Couples budgeting · Option 1 · Recommended

Joint, with money of your own

This is the approach we recommend, and the one the couples budgeting guide makes the case for. Both paycheques go into one joint account, you plan the shared spending together, and each of you gets a personal amount that's yours to spend, no questions asked.

How it works

  1. Combine all income. Both paycheques go into a joint chequing account, so every dollar starts in the same place.
  2. Plan shared expenses together. At a short monthly meeting, give every dollar a job: bills first, then debt and savings. Big joint purchases get talked through, and savings are shared.
  3. Budget for personal spending. Each of you gets a set amount every month, moved to an account of your own. Spend it, save it, or let it roll over.

The personal amount can be equal, or based on each person's income. We recommend equal: it reinforces the idea that it's all “our” money, whoever earns more.

Is it right for you?

It suits most couples who share a household. You work as a team on everything that matters to both of you, and each of you still has money that's entirely your own, so small personal purchases never need a conversation.

Putting it together: Alex and Sam in Dollero

Alex earns $4,500 a month after tax and Sam earns $3,000. Here's how they set this up in Dollero: one shared Household budget for everything they plan together, and a personal budget each for the $300 that's theirs to spend.

  1. Create a shared Household budget

    Open the app menu and choose New Budget. Name it Household and set the type to Shared, so you both see and edit it. Then invite your partner from Household Members in the same menu. You each sign in with your own login, on your own devices.

    The Create Budget Profile window with the name Household, currency CAD and the budget type set to Shared

  2. Send both paychecks to the joint account

    Add your joint account to the Household budget. Both paychecks land there, so every dollar starts in the same place: Alex's $2,250 and Sam's $1,500, twice a month, for $7,500 in total.

    The Joint Chequing account in the Household budget, listing shared purchases and both partners' paychecks on the 15th as income

  3. Plan the month together

    At their monthly budget meeting, Alex and Sam give every dollar a job: bills first, then debt and savings. Their personal money gets a category of its own too, Alex's Spending and Sam's Spending, at $300 each. When Available to budget reaches $0, the whole $7,500 has a plan.

    The Household budget for September with $0.00 available to budget. Categories are grouped into Home, Everyday, Debt, Savings and Personal Spending, with $300 budgeted for each partner

  4. Create a personal budget for each of you

    Each partner creates a Personal budget with an account of their own, here Alex's Chequing and Sam's Chequing. Turn on Mask this budget if you'd rather your partner didn't see the details. It's your money, so nobody needs to review it.

    The Create Budget Profile window with the name Alex's Budget, the budget type set to Personal and Mask this budget turned on

  5. Move each person's money across

    Once the paychecks are in, open the joint account and choose Add Transfer. Under To Account, the Transfer to other profiles group lists the accounts in your other budgets. Pick Alex's Budget: Alex's Chequing, take the money from the Alex's Spending category, and send it to Income so it shows up in Alex's budget ready to plan. Repeat for Sam.

    The Add Transfer window for $300 from Joint Chequing, with the To Account list open on Transfer to other profiles, showing Alex's Budget and Sam's Budget
    The completed Add Transfer window: $300 from Joint Chequing to Alex's Budget: Alex's Chequing, from the Alex's Spending category to Income

  6. See it arrive

    In Alex's budget, the $300 shows up as Transfer from Household. Both budgets stay balanced: Alex's Spending in the Household budget is spent, and Alex has $300 more to plan.

    Alex's Chequing on a phone, with a $300 Transfer from Household on September 1 among Alex's coffee and game purchases

  7. Plan your own money your own way

    Each of you budgets your $300 however you like. Alex splits it between coffee, games and going out. Sam puts $200 a month toward a new bike, and because unspent money rolls over, that category has already grown to $600. Neither has to justify those choices.

    Alex's budget on a phone for September: $300 budgeted across Coffee, Games and Going Out, with $0.00 left to budget
    Sam's budget for September: $200 to New Bike, which has a $600 balance, plus Yoga and Books

  8. Spend from the right budget

    Shared costs go in the Household budget. Groceries, for example, come out of the joint account under Groceries. Personal purchases go in your own budget, so Alex records a coffee on his phone against Alex's Chequing. That's the whole system: the Household budget covers what you share, and your personal budget is yours.

    The Add Transaction window in the Household budget: an $86.40 outflow from Joint Chequing to Farm Boy, categorized as Groceries
    A new transaction on Alex's phone: $6.25 to Balzac's Coffee from Alex's Chequing, categorized as Coffee

Getting started this month

  1. Set up a joint account and redirect both paychecks into it.
  2. In Dollero, create a shared Household budget and invite your partner, then create a personal budget for each of you.
  3. List your fixed shared expenses and total them.
  4. Agree on your savings and debt priorities.
  5. Choose an equal personal spending amount for each of you, and transfer it to your personal budgets each month.
  6. Put a 30-minute budget meeting on the calendar for the start of next month.

Your first few budgets won't be perfect, and that's fine. What matters is that you're building the plan together, and that each of you still has money that's entirely your own.

The other options

Start your couples budget today

Free during the beta, private, and ready to use in your browser.

Join the free beta