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Build a personal budget from bank statements

Find where the money goes.

Estimated time saved

Estimated: a few hours of spreadsheet work. (Estimate; results vary.)

Tools
  • ChatGPT (data analysis)
  • Microsoft Copilot in Excel
  • Google Sheets with Gemini

The problem

Most people don't know their actual monthly spending by category.

Step by step

  1. 1Download 3 months of transactions as CSV (remove account numbers).
  2. 2Ask AI to categorize and total by month.
  3. 3Set targets per category.

Copy-paste prompt

Prompt
Categorize these transactions (groceries, dining, gas, utilities, subscriptions, etc.), total by category per month, and list recurring subscriptions. Then suggest 3 realistic areas to cut.

Review AI output before using it. Don’t paste confidential, customer or patient data into tools your company hasn’t approved.