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Quotes about budgeting can be incredibly motivating and inspiring, especially when you are feeling down about your financial situation. In order to help you get started on your financial journey, I’ve compiled a list of over 80 of the best budgeting quotes out there! This collection includes quotes from famous authors, entrepreneurs, and other notable figures.

So whether you are just starting out on your budgeting journey or you have been at it for a while, I hope that these quotes will help motivate and encourage you!

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What Are The Importance Of Budgeting

Are your credit cards maxed out or you’re drowning in debt? If so, the first step to getting control of your money and your spending is to make a personal budget. A budget is not just a collection of numbers. Having a budget is important because it allows you to track your income and expenses, which in turn can help you make informed financial decisions.

A budget can also help you save money and reach your financial goals. When you budget, you are able to see where your money is going and identify areas where you can cut back. This makes it easier to save for important goals like paying down debt, saving for a house, or retirement.

how much to save monthly

Best Budgeting Quotes

Here are some of the best budgeting quotes that will hopefully inspire and motivate you to get your finances in order!

  1. “I’m not telling you to create a budget because I want you to cheat yourself, I’m telling you to create a budget because I want you to treat yourself.” – Dafina Sharpe
  2. “A budget is telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went.” – John Maxwell
  3. “The budget is like a map of how your money is spent—it’s a tool to help you make wise choices.” – Suze Orman
  4. “When you create a plan for your money, you are giving your money purpose.” – Unknown
  5. “The budget is the financial foundation for all other aspects of our lives. It should be a reflection of our priorities and values.” – Ric Edelman
  6. “Budgeting your money is the key to having enough.” – Elizabeth Warren
  7. “It isn’t what you earn but how spend it that fixes your class.” – Sinclair Lewis
  8. “The budget is the backbone of a sound financial plan.” – Unknown
  9. “A budget is more than just a series of numbers on a page. It is an embodiment of our values.” – Barack Obama
  10. “Budgeting is not about penny-pinching. It’s about spending money on the things you love the most while cutting back on things that are not as important at the time.” – Dafina Sharpe
  11. “The budget is the foundation on which successful lives are built.” – Michael Dinich
  12. “Don’t tell me what you value, show me your budget, and I’ll tell you what you value.” – Joe Biden
  13. “Beware of little expenses. A small leak will sink a great ship.” – Benjamin Franklin
  14. “The budget is not just about dollars and cents; it’s about living a life that reflects our values and priorities.” – Ric Edelman
  15. “Don’t save what’s left after spending, but spend what is left after saving.” – Warren Buffett
  16. “The budget is the key to a successful financial future.” – Benjamin Franklin
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How Do You Stay Motivated To Budget?

Creating and following a budget can be challenging, especially when you are first starting out. There are definitely times when it is tough to stay motivated and stick to your budget. But don’t worry, you are not alone! Here are some tips for staying motivated to budget:

  • Find a budgeting method that works for you. There are many different budgeting methods out there, so find one that fits your lifestyle and personality. You can read this detailed article to learn more about different budgeting methods so you can choose one that best fits your needs.
  • Make a budgeting plan and track your progress. Seeing your progress in writing can be really motivating. When you can see that you are making progress towards your financial goals, it will help keep you motivated to budget.
  • Find a budgeting buddy. Having someone who is also trying to budget can be really helpful. You can support each other and offer encouragement when things get tough. Working on budgeting with someone else can make the process a lot more fun and help keep you accountable. You can find a budget buddy in my Budget To Freedom Society. It is a community filled with like-minded women all working towards one common goal—financial freedom.
  • Set financial goals. Budgeting can be a lot more effective when you have specific goals in mind. So create some financial goals so you can have something to work towards and be more motivated to stick to your budget. Make sure your goals are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound). You can learn more about setting financial goals in my article “How To Set Realistic Financial Goals You Can Actually Accomplish.”
  • Celebrate your successes. When you meet or exceed your budget goals, be sure to celebrate! This will help encourage you to keep up the good work.

The important thing we should all remember when trying to stay motivated to stick to our budget is a spending plan is just an expression of our values. It’s not meant to be a “financial diet” that should only cover our basic needs. If your budget is too restrictive, you’re not going to want to stick to it and stay on the right track.

keeping up with the joneses

So, the best way to stay motivated to stick to your family budget is to spend money on the things you love the most while cutting back on things that are not as important at the time.

Motivational Budget Quotes

Here are some motivational budgeting quotes to help you stay encouraged during your budgeting journey.

  1. “You can afford anything, but not everything.” – Paula Pant
  2. “You can’t save money if you’re not spending it wisely.” – Unknown
  3. “If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old.” – Peter Drucker
  4. “People who don’t budget think that budgeting means depriving themselves. That’s not true at all. A budget gives you the freedom to do what you want with your money.” – Jean Chatzky
  5. “If you buy things you do not need, soon you will have to sell things you need.” – Warren Buffett
  6. “It’s not how much money you make, but how much money you keep, how hard it works for you, and how many generations you keep it for.” – Robert Kiyosaki
  7. “Used correctly, a budget doesn’t restrict you; it empowers you.” – Tere Stouffer
  8. “Never spend your money before you have it.” – Thomas Jefferson
  9. “Budgeting has only one rule: Do not go over budget.”- Leslie Tayne
  10. “A budget gives you freedom. Freedom to do what you want, when you want, with whom you want. It’s about living within your means and making wise choices with your money.” – Jean Chatzky
financial mistakes to avoid

How Do You Encourage People To Budget

One of the biggest challenges when it comes to budgeting is getting people to actually do it. Here are a few tips for encouraging people to budget:

  • Make budgeting easy and accessible. Start by using a budgeting tool that is clear and easy to use. To help you get started, you can download my FREE Monthly Budget Worksheet. If you want more powerful tools for your money management, check out my Montlhy and Yearly Budget Spreadsheets.
  • Show the benefits of budgeting. When people can see how budgeting has helped you reach your financial goals, they are more likely to want to try it out themselves. So be sure to share your budgeting successes with others.
  • Make budgeting fun. Yes, budgeting can be a bit tedious at times, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have some fun with it! Try using creative budgeting methods like creating a budget binder. You can read more about how to set up a personal finance binder in this detailed article.
  • Make it a team effort. Get everyone in the family on board with budgeting, and make saving money a group activity. If everyone is on the same page, it will be easier to stay on track and meet your financial goals.
  • Start small. Don’t overwhelm people by asking them to create a detailed budget right away. Start with a simple budget and gradually add more details as they become comfortable with the process.
  • Use words of affirmation. Positive reinforcement can go a long way when it comes to budgeting. Compliment people on their efforts, even if they are small, and let them know that you appreciate the work they are doing.
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Inspiring Budgeting Quotes

Here are some more inspiring budgeting quotes to help keep you encouraged on your budgeting journey.

  1. “Success it not about how much money you make, it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.” – Michelle Obama
  2. “Each cent you apply towards diminishing your debt replenishes you.” – Suze Orman
  3. “A budget is simply a plan to ensure that you will have enough money to meet your goals and desires. It is a roadmap of how you intend to use your income.” – Crystal Paine
  4. “How we behave toward our money, how we treat our money, speaks volumes about how we perceive and value ourselves. If we aren’t powerful with money, we aren’t powerful period.” – Suze Orman
  5. “The budget is a tool that will show you where your money is going and how you can change it. It’s not about deprivation; it’s about prioritizing.” – Laura Vanderkam
  6. “More money can’t fix bad spending habits.” – Unknown
  7. “If you take control of your finances today, then you won’t be a victim of them tomorrow.” – Emily Stroud
  8. “Budgeting is not just for people who do not have enough money. It is for everyone who wants to ensure that their money is enough.” – Rosette Mugidde Wamambe
  9. “Success is largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.” – William Feather
  10. “If we command our wealth, we shall be rich and free. If our wealth commands us, we are poor indeed.” – Edmund Burke
cost of penny pinching

Other Money Quotes To Inspire You

  1. “Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life you don’t need to escape from.” – Seth Godin
  2. “Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.” – Henry Ford
  3. “Self-worth equals net worth.” – Suze Orman
  4. “Financial freedom my only hope. F* living rich and dying broke.” – Jay-Z
  5. “It always feels impossible until it’s done.” – Nelson Mandela
  6. “Success comes from having dreams that are bigger than your fears.” – Bobby Unser
  7. “I dream it. I work hard. I grind ’til I own it.” – Beyoncé
  8. “Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it, he who doesn’t, pays it.” – Albert Einstein
  9. “If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.” – Unknown
  10. “People first, then money, then things.” – Suze Orman
  11. “I’ve found that the less stuff I own, the less my stuff owns me.” – Nathan W. Morris
  12. “You will never know true freedom until you achieve financial freedom.” – Robert Kiyosaki
  13. “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin
  14. “We have to develop a healthy, honest relationship with our money. And we have to see this relationship as a reflection of our relationship with ourselves.” – Suze Orman
  15. “There is a difference between being poor and being broke. Broke is temporary. Poor is eternal.” – Robert Kiyosaki
  16. “Becoming rich is hard. Staying broke is hard. Choose your hard.” – Eric Worre
  17. “The most important investment you can make is in yourself.” – Warren Buffett
  18. “A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned” – Benjamin Franklin
  19. “Comparison will steal your joy and your paycheck.” – Rachel Cruze
  20. “Every time you borrow money, you’re robbing your future self.” – Nathan W. Morris
  21. “Lasting net worth comes only when you have a healthy and strong sense of self-worth.” – Suze Orman
  22. “When it comes to money, attitude is everything.” – Jean Chatzky
  23. “Always stay gracious, best revenge is your paper” – Beyoncé
  24. “Don’t tell me where your priorities are. Show me where you spend your money and I’ll tell you what they are.” – James W. Frick.
cost of penny pinching

Dave Ramsey Budgeting Quotes

Finally, here are some budgeting quotes from Dave Ramsey, who is a personal finance guru.

  1. “I’ve helped tens of millions of people get out of debt. The way you do it is a written plan—there is no exception.”
  2. “We buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like.”
  3. “If you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else.”
  4. “Winning at money is 80 percent behavior and 20 percent head knowledge. What to do isn’t the problem; doing it is. Most of us know what to do, but we just don’t do it.”
  5. “typical millionaire lives in a middle-class home, drives a two-year-old or older paid-for car, and buys blue jeans at Wal-Mart.”
  6. “It is human nature to want it and want it now; it is also a sign of immaturity. Being willing to delay pleasure for a greater result is a sign of maturity.”
  7. “To create big-time success you have to stay focused and stay intense over an extended period of time.”
  8. “Someone who never has fun with money misses the point.”
  9. “If you keep doing the same things, you will keep getting the same results. You are where you are now financially as a sum total of the decisions you’ve made to this point.”
  10. “I believe that through knowledge and discipline, financial peace is possible for all of us.”
  11. “70% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Seven out of ten people you walk past going down the sidewalk are broke. You can model your life after them, and you will be one of them. Or you can mode your life after the weird people. Because wealth is unusual. It’s not normal. So you have to engage in unusual behaviors and habits to create unusual results”
  12. “Fun can be bought with money, but happiness cannot.”
  13. “the borrower is slave to the lender”
  14. “Your budget is a reflection of your priorities.”
  15. “Debt is so ingrained into our culture that most Americans cannot even envision a car without a payment, a house without a mortgage, a student without a loan, and credit without a card.”
  16. “You should always be dreaming. Dreaming is a sign you have hope.”
  17. “There is no shortcut to anyplace worth going.”
  18. “If you want to be skinny, study skinny people, and if you want to be rich, do what lots of rich people do.”
  19. “Debt has been sold to us so aggressively, so loudly, and so often that to imagine living without debt requires myth-busting.”
  20. “Your generosity factor increases as soon as you take control of your money—as soon as you get the beast off of you. It’s hard to be generous when you’re worried about your own electric bill being paid. It’s hard to be generous when you don’t know if you’ve got the money for food.”
  21. “When you have money, you have options. When you don’t, you have excuses.”
  22. “A budget is permission to spend.”
  23. “Over 93% of U.S. millionaires are first-generation rich. They started with nothing and won. You can do it too.”
  24. “Earning a lot of money is not the key to prosperity. How you handle it is.”
  25. “Living on less than you make is a matter of controlling yourself, not a matter of math.”
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Summary

Budgeting quotes are a great way to get inspired to start budgeting. A budget can help you see where your money is going and give you an idea of what you need to change. I hope that these quotes have given you some motivation for getting your finances in order. If you’re looking for more advice, or want help setting up a budget, check out my community the Budget To Freedom Society.

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