
40+ Variable and Non-Monthly Expenses You Might Want in Your Budget

If you’re building out a budget for the first time and you’re being your best responsible self, you know the importance of taking those big non-monthly expenses/variable expenses/True expenses what-have-you and break them into monthly chunks.
Here’s a list of potential categories to consider.
- Water bill
- Trash service
- Gas bill
- Transportation costs (gas, bus pass, tolls, parking)
- Auto maintenance (oil changes, new tires)
- Car registration (license, tab renewal)
- Auto insurance
- Home maintenance (new roof, new hot water heater, new dryer)
- Renter/home insurance
- Health care (dental, eye care, therapy, doctor, medical deductible, etc.)
- Clothing
- Gifts (birthdays, anniversary, graduation, wedding, baby)
- Charitable giving (tithing, spontaneous donations, etc.)
- Computer/phone replacement
- Software subscriptions (Adobe, iCloud, Squarespace, gaming service, etc.)
- Entertainment subscriptions (Netflix, Hulu, Spotify, etc.)
- Vacation
- Gym membership/fitness
- Education
- Gaming
- Christmas
- Other Holidays (Fourth of July fireworks, Halloween candy, Mother’s Day brunch)
- Hosting
- Dates
- Beauty (hair cuts, makeup, nails, etc.)
- Property taxes (if they’re not rolled into a mortgage)
- Movies
- Phone bill
- Life insurance
- Warehouse membership (Costco, Sam’s club, Amazon Prime, etc.)
- Credit card fee (some cards have yearly costs)
- House decor
- Banking (interest owed or fees)
- Household goods
- Pet care
- Child care
- Kids’ Activities (piano lessons, summer camp, etc.)
- Kids’ Sports (travel soccer, lessons, cleats, etc.)
- School fees
- Braces
- Weddings (for yourself or others)
- Taxes
- Lawn care
- Stuff I forgot to budget for (there’s always going to be something…)
Did we forget anything? Let us know in the comments!
If you’re new to budgeting and want some help setting up your first budget, we here at You Need a Budget can help make the process as painless as possible. We offer a free 34-day trial so you can build your first budget while sitting behind the wheel of the BMW of budgeting apps. Ultimate performance. Sleek design. Premium upholstery. Ok, we’ll stop talking now. But really, check us out!