As we roll into the final week of January, now’s the time to get your finances in a row. Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone; there are thousands of online tools and resources you can use. We’ve done the hard yards for you and have narrowed down our top four.
Get Sorted with this budget calculator
The budgeting tool by Sorted is simple: It works out the difference between your income and your expenses. All you need to do is input all of the money you have coming in and all of your going out (broken down by category). The calculator shows you the difference between the two, highlighting how much money you have leftover - a critical first step in sorting your saving or investing plan!
Prefer old-school methods? Try a budget spreadsheet
MoneyTalks has created downloadable budget templates that are easy to set up. Like Sorted’s online version, all you need to do is input your expenses and income, and you’ll quickly get a view of how much money you are left with each paycheck. Save the sheets to your computer or cloud storage and keep track of your progress. Their simple worksheet is a great place to start if you’ve never budgeted before. If you’ve budgeted in the past but want greater control of your finances, their classic budget worksheet is a great choice for you. Both spreadsheets, as well as plenty of other budgeting resources, can be found on the MoneyTalks website.
Sort your KiwiSaver quicker than you could make a cuppa
BetterSaver exists because our founder, Joe Taylor, was sick of the bloated and misleading information Kiwis had to wade through when finding a KiwiSaver fund. So, we created our Fund Finder quiz. In less than five minutes, you can find the ideal KiwiSaver fund for you based on your goals and ethics.
Whether you want to utilise your KiwiSaver balance to buy your first home, or you’re waiting until retirement, we’ll help you make the most of your investment.
Get the basics of investing down
So, you have a water-tight budget and you’ve found a better KiwiSaver fund. Now is a good time to start thinking about investing. The Financial Markets authority has a great overview of investing, which can be found on their website. It breaks down the different kinds of investments and how to decide which kind is best for you. It also highlights misleading marketing tactics to look out for.