to be touched = 3rd method. Ongoing bitsy savings = 1st method.

[@thymers]

Nick, your videos have been my only resource as I have been getting started with ynab, and so I wanted to say TY! I have watched all of your videos at least twice, I used your link to get my first 2 months free, and I just thought I would let you know how much I appreciate your expertise! :-)

[@mappedoutmoney]

woohoo! Thanks Thyme! I super appreciate you using my link and using the videos to help. That means the world to me. So glad that they've been helpful for you :) Let me know if there's ever anything I can do for you!

[@richardspooner9349]

Nick, thanks for a concise and clear explanation of the three options, their operations, and how to choose between them. Really helpful! I have a question about how to move a category group's worth of accumulated savings AND history data (important to retain and build on!) currently using the Lazy method into a YNAB method savings account. I want to do this as it helps me answer the "Show me the money!" question I get asked for that category group's Available funds. Say the category group's name is "Vacation" with the group's total Available amount being $X. I plan to: (1) Open a new real-world savings account; (2) Create a mirror unlinked budget-class YNAB savings account named "Vacation" with an opening balance of $0; (3) In YNAB, transfer $X from a budget-class "source" account into the "Vacation" account. I will not adjust the date of the YNAB Vacation account's opening balance (to perhaps a day earlier than the earliest transaction in the group's transaction history); (4) Mirror that transfer in the real world. At that point, I hope that (a) the original Vacations group's transaction history is intact, (b) I do not have to rework any past transactions, categories, or balances, and (c) my real-world and YNAB Vacation balances will be $X, and my real world and YNAB source account balances will be $X less. (5) Continue to record transactions against categories in the Vacation category group according to the rules for the YNAB method in your video. Is that the right set of steps to achieve my goal or would you suggest something else? FWIW, I need categories under the Vacation group as I spend amounts at widely different times for specific things (e.g., pay for flights, book rental, prepay some excursions, etc.) and it is useful to have that level of budgeting and transaction detail.

[@Oatmaster]

Wow thank you so much. You have explained everything!!!

[@mappedoutmoney]

Well I'm so glad to hear that! :) Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@sarahirvin488]

Nick thank you so much for such a helpful video! I only wish I would have found your vids a year ago when I was struggling through figuring this stuff out on my own... I ended up figuring out the out of budget savings technique on my own and this video would have saved me SO much time and headache. Definitely will be recommending your videos to all my friends as I spread the YNAB word 😎

[@mappedoutmoney]

Thanks, Sarah! I'm so glad to hear that the videos have been helpful for you. I really appreciate you taking time to comment and share with your friends. That means a ton :)

[@pretty_flaco]

i love the tracking way

[@mappedoutmoney]

Awesome, so glad that one works for you!