Spending Categories

When Your Pet Needs You Most: How to Make Money One Less Thing to Worry About

Life is hard enough without money worry. Erin shares how YNAB helped her navigate the emotional and financial challenges of end-of-life care with clarity, flexibility, and peace of mind.

Erin Lowell

December 16, 2025

How One Couple Used YNAB to Dine at 100 NYC Restaurants in a Year

What if eating at 100 restaurants in a year didn’t feel reckless—but rewarding? One NYC couple used their YNAB plan to savor every bite without sacrificing their financial peace.

Cora Van Leeuwen

May 27, 2025

What’s On Your Bucket List? Build It—Then Fund It

Your spending plan can help bring your wildest dreams to life. Explore how writing a bucket list is a killer kickstart for reaching your loftiest goals.

Jack Silk

May 8, 2025

YNAB Templates: Blueprints for Life’s Big Moments

YNAB Templates simplify budgeting for big life events. Import categories, customize quickly, and build a spending plan that eliminates worry.

Rachel Wong

September 24, 2024

Pets Are People Too: How to Prioritize Animal Care with YNAB

Celebrate pet parenthood with YNAB! Learn how to build a spending plan that reflects things you care about the most, Fido included.

Emily Hudson

April 28, 2024

How to Use YNAB Focused Views

Sometimes you need to zoom in on what matters most to you! The Focused Views feature lets you customize the budget categories you see.

Erin Lowell

June 26, 2023

Organize Your Budget, Organize Your Life

Organize your budget (and your life) with subcategories. Plan big life events, track spending more closely, and cut costs with more detail.

Ashley Gutierrez Siler

June 8, 2022

3 Budget Category Setups for Beginners

Check out these budget categories and three ideas for your budget setup. We've thought of everything so you don't have to.

Dan Cayer

March 16, 2022

This Category Naming Hack will Level-Up Your Budget

A little creative category naming can turbocharge your financial goals. Name your debts as villains, tie emotions into true expenses, and give your vice a category.

Ashley Lapato

May 1, 2020

How Many YNAB Categories Should I Have?

Wondering how many YNAB categories you should have? There's no right answer, but the best rule of thumb is to keep it simple!

Kelly Ross

June 27, 2022

5 Budget Categories You Need Right Now

Expect the unexpected. Level up your budget categories by adding these five ideas so that "unexpected" costs don't catch you by surprise!

Kelly Ross

December 3, 2019

Are Your Budget Categories Earning Their Keep?

There are two considerations that will help you decipher the precise number of categories that you need: simplicity and awareness.

Erin Lowell

October 10, 2018

Should I Add More Categories in YNAB?

If budgeting for a specific category (that you're not 100% sure is a top priority) attracts money, it IS a priority. It belongs in your budget.

Todd Curtis

March 22, 2016