My personal finances are a mess (I'm both poor and careless, dangerous combo), but my partner and I have a better system for our shared expenses, thankfully. W

My personal finances are a mess (I'm both poor and careless, dangerous combo), but my partner and I have a better system for our shared expenses, thankfully. We first did a simple monthly budget in GSheets based on monthly income and expenditures. We just looked at invoices and credit card statements averaged out over the last year. It only took an hour or two. Once that was done, one person pays all the fixed monthly bills (rent, ISP, etc.) The other person Venmos half the total. This doesn't change that much month to month, and we estimated conservatively (budgeted for more than we typically need) just to be safe. Variable non-entertainment expenses like groceries get put on a dedicated credit card that we pay off in full every month. We each contribute a fixed amount per paycheck to a separate debit card for an entertainment budget. When that's empty, we stop going out until the next paycheck. The Zeta card and app is great for this. ------ That works well enough for our shared stuff. She's paid off all her debt this way and still saves hundreds a month, despite making less money. On the other hand, my own finances are probably beyond hope lol, and bankruptcy is a likely possibility in the future. Between lifestyle bloat, credit card debt, and general financial illiteracy, it's just a bad situation all around. I've tried many tools, including YNAB, but never really found a thing that works. Wish there was a personal budgeting class or something I could take. I rarely have stable employment, rent, etc. Don't be like me, lol.