The 50/30/20 method: the simplest budget in the world

If you only remember one budgeting method, make it this one. The 50/30/20 rule splits your income into three parts, and that's it.

How it works

You take your net income and divide it up:

• 50% for needs: rent, groceries, transport, bills, insurance. Everything you need to live.
• 30% for wants: restaurants, outings, shopping, fun subscriptions, travel.
• 20% for savings: your safety net, your projects, paying down debt.

Three numbers, three envelopes. Nothing more.

Why it works so well

Most budgets fail because they're too detailed. Twenty categories to track, and you give up after two weeks.

50/30/20 does the opposite: it groups things together. You only have three numbers to watch. Precise enough to stay on track, simple enough to keep up over time.

Adapt the numbers to your reality

The percentages aren't sacred. If you live in a big city where rent eats 60% of your income, your "needs" share will be higher, and that's OK. The idea is to have a reference point, not a rigid rule.

What matters: your savings share should never drop to zero. Even 5% is better than nothing. The habit matters more than the amount.

Put it on autopilot

The only real effort is sorting each expense into the right share. Done by hand, it gets tedious fast.

In Trya, your spending sorts itself automatically into Needs, Wants and Savings. You see at a glance whether you're respecting your split, without ever keeping a spreadsheet.