A free kakeibo template.
Print it, or open it in a spreadsheet.
Kakeibo (家計簿) is the Japanese household account book. You write down each spend and give it one of four labels: need, want, culture or unexpected. Then, once a week, you look at the four totals and ask yourself a few honest questions.
This template is the whole method on one month of paper. It's free, there's nothing to sign up for, and it works without our app.
For Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers
One row per spend: date, what, amount, bucket, note. Beside it, the four bucket totals, which Excel and Google Sheets add up for you, and a grid for the weekly review. Nothing to install and no macros.
A sheet for pen and paper
Paper kakeibo style: each amount goes in the column of its bucket, so the bottom row is four sums. Page two is the weekly review. Print it, or pick "Save as PDF" in the print dialog.
How to use it
- Write each spend down the day it happens. The date, what it was, the amount, and one bucket. If the bucket isn't obvious, leave it blank and decide at the weekend.
- Once a week, look at the four totals. Which one grew? Was it the week you thought you were having?
- Answer the four review questions at the bottom of the sheet. A rough number is fine.
- When the month ends, start a fresh copy. Keep the old one, so next month has something to compare against.
The four buckets
The examples are the categories our app files under each bucket by default. They're a starting point; you decide.
- Need
- What you'd pay for even in a quiet month: a roof, food at home, getting to work. For example: Groceries, Food & Drink, Transport, Public Transit, Fuel, Rent / Mortgage, Utilities, Internet & Phone, Insurance, Taxes.
- Want
- What you chose because it makes life nicer, and could have skipped. No guilt, just honesty. For example: Dining Out, Entertainment, Subscriptions, Shopping, Clothing, Beauty & Personal Care, Gifts.
- Culture
- What grows you, or someone you care about: learning, books, a trip. For example: Travel, Education.
- Unexpected
- What you didn't plan for: the dentist, a fee, a repair. For example: Healthcare, Bank & Fees.
The four review questions
These close each week on the sheet. They're the same four questions yen-yen asks in its weekly review, a feature for signed-in households.
1. How much money did you have available this week?
Starting balance, income, any transfers in. Rough number is fine.
2. How much did you spend?
Total outflows — sum it from your ledger or estimate.
3. How much did you want to save?
Your intention. Even ¥0 is a valid answer.
4. How will you improve next week?
One concrete action — cook at home, skip the convenience store run.
Where it comes from
In 1904 the journalist Motoko Hani (羽仁もと子) published the first kakeibo. More than a century on, the idea hasn't changed: write it down, give it a name, and look at it honestly once in a while. More about the four-question habit.
yen-yen is the same method, as an app
Tag a spend with one of the four buckets and the totals keep themselves. On the Family plan your partner sees the same ledger. There's no bank login: you type spends in, scan a receipt, or import a statement file.