How to Get a Month Ahead With Your Budget

How do you get a month ahead in YNAB and start living on last month’s income? 

We’re so glad you asked!

As you get going with YNAB, getting a month ahead is key if you’re someone who is trying to break the paycheck to paycheck cycle. And it might take time, but you’ll get there.

What does it actually mean to get a month ahead?

Getting a month ahead means you’re fully funded on the 1st. On the first day of the month, the entire month is completely funded with real money you have in your bank account.

That’s the end goal, but you could do it incrementally. Maybe you want to start by getting ahead on your regular bills. That alone would make a big difference! Next, you could work on funding discretionary spending, then move on to non-monthly expenses, and keep going until you’re fully funded on the 1st!

Why is it important to get a month ahead?

Getting a month ahead with your money is a feeling like no other:

• You don’t have to time paychecks to bills.
• You aren’t worrying about late fees.
• You’re not paying for overdraft fees.
• You can use your credit card without any worry of falling into debt.
• Want to become debt free? This is a key step.
• It will be easier to achieve savings goals. 
• You’ll have more time to thoughtfully react to unexpected expenses. 
• You’re not afraid of what bills lay lurking in the mailbox.
• You no longer live with paycheck to paycheck stress.
• You’ll get closer to your financial goals.
• It acts as a mini emergency fund. You’ve saved a whole month’s worth of living expenses!

Getting a month ahead means you’ve built a cushion of cash that pushes you further and further from the financial edge. If you are trying to break the paycheck to paycheck cycle, getting a month ahead is like taking a giant step away from that pit. 

Imagine—the first of the month arrives and you’ve already saved the money you need for the month. Amazing, yes? And that means any money that arrives this month can be used for the following month. You are perpetually ahead.

Where should I physically put this money once it’s saved?

In your checking account.

How can I track progress toward getting a month ahead?

YNAB has a built in way to track progress toward getting a month ahead! On the mobile app, check the “Assigned in future months” section in the Spotlight space. You can see this information in the web app in the bar on the right side of the Budget screen when you don’t have any categories selected. There you can see a pie chart indicating how close you are to fully funding future months.

How to get one month ahead?

Well, first and foremost, use YNAB! The only money software backed by a unique money method that will help you achieve this goal. To get a month ahead, there are a few simple (but not always easy) steps.

1. Create a spending plan (it needs to be a zero-based plan to give you an accurate picture).
2. Fund your expenses for this month.
3. Once you can fund expenses for this month, start funding expenses for next month.
4. Rinse and repeat. Once you have all the money you need for the month on the first of the month, you’ve arrived!
5. Experience the blissful peace of getting a month ahead.

Many people consciously devote part of their monthly paycheck to get a month ahead. Many tell us that they devote any windfalls toward this goal to get there faster. And as they make progress, they’ll find other ways to prioritize getting a month ahead. Any extra cash in a savings account or extra income can help jumpstart the process. A tax refund, a bonus, an extra paycheck—you’ll be surprised how quickly YNABers achieve this goal! But even if you don’t rely on these things, you can still make steady progress. 

Once you’re fully funded on the first, the saving phase is over. All the money you receive in the current month can fund next month, so once you get ahead, you’ll stay ahead! You’ll always be living on last month’s income.

The key to getting a month ahead is prioritizing. Let’s take a look at a few months of a happy new YNABer as they work to get a month ahead.

Month One

In this budget, the happy new YNABer—lets call her Carla—started mid-month and came in just under the wire to pay their monthly bills. When all was said and done in February, there was just $25 left in their categories. $20 in groceries and $5 in transportation—shown in the green pills below.

Right now, Carla is living month to month, but she’s about to get a whole lot happier as she experiences the added margin of being a month ahead in YNAB. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. What happens next?

Month Two

Last month, Carla was just getting started in flexing her prioritizing muscles. In March, she started setting money aside for non-monthly expenses like the six-month car insurance payment, auto maintenance, and that expensive but essential yearly Prime membership renewal.

What’s happening behind the scenes is that Carla is learning to live on less money. It’s easier than she thought! Her money planning muscles are getting stronger and stronger as she reins in the spending that doesn’t actually matter to her. This means she can prioritize what is important to her. At the end of March she has $775 left in her categories!

Month Two: $775 left in the budget (this is a partial budget view)

Want this oh-so-beautiful budget software to do the heavy lifting for your month ahead progress? Sign up for a free trial and give it a spin!

Month Three

In April, something great happened for Carla.  She got a decent tax refund! But since she’s living on less, she didn’t need that extra money, and they’re focused on getting ahead. So she budgeted that money in May. How do we know?  Let’s click on the header.

See that $1100 assigned in the future?  That means our happy YNABer took some of that tax refund and started assigning it to jobs in May.  Sure, it’s not enough to fund all of May, but it’s a really good head start.

Now you may be thinking, “Do I need to get a tax refund to make this happen?”  Nope. Tax returns and other windfalls can provide a nice immediate boost, but you can do it any number of ways. Some people are paid every other week, and that means twice a year there are months with three paychecks. So they live on two paychecks and treat the third one as extra income to get ahead. Others start YNAB with some money in a savings account that doesn’t have a clear job. They can send that money toward the goal of getting ahead.

Look for those opportunities, take advantage of them when they happen, but even without them, you can still inch your way there.

Month Four

Let’s look at May.

Now there is $1,800 assigned for the future thanks to a positive tax return and cutting back in other places that didn’t matter as much.

Also, look at the total activity on the right—they’ve spent $3045 in the month of May. If they are spending around $3000/month and just pushed $1800 into June, you can see they’re getting close to being a full month ahead.

Month Five

This is what June looks like on June 1st—before a single paycheck has arrived.

She’s funded immediate obligations and debt payments. The student loan is covered. Groceries are covered. These dollars are ready to trounce on those bills the minute they arrive. All these categories are funded before a single June paycheck arrives.

Month Six

By the time June is over, Carla has managed to push $2,555 out into July.

Remember—Carla is spending about $3000 a month. We are so close to having a full month funded ahead! Her next paycheck might just put her over the finish line. And sure enough, by the time July is over, Carla has funded all of August. Let’s look at the new month!

Month Seven

On August 1st, Carla opens her August budget—again, before a single August check has arrived—and see this: green in every category. She’s officially a month ahead for the first time! WOO!!

The money she makes in August will fund September. The money she makes in September will fund October. And just like that, Carla is a month ahead.

This can be your story too. You can enjoy the peace of mind and financial freedom that comes from living on last month’s income—no matter your financial situation. You don’t have to learn some obscure money hacks, cancel all your subscriptions, or live on beans and rice. It just takes a plan, patience, and a little spendful attention. In the process, you’ll gain enormous peace of mind, more financial freedom, and wonderful money habits that will set you up to build the life you truly want. Will you try it?

Want to get a month ahead on your money, pay off your debt, and easily track your spending? Sign up for a free 34-day trial and see what all the fuss is about.