This post is all about my March 2019 expenses. To see my previous reports, click here. I simply want to show that traveling (and living somewhere for that matter), doesn’t have to be expensive.
The month of March marked a completely new chapter in my life. I moved to Berlin –
Moving always feels a little scary, you know? At this point in my life, I’ve done it more times than I can count and yet, every single time, it makes me nervous, excited and all things in-between. Life in New York City was amazing and so was traveling the world for over 14 months. Berlin has a very special place in my heart and I am forever grateful to be here!
As I said, I am back at it and this photo shows my very first batch, after over 14 months on the road. I used my tried and true Herbal Shampoo Bar recipe and so far they are looking good. I gotta give them at least 4 weeks of curing through prior to being able to try them. Enough of that though, let’s get into it.
How I organize my expenses
I keep track of all my expenses and have been doing so since 2014. It’s something that I absolutely love doing. Keeping track of your expenses, is in my opinion, the best way to get a handle on your money.
If you don’t track your expenses you don’t really know where your money is going. Just give it a try! Trust me, it makes all the difference.
I use Google sheets and have been doing so since 2014. This is the template that I am currently using. If you want to use the same sheet, please kindly go to your Drive, you should find it under “templates”.
I amended lots of the categories and switched things around to suit my needs. The template is 100% customizable!
I amended lots of the categories and switched things around to suit my needs. The template is 100% customizable!
How to read my expense report
Frugal living is my default and keeping track of my expenses is, believe it or not, something that really excites me! Frugal living for me is all about living in alignment with my values, enhancing my experience of life and spending my time and money accordingly.
I am traveling the world on less than $1,000 per month and my current monthly average for all of 2018 is roughly $667.How do you spend so little while traveling full-time? I am traveling the world on a budget like a pro and I use creative ways to spend less on
My expenses reports will not list every single expense item by item but will list the main categories and my expenses in each one.
In the notes section, you’ll find more details as to what each category contained that month.
Interested in frugal living and its benefits? I’ve got heaps of videos about frugal living on my YouTube channel. I also have a handful of posts about frugal living on this blog (and plan to post a lot more).
These are my March 2019 expenses:
| Category | Amount | Notes |
| Rent | €550 | 1 month's rent + deposit |
| Household items | €106.40 | 1x standing desk (purchasing used ftw!), knife, silicon baking sheet, wooden spoon, metal bowl, klean kanteen bottle brush, broom and dust pan, 2x brushes for cleaning |
| Phone | €10 | Aldi talk top-up |
| Groceries | €160.18 | Tons of groceries in Berlin |
| Eating out | €22.06 | Tons of meals in Berlin |
| Public transportation | €81.00 | Technically not an expense. I'll get those €81.00 reimbursed at the beginning of April 😉 |
| Flights, buses & cabs | €87.00 | 1x Return bus tickets to Austria, 1x Return flight to London |
| Healthcare | €11.95 | Body Mate roller |
| Toiletries | €1.90 | 2x dental floss |
| Piercings | €35.75 | 3x beaded implant grade titanium clickers (for my septum and lobes) |
| Hobbies | €136.96 | soap making and DIY supplies (incl. oils) |
| Gifts | €6 | It's a secret |
| Miscellaneous | €0.50 | Toilet fee |
| Total: | €1,209.70 |
That was it for my March 2019 expenses.
As you can see, I needed quite a few things to set myself up. That’s the thing with moving a lot and with moving from one country to the other. It’s not cost-effective to 1) own household stuff and neither is it cost effective if you do happen to own some stuff, to 2) take it with you.
Buying only what I really need and making buying used my default keeps these costs relatively low. Moving a ton and having to re-purchase household stuff every single time? No problem if done in a sustainable manner 😉
From April onwards my monthly budget is going to be 730 Euros/month. Comment down below if you’d love to see a more detailed break down of how this is going to go. While I am sure it will be a bit of an adjustment, it shouldn’t be all too tricky to accomplish. Frugal living ftw!
How’s your month been?
Comment down below!
More monthly expense reports:
Cool I noticed you do t seem to buy little things like water and of course no gas for a car or insurance
Author
I drink tap water because where I live, I am lucky to have access to tap water that is drinkable. I don’t drive a car and, therefore, don’t have any costs associated with car rentals or ownership! 🙂
Hi Nina,
Thank you for sharing. I was just marvelling at how well my budgeting was going when I thought to see what you had been up to.
It is a lot to get my head around [on the whole that is]. You certainly lead an interesting life. I will take away with me this time [to build on progress so far] the itemisation of expenses. While I can stick to a budget and get from A to B with most things, I have been sort of winging the in-between with regards to food and miscellaneous/unplanned expenses.
Keep going with those soaps!