I love to budget, or at least I love managing my budget. For years, before YNAB, I’d budget by using accounts. I had many accounts spread across several banks. It was a lot to manage, but it kept everything very clear to me.

With YNAB, I keep everything in a single checking account. Instead of using accounts to manage my budget, I let YNAB do the heavy lifting. I pay attention to category balances instead of account balances.

It was difficult to wrap my mind around this new way of doing things. Once I did, it made my life so much easier.