The YNAB Podcast

Money shouldn’t be this hard—and it isn’t! Join YNAB founder Jesse Mecham as he dives into the essentials of spendfulness. Learn tips and tools to transform your spending into a source of joy, clarity, and confidence.

YNAB Method Overhaul... Not Really 01/20/2025

YNAB Method Overhaul... Not Really The Four Rules are out... the Five Questions are in! Well... not really, the Four Rules have just been transformed and clarified. As Jesse has pointed out in prior podcasts, the Four Rules were really just one rule, the first rule -- Give Every Dollar a Job. And that is still the master rule. To clarify what giving every dollar a job means, YNAB has come up with five questions: What does this money need to do before I’m paid again? (Reality) What larger, less frequent spending do I need to prepare for? (Stability) What can I set aside for next month’s spending? (Resilience) What goals, large or small, do I want to prioritize? (Creation) What changes do I need to make, if any? (Flexibility) These five questions are designed to give you more clarity about what you want your money to do for you, and ultimately how you want to spend your live. In a word, how to live spendfully. Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34906495

Advice for Procrastinators Not Wanting to Deal With Money 01/13/2025

Advice for Procrastinators Not Wanting to Deal With Money If you have been procrastinating about starting to manage your money, Jesse has a message for you. It's ok to start now, and start small -- and you don't have to be perfect either! Jesse has been using the YNAB method to manage his money for twenty years now, and he still hasn't reached perfection. But, he has become more in tune with his spending and learned how to create more joy in his life as a result, and he's helped millions of other people to do the same through YNAB. Jump in! Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34738535

I Stopped Using Credit Cards for an Entire Year. Here's What Happened 01/06/2025

I Stopped Using Credit Cards for an Entire Year. Here's What Happened Every year Jesse experiments with his money. In 2023 he decided to ditch his credit cards, and he continued that experiment through 2024. The result? His average bank account balance is up 18%, his time spent maintaining YNAB is down, and most importantly, money is simpler. He doesn't even miss the points and cashback rewards! Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34679400

If Money Were No Object... What Would Your New Years Resolution Be? 12/30/2024

If Money Were No Object... What Would Your New Years Resolution Be? It's almost the New Year, and that means it's time to make resolutions! Jesse loves resolutions, goals, and goal planning, and he has some advice for you this year. Before you start setting your goals for next year, do this simple vision exercise first. Imagine that money is no object, and you have unlimited funds to work with. What would you like to do next year? What kind of things would you need to arrange in your life to make that happen? Remember money is not an issue here -- if you need to hire someone to take care of certain tasks for you, or buy something to improve your efficiency, or anything else you can think of, you can do it! Write these things down on a sheet of paper. You have already started the process of thinking about where to spend your energy in the New Year, and wherever your energy is going, your money should be too. Now, when you bring reality back in, which means limited funds and resources, you have a clearer idea of where to focus those resources in order to help you reach your goals. Happy New Year! Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34646840

Don't Scrooge Yourself Next Christmas 12/23/2024

Don't Scrooge Yourself Next Christmas Ebenezer Scrooge is a classic Christmas tale, a tragic character who lets his insatiable desire for money blind him to the circumstances of the people around him -- particularly his employees -- and the spirit of the Christmas holiday. He didn't even seem to enjoy spending his wealth, only the accumulation of it. While Scrooge is not a good role model for generosity or charity, he did always pay his bills on time. Next Christmas you can give yourself a bill, or rather give yourself a bill now, and every month between now and next Christmas! Think of the things you want to buy and do next Christmas (not just gifts, but travel and cooking) and add up how much you think you'll spend. Divide it by twelve, and that's your bill to be paid each month between now and December 25, 2025. Then you can spend your money in a way Scrooge never could -- on gifts and family and generosity. Merry Christmas! Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34543290

Why FIRE is a Form of Procrastination 12/16/2024

Why FIRE is a Form of Procrastination The FIRE movement, which stands for "Financial Independence, Retire Early," has a long-lived and strong fan base on the internet. The idea behind FIRE is simple: figure out how much money you need to live on each year, then calculate how much money you would need to save up in order to live on the returns from your portfolio indefinitely. Once you hit your number, BAM! You're retired, and live happily after ever. Right? Jesse sees this idea as, ultimately, just another form of procrastination about money. When you put all your focus on the number you need to retire, you forget about the most important thing about money -- how you will spend it! After all, money has to be spent to be useful, whether you spend it now or save it to spend later. Saving until you hit a magic number doesn't help you get closer to figuring out what you want your money to do for you, and therefore how you should spend it. Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34463495

To Those Who Feel A Bit Behind 12/09/2024

To Those Who Feel A Bit Behind It's not too late! The first rule of YNAB's Four Rules is "give every dollar a job," and you can implement it right now. Take a look at your bank account balance, and think to yourself: what does this money need to do for me right now? What does it need to do for me in the future? Now you have started thinking about your future self, and being proactive. This simple step can change your life! Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34331735

I Am Not Even a Little Bit Frugal. Here's Why 12/02/2024

I Am Not Even a Little Bit Frugal. Here's Why Jesse grew up in a frugal family -- frugality for frugality's sake, as he describes it. As he has grown, discovered the YNAB method, and worked the four rules, he has come to a conclusion -- he is not even a little frugal! Frugality implies thrift, spending little money so as to conserve the resource. The idea is that spending money frugally is an effort to not waste money. YNAB's four rules help you identify the things that matter in your life, however, the things you do want to spend money on. And once you have identified those things, Jesse challenges you to double down and spend more on the things that matter to you. As he has mentioned in other episodes, money is just an extension of you, and if money is you, then why would you want less of you in the world? So Jesse is not frugal. Not even a little bit! Get your tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC. Tickets are ON SALE NOW: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34184845

What If Being Good At Money Is Just Skill Acquisition? 11/25/2024

What If Being Good At Money Is Just Skill Acquisition? It's common parlance to say someone is "good with money," but it's often said in a way that suggests some people are innately gifted with money management skills. Jesse punches back at this supposition. He argues that becoming good with money is a skill, and skills are acquired through habit -- stringing together a lot of days with good money decisions until the good decisions become second nature. You don't have to be perfect either! Jesse cites his favorite definition of intelligence, which is error correction, i.e. someone who makes an error, realizes the error, and then fixes it, demonstrates intelligence. It turns out, error correction is built into YNAB's four habits: rolling with the punches is the process of reacting to new circumstances by reallocating money as needed. Then, in the future you can plan for those new circumstances by embracing them as part of your true expenses (habit #2). Next time you catch yourself thinking "I'm not good with money," focus on making one good decision, then another the next day, then correcting your errors... until it becomes another skill you have acquired! Get your tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC. Tickets are ON SALE NOW: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/34116426

Infinitely Finite 11/18/2024

Infinitely Finite Most folks do a lot of mental math with their money. They see something they want to buy, they check their bank balance, and start doing some mental math on what other things that balance needs to be able to pay for before they buy the thing. The problem is, mental math gets very sloppy very quickly! Life is often just too complex, with too many variables to be able to hold all your future spending needs in your head at all times. It's too easy to spend the same dollar many times over when you rely on mental math. YNAB helps you do money differently. YNAB gives you a simple four step method for identifying all the things your money needs to do for you now, the major things it needs to do for you in the future, and, over time, getting you to start paying next month's bills with today's money so you can finally get ahead. Get your tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC. Tickets will go on sale on 11/18/2024 here: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33961587

Know Thyself 11/11/2024

Know Thyself Sometimes YNAB'ers talk about money being "boring." That is, working the Four Rules patientily, consistently, until managing your money becomes another daily habit. As Jesse sees it, however, there's nothing boring about working the method. Each time you work the method, and follow the four rules, you learn more about yourself and what you want your money to do for you. And there's nothing boring about you! Get your tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025! Coming to San Diego, Minneapolis, and NYC. Tickets will go on sale on 11/18/2024 here: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33857632

YNAB: The Long Con 11/04/2024

YNAB: The Long Con It is generally accepted that the market is driven by demand. What if YNAB was really just a long con to generate demand for quality goods and services... like toasters? Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33657147

Ask Jesse: Reading Habits, Debit Card Update, and More! 10/28/2024

Ask Jesse: Reading Habits, Debit Card Update, and More! Jesse's back with another round of Ask Jesse, where he answers questions in his inbox. In today's episode, Jesse discusses his recent engagement with Marx's Das Kapital (he gave up on it), gives an update on his debit and credit card usage, and explains how too much awareness around your investments can end up be a negative. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33636152

Error Correction 10/21/2024

Error Correction One of Jesse's takeaway from the recent YNAB Fan Fest in Salt Lake City is that YNAB'ers are good at iterating. They make a plan for their money, spend the money, and reflect on whether the spending was on things they were really looking for. Then, they adjust the plan. In the process, they're not just learning how to manage money, they're learning more about themselves. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33532452

Wielding Money Against Yourself 10/14/2024

Wielding Money Against Yourself We've all done it before, saying something to the effect of: "I'd love to do X, if only I could afford it." We have all cited money as the reason we haven't done something, or bought something we say we wanted. The next time you catch yourself saying this, Jesse urges you to stop and examine why it is you are blaming money for the reason you can't do (or buy) the thing. Is it because you really want to do/buy it, or because you're seeking escape from some other uncomfortable part of your life? If you really DO want the thing, but you're blaming lack of money for it, perhaps you are feeling frustration that you have allowed less important priorities to get in the way of saving for the thing. Whatever it is, money is not a good excuse for not doing something you really want to do. But, we blame money because there is some real friction we are experiencing, so it's worth honoring the feeling and digging deeper to figure out what's driving it. In that way, we can stop wielding money against ourselves and allow money to work with ourselves. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33443507

What YNAB REALLY Does For You 10/07/2024

What YNAB REALLY Does For You Bigger bank account balances, paying off debt, saving marriages... these are all things thousands of YNAB'ers have praised YNAB for helping them accomplish. But it's not what YNAB is about. Jesse explains: YNAB is really about getting to know yourself better, and making better spending decisions as a result. It's about reducing the second guessing in your life, and spending your money in perfect alignment with you. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33349812

The Paradox of Money 09/30/2024

The Paradox of Money Using YNAB reveals a paradox about money -- the more you engage with it, and spend time and energy on it, the more it gets out of the way and just let's you live your life. Money is you, so learning how to manage it really means learning more about yourself and becoming more in tune with your desires, your values, and your priorities. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter/X: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33231602

Money Gets Out of the Way 09/23/2024

Money Gets Out of the Way When you practice the four habits of YNAB, money just gets out of the way. In today's episode, Jesse reflects on his thought process about paying for kids' college. Where he used to be against it, now that he has kids in college, he is helping them pay for it. As he has talked about on the podcast many times, his thoughts and opinions change over the time; the podcast is a sort of audio journal documenting these changes. But the real win here is that because Jesse and his wife put money aside for their kids, they were able to make this decision without worrying about money. The money was not a deciding factor, leaving them free to decide whether helping their kids with college was the best decision for them. And that is freeing! Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33132597

20 Years! 09/16/2024

20 Years! Twenty years ago, in a galaxy far, far away... Jesse Mecham launched youneedabudget.com with a budgeting spreadsheet and a modest goal: cover the $350 a month in rent he owed for the next couple years until he and his wife graduated from college. Since then, YNAB has grown leaps and bounds beyond Jesse's original idea. In today's episode, Jesse reflects on the last two decades, thanks the people who have made it happen (most importantly YOU, YNAB users!), and wonders what the next two decades have in store. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/33065087

Money Ready, Spend With Joy 09/09/2024

Money Ready, Spend With Joy Jesse shares a YNAB win from his strength coach, Andrew, who is an avid YNAB'er. Andrew was shopping at REI when he ran across a pair of returned ski boots that were marked way down. They fit perfectly. Normally he would hem and haw over a purchase like this, but because he had been slowly funding a category for new ski boots the money was there. No stress, all joy! Barbell Logic -- Personalized Online Strength Coaching Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32915262

More Isn't More 09/02/2024

More Isn't More Many people bemoan the fact that they don't earn more money. But what baffles many who eventually do earn more money, is that it doesn't fix any of their financial problems! There is no income that cannot be outspent. Put another way, broken spending habits lead to broken spending, and when you have more money, that just leads to more broken spending. Now, there are people who have a legitimate income problem, but those folks are fewer in number than you might think. The solution for most isn't more, it's spending with purpose! Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32732377

Earning With Purpose 08/26/2024

Earning With Purpose The first habit of YNAB is to give every dollar a job. We tend to think of it purely as a spending exercise, as in, what do these dollars need to do for me? Buy clothes, groceries, pay the rent, etc. But Jesse points out how this process of giving your dollars jobs can help you find more meaning in your earning, not just your spending. When you know what your dollars are doing for you, the way you earn those dollars takes on more meaning, even if the work is not intrinsically meaningful. Beginning Balance Podcast Apple: Spotify: Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32732337

Tentacles and Rainbows 08/19/2024

Tentacles and Rainbows Money sinks its tentacles into nearly everything, and those tentacles can feel like, well, tentacles, or they can feel like rainbows. Jesse wants you to look at money and see rainbows, blessing all the facets of life that money touches. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32590167

You Need Frugality? 08/12/2024

You Need Frugality? Frugality is a virtue. At least, that's what many people in the financial space would claim. Being frugal is commonly seen as a good thing, presumably because it enables you to save more money. The environmentally conscious might see value in frugality as a means to reducing overall consumption. YNAB, one could argue, aims to make you more frugal. But YNAB is more interested in a deeper question: why be more frugal? The first habit in the YNAB method is to give every dollar a job. To do so, you have to know what it is you want your money to do for you, where you are aiming at. Saving money is a great thing, but YNAB encourages you to ask the question: for what? Being frugal is not an answer. It is merely the means by which you get to the answer! Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32537777

Give Up, or Downshift? 08/05/2024

Give Up, or Downshift? Jesse shares a story about taking a group of kids hiking, and coming down with altitude sickness on the first day. He could have quit, but he figured out a way to re-route the hike where he could safely get through. It's not so different when working with personal finances. It's tempting to just quit when things get hard, or road blocks come up, but sometimes all you need to do is slow down your plans. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32430802

Big Goals? Check. In the Meantime... 07/29/2024

Big Goals? Check. In the Meantime... Big financial goals are great. It's what we live for at YNAB! But, life happens in between those big goals, and Jesse reminds you that it's ok to spend some money "in the meantime." Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32304157

A Fun Way to Do Fun Money 07/22/2024

A Fun Way to Do Fun Money Jesse shares a fun way to handle "fun money" from long-time YNAB software engineer Kyle. Kyle suggests creating separate bank accounts for fun money with separate budgets as well. His method evolved from the desire to keep the visibility of fun money separate from his spouse, so they could 1.) take any judgment or guilt away from spending fun money, and 2.) spend on fun things for each other without ruining the surprise! Ordinarily, Jesse advocates for simplifying your bank accounts as much as possible, but Kyle is a veteran YNAB'er and his method may be a fun experiment for you to try in your own family! Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32233812

The Utility (or Not) of the Month 07/15/2024

The Utility (or Not) of the Month We organize our lives by the calendar, and the calendar is organized into months. It's no surprise then, that we tend to think of finances in terms of months -- monthly payments, monthly contributions, having 3-6 months of expenses saved. The month has a lot of utility, but it is an arbitrary division of time. Jesse examines how the month can be useful, yet also detrimental, to making money decisions. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32129082

Maybe Just Buy the Thing (and Costco) 07/08/2024

Maybe Just Buy the Thing (and Costco) Jesse waxes poetic about Costco and how simple their model makes purchasing decisions. He also brings up the point that we often spend a lot of time searching for the best deal, for that one hot tip that will maximize our dollars for a certain purchase. Our time and attention is a resource as well, and perhaps we should just go buy the thing, and be done with it. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/32042527

Let's Be Clear, I Hate Debt 07/01/2024

Let's Be Clear, I Hate Debt Jesse delivers a good old fashioned rant about the evils of debt. While he may have softened his rhetoric over the past decade, Jesse is no less serious about his distaste for debt! Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: Instagram: Twitter: Tik Tok: /episode/index/show/youneedabudget/id/31892757

The YNAB Podcast

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