Dave Ramsey’s Envelope System Explained: Pros, Cons and Alternatives
The envelope system is a budgeting method made popular by finance guru Dave Ramsey. The basic idea is that you divide your income into different spending categories, assign each category an envelope, and then use cash in the envelopes to pay for expenses. This hands-on approach can provide more awareness of spending and help some people stick to a budget. However, like any budgeting method, it also has some downsides. In this article, we’ll take an in-depth look at how the envelope system works, its potential benefits and drawbacks, and some alternative budgeting methods you may want to consider.
Contents
How the Envelope System Works
The envelope system aims to make budgeting more tangible by using cash and envelopes designated for specific spending categories. Here are the basic steps:
- Identify Fixed and Variable Expenses: Fixed expenses are regular costs like rent, car payments, insurance, etc. Variable expenses are things like groceries, dining out, entertainment, etc. where costs vary each month.
- Create Envelopes for Each Category: Label envelopes for each fixed and variable expense. Common envelope categories are:
- Rent/mortgage
- Utilities
- Car payment
- Car insurance
- Gasoline
- Groceries
- Dining out
- Entertainment
- Miscellaneous
- Determine Amounts for Each Envelope: Based on your income and budget, decide how much to allocate to each envelope. Make sure your total cash availability across envelopes matches your actual take-home pay.
- Withdraw Cash and Stuff Envelopes: On payday, withdraw the cash for each envelope. Stuff the money into its designated envelope.
- Spend from Envelopes: When you need to pay for something during the month, take money directly from the matching envelope.
- Track and Re-Adjust: Keep receipts and track what you actually spent from each envelope. At month-end, re-assess your budget and adjust envelope amounts if needed.
The key thing that makes this system different from a normal budget is the cash aspect. Having to physically open an envelope to get money reinforces spending limits for each category. It provides a visual cue about when funds are getting low.
Potential Benefits of the Envelope System
Using this cash-oriented envelope approach offers some potential upsides:
Increased Awareness of Spending
Having to take money out of an envelope connects you more closely to the spending process. You physically see funds dwindling which highlights what you’re buying. Studies show paying with cash can lead to reduced spending compared to credit cards.
Reduced Impulse Purchases
When all your discretionary money is split into different envelopes, you don’t have easy access to extra cash for random impulse buys. If the dining out envelope is empty, you can’t eat out unless you transfer funds from another envelope. This curbs spending splurges outside the budget.
Better Budgeting Habits
Being more hands-on forces you to learn better budgeting skills. You become aware of what categories truly require each month. Tracking what you actually spend leads to more realistic envelope amounts in the future. It gives you data to create a precise, sustainable spending plan.
Help with Saving Goals
You can include savings envelopes for short and long term goals like an emergency fund, vacation, down payment, etc. Segregating this cash makes it harder to access for other expenses. Automated transfers work for some savers, but having to lock money away in a labeled envelope increases commitment.
Potential Downsides and Challenges
While the envelope system sounds simple, people who have tried it report some disadvantages as well:
Tedious Setup and Maintenance
It takes diligent effort upfront to create accurate budgets and envelope amounts. You need to track all expenses and receipts closely each month. This can become a time-consuming chore, especially for people with complex finances or numerous transactions.
Security Concerns with Cash
Carrying large amounts of cash creates safety issues. Paper money can be lost or stolen more easily than digital funds. You may need secure storage at home to prevent theft from the envelopes. And if the cash disappears, it’s usually impossible to recover.
Limited Payment Options
Paying via cash is not always convenient in today’s economy. Many businesses require electronic payments. Rent and other bills typically can’t be paid in physical currency either. So you still need access money outside the envelopes.
Accountability and Willpower Challenges
For people with limited self-discipline, the envelope system is tough. It’s easy to “cheat” by taking money from other envelopes if you overspend in one category. Spouses may undermine the system if they don’t buy into it fully. And kids often lack the diligence for consistent tracking.
Difficulty with Irregular Income
If your income fluctuates a lot or you rely on bonuses/commissions, predicting envelope amounts is harder. You may frequently need to redistribute cash across envelopes to align with changing earnings. This diminishes effectiveness.
Alternatives to the Envelope System Worth Considering
While it resonates with some personalities, using cash-filled envelopes is too restrictive or cumbersome for many. Here are a few budgeting alternatives that offer helpful structure with less hassle:
Spreadsheet Budgeting
Creating a budget spreadsheet provides the same spending category breakdown as envelopes without physical money. Features like color coding categories and adding progress charts makes monitoring easier. Automating reports also reduces manual tracking needs. This works better for digital transactions. Popular spreadsheet apps like Excel, Google Sheets, and YNAB help streamline the process.
Budgeting Apps and Software
Technology offers options that sync directly with bank accounts and credit cards to automatically import and categorize transactions. Mint, Personal Capital, EveryDollar, and other apps make spending oversight and pattern analysis simpler. They generate helpful charts and timely alerts. Many programs incorporate envelope-style “virtual wallets” for dividing funds without cash. User-friendly design and educational resources also aid budget learning curves.
Zero-Based Budgeting (ZBB)
This concept focuses on aligning variable income with expenses every 30 days. You assign every dollar of net pay to spending needs, savings goals, or debt payments. Any money left over rolls into the next month. It ensures you direct ALL funds on purpose rather than just spending haphazardly. ZBB works for irregular cash flow and helps prioritization. Apps like YNAB build this zeroing out directly into their methodology.
The 50/30/20 Budget
This simplified budget framework developed by Senator Elizabeth Warren breaks spending into three buckets: 50% on “needs” like housing, utilities, transportation, and groceries; 30% on “wants” like dining, travel, and entertainment; 20% on debt payments and retirement savings. The system is less rigid than tracking envelopes but still provides helpful spending guardrails. And you can further divide categories into percentages that work for your income.
Conclusion
Dave Ramsey’s envelope system can instill helpful budgeting discipline and spending awareness for some personalities. But managing cash envelopes requires significant effort. And the approach is hard to sustain long-term for many people or households. That’s why considering digital budgeting techniques or simplified frameworks often works better. The key is finding a money management method that fits both your financial situation and personal preferences. So do some research to determine if the envelope system seems like the best fit or if another budgeting style aligns better with your needs and temperament.
Resources
- Reddit thread discussing pros/cons of the envelope system
- Video explaining how to set up Dave Ramsey envelope system
- Article analyzing research on paying cash vs credit cards
- Reddit user explaining challenges with envelope budgeting
- Video on how to create a budget in Excel
- Article comparing top budgeting apps