Online Budget Planner: How These Free Tools Help You Map Out Your Money
Worried about money lately? It's definitely a trend: A recent survey shows nearly 7 in 10 Americans say financial uncertainty leaves them feeling anxious and depressed.
No matter your situation, using an online budget planner can help you stay on track and regain your sense of control. It's a simple tool that can help you turn your worries into a clear, actionable plan to manage your spending, work out surplus income, and find areas to save more money.
This guide shares the most popular, free online budget planners out there, how to use them effectively for your situation, and why EarnIn's budget calculator1 offers unique insights most other tools don’t.
Why an online budget planner is different from an expense tracker
Unlike expense trackers that simply log past purchases, online budget planners help you forecast and allocate your cash before it’s spent, making the task of money mapping visual and actionable.
For families, an online budget planner tracks shared expenses, like rent, groceries, childcare, and utilities, so everyone knows what’s coming and how to budget accordingly. For young professionals, it’s about balancing priorities like student loans, savings goals, travel funds, or an emergency cushion.
Instead of reacting to where your money went, this forward-looking approach helps you see what’s ahead, avoid surprises, and stay on top of your financial goals.
What to look for in an online budget planner
Before diving into specific digital financial tools, here's what to look for in an effective online budget planner:
- Ease of use. The best budget planners make money management simple. If the interface feels complex or confusing, you’re less likely to stay consistent. Look for tools that work seamlessly across mobile and desktop, so you can manage your budget anywhere.
- Data inputs. A strong planner collects the essentials — like income, recurring expenses, and savings goals — without overwhelming you. The goal is clarity, not complexity, so you can spend less time tracking and more time acting.
- Key features. Tools with forecasting and scenario planning help you see how different choices impact your finances before you make them. Shared access is another valuable feature for households managing joint expenses.
- Free vs. paid versions. Many of the best tools offer free plans with everything you need to get started. Paid tiers often add extras like automatic bank syncing or detailed reports, but spending more isn’t required to build a solid budget.
6 effective online budget planners to try
Read on for some of the more popular online budget planners. These tools can turn your financial chaos into actionable, manageable monthly plans.
1. EarnIn's Budget Calculator (free, online)
EarnIn's budget calculator1 stands out because it benchmarks your expenses against real local data. Once you enter your income and ZIP code, you'll see how your rent, groceries, and other costs compare to people with similar incomes in your city.
For young professionals, this means you can quickly see if your rent or food costs are higher than typical in your area and adjust your budget to free up savings. The tool shows average monthly expenses across major categories, so you'll know if that $800 grocery bill is reasonable or you should aim lower.
Families benefit from the local context as the breakdown helps plan for recurring bills like housing, groceries, and childcare. That way, you can compare your spending to real averages rather than guessing what's reasonable.
Here's an example of what you might see for a single parent living in Los Angeles, determined by EarnIn’s budget calculator1:
Category | Typical monthly expense |
Housing | $2,770 |
Transportation | $700 |
Food (groceries + dining) | $800 |
Healthcare / insurance | $300 |
Childcare / education | $700 |
Debts & loan payments | $200 |
Utilities & services | $250 |
Personal / clothing / misc | $200 |
Entertainment | $150 |
Savings | $250 |
2. Schwab's MoneyWise Monthly Planner (free; online)
Schwab's MoneyWise monthly planner excels at mapping recurring expenses. It's simple and helpful, particularly for first-time budgeters who need structure without a lot of complexity.
For young professionals, it provides a simple monthly view to see where your paycheck goes and spot savings opportunities. The interface walks you through categories step-by-step, making it hard to forget major expenses.
Families can use it to break down housing, childcare, and groceries in one planner to keep shared costs visible. The monthly focus helps prevent the overwhelm that comes with trying to track every daily purchase.
3. NerdWallet Budget Planner (free, online)
NerdWallet's budget planner offers a free budgeting spreadsheet that focuses on what you earn, owe, and want to save. It's helpful for goal-based planning, helping you balance competing financial priorities.
Young professionals who need to balance income, debt, and savings goals in one place can use it to see how much they can realistically put toward different objectives each month.
The tool’s three-category approach (earn, owe, save) makes complex family finances more manageable. Plus, they can also use it to set shared financial priorities, like paying off loans while saving for emergencies.
4. EveryDollar (free basic, paid premium)
EveryDollar is a zero-based budgeting tool that lets you assign every dollar a job before spending it. It's discipline-focused, making it ideal for people who struggle with overspending.
For families, zero-based budgeting makes it easier to assign every dollar to bills, groceries, or childcare before it's spent, preventing money from disappearing into undefined miscellaneous spending.
Young professionals benefit from the tool’s discipline aspect, which helps them avoid overspending on lifestyle expenses by showing them how to make intentional choices about every dollar.
5. Mint/Intuit (free, app-based)
While Mint has transitioned ownership, it still offers expense sync plus an online dashboard. It works as an all-in-one money hub, automatically pulling bank and card data.
Young professionals can use Mint to automate tracking and keep lifestyle spending in check. The built-in alerts help you stay aware of spending patterns without manual input.
Mint is less ideal for families doing joint planning, but helpful if one person manages the household budget and wants automated alerts when bills or groceries overshoot targets.
6. MoneyHelper Budget Planner (free, UK-based)
Even though the MoneyHelper Budget Planner is UK-based, this government-backed tool demonstrates the value of structured, question-driven budget calculators — similar to how EarnIn's budget calculator1 works in the U.S. context.
For young professionals, MoneyHelper is a good demo of how to input income versus expenses line by line, with prompts that help those new to budgeting who need guidance on what to include.
For families, the tool’s category prompts (housing, childcare, utilities) ensure no expense gets overlooked, even if the currency and averages aren't U.S.-specific.
See how an online budget planner works in real life
Using EarnIn's Budget Calculator1, we entered the income and ZIP code for a young professional living in New York. The EarnIn tool returned average monthly expenses across major categories, based on people with similar income in that city.
Category | Typical monthly expense |
Housing | $3,400 |
Transportation | $130 |
Food (groceries + dining) | $600 |
Healthcare / insurance | $250 |
Childcare / education | $0 |
Debts & loan payments | $300 |
Utilities & services | $200 |
Personal / clothing / misc | $150 |
Entertainment | $120 |
Savings | $300 |
The results show realistic expectations rather than theoretical ideals. For young professionals, it’s easy to see if your rent or food costs are higher than typically in your city and adjust to free up savings. Families can benefit from the breakdown to plan for recurring bills like housing, groceries, and childcare, then compare spending to real averages.
This local context makes budgeting feel more achievable because you're comparing yourself to actual neighbors — not national averages that might not reflect your cost of living.
Try EarnIn's free budget calculator1 to see how your own expenses compare to others in your city and income range.
Helping paychecks go further
Bills hit at different times, goals change, and surprise costs can throw everything off track. It’s no surprise then that 8 in 10 Americans report financial anxiety, while nearly 79% say it’s worsened in 2025.
The right tools can make every paycheck work harder. Online planners and calculators help you see the full picture, make every paycheck count, and stay grounded — whether you’re running a household or just getting started.
From EarnIn's budget calculator to debt repayment and rent affordability calculators, these tools are designed to give more clarity and confidence in day-to-day money decisions.1
And when bills can't wait for payday, EarnIn's Cash Out2 lets you get up to $150/day, with a max of $1,000 between paydays of your own earned wages — with no interest and no mandatory fees — just optional tips.3 Together, these tools can help you plan smarter, avoid costly surprises, and keep moving forward.
Explore our financial calculators1 today.
FAQs
What's the difference between an online budget planner and a budgeting app?
An online budget planner helps you map out and manage future spending, while a budgeting app primarily tracks and analyzes where your money has already gone.
Are online budget planners free to use?
Many budget planners are free, including EarnIn's calculators1, while others like EveryDollar or YNAB (You Need a Budget) offer premium versions with advanced features. Always check the cost before you start using a tool.
How can families use an online budget planner together?
Families can use online budget planners with shared logins or linked accounts that sync across devices in real time. This keeps everyone aligned on spending, savings, and upcoming bills without juggling separate spreadsheets.
Which online budget planner is best for young professionals?
Young professionals can benefit from simple, free tools like EarnIn’s budget calculator1 or NerdWallet’s planner to balance rent, student loans, and savings goals early in their financial journey.
Which online budget planner is best for families?
For families, budget planners that manage shared expenses and recurring bills — like EveryDollar for zero-based budgeting or EarnIn’s Calculator1 for local benchmarking — make household budgeting more organized and effective.
Please note, the material collected in this post is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as or construed as advice regarding any specific circumstances. Nor is it an endorsement of any organization or services.
This Blog was sponsored by EarnIn. While the author received compensation, the information shared is grounded in independent research and intended to provide helpful and accurate guidance to readers.
EarnIn is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services are provided by our bank partners on certain products other than Cash Out.
1
The calculations provided are based on estimates and should be used for informational purposes only. Please be aware that comparisons may not be 100% accurate. The insights and data presented do not constitute financial advice, and we recommend consulting with a qualified financial advisor for personalized guidance.2
EarnIn determines your daily and pay period limits (“Daily Max” and “Pay Period Max”) based on your income and financial risk factors as outlined in the Cash Out User Agreement. EarnIn reserves the right to adjust the Daily Max and Pay Period Max at its discretion. Your actual Daily Max will be displayed in your EarnIn account before each Cash Out. For additional information about your Daily Max and Pay Period Max, please refer to our FAQ. Service may not be available in all states. EarnIn does not charge interest on Cash Outs or mandatory fees for standard transfers, which usually take 1–2 business days. For faster transfers, you can choose the Lightning Speed option and pay a fee to receive funds within 30 minutes. Lightning Speed may not be available at all times and/or to all customers. See the Fee Table for details. Tips are optional and do not affect the quality or availability of services.
3
Tips go to EarnIn and help us provide tools such as Credit Monitoring for free and keep Lightning Speed fees low. Your service quality and availability aren’t affected by whether you tip or not.
