Christmas Gift Budget Spreadsheet and Holiday Gift Tracker
$6.99
December spending sneaks up on most of us. A few gifts here, groceries and wrapping paper there, and suddenly the total is a lot more than planned. This workbook keeps everything in one place: gifts, food, decor, travel, cards and hosting, all counted against the same budget, with a Dashboard that shows where you stand at a glance.
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What's inside
- Christmas_Gift_Budget.xlsx: the blank workbook you work in
- Christmas_Gift_Budget_EXAMPLE.xlsx: a filled sample family (15 people, 31 gifts and 12 other costs) so you can see how it works before you start
- START_HERE.txt: what to open first and how to open it in Google Sheets
- Start Here: the steps in order, what the colors mean and a few tips
- Dashboard: total budget, spent, remaining, % of budget used, gifts left to buy and days until the holiday, plus 4 charts (budget vs. spent by person, spend by category, budget remaining vs. spent, and gift status counts)
- Setup: holiday name and date, total budget, how often you get paid (weekly, every 2 weeks, twice a month or monthly), your next payday, up to 40 people with a group and gift budget, and 7 categories for other costs you can rename
- Gift List: room for 200 gifts with person, gift idea, store, planned cost, price paid, status (Idea, Ordered, Bought, Wrapped, Given), date bought and notes. Each person's budget, planned, spent, remaining and gifts left to buy add up on the right
- Other Costs: log food, decor, travel, cards and postage, hosting, wrapping and anything else, with planned vs. actual by category
- Savings Plan: days, weeks and paydays left before the holiday, the amount still needed after what you have saved, and what to set aside per paycheck and per week
- By Store: every store from your Gift List with items, planned, paid and what is still to buy there
Who it's for
- Households planning Christmas or other holiday gifts
- People who want one budget for gifts, food, travel, and hosting
- Anyone who wants to reuse the same workbook next year
Details
This spreadsheet is for families planning holiday gifts on a budget. It works for any gift-giving holiday. Plan each gift, track what you spend, and see what to set aside each payday.
The download is a .zip with a blank .xlsx, a filled EXAMPLE for a sample family, and START_HERE.txt. The seven tabs are Start Here, Dashboard, Setup, Gift List, Other Costs, Savings Plan and By Store. Setup holds the holiday name and date, total budget, pay frequency, next payday, and up to 40 people, each with a group and a gift budget. Gift List tracks gift idea, store, planned cost, price paid, status and date bought. Other Costs covers food, decor, travel, cards, hosting and wrapping. Savings Plan shows how much to set aside per paycheck and per week. By Store is a shopping list for each store. It is reusable every year and works in any currency.
Open the EXAMPLE, then fill in Setup. Add gifts, log other costs as you go, and use Savings Plan and By Store before you shop. Type in the cream cells. Everything else calculates. It works in Excel 2016 or later, and in Google Sheets after you upload the .xlsx to Drive. There are no macros. Nothing is shipped.
Can I reuse it next year? Yes. Change the holiday date and clear the gifts, or start from a fresh copy.
How many people can I plan for? Up to 40.
Is it only for Christmas? No. It works for any gift-giving holiday.
Before you buy
Organizational tool, not tax, legal, or accounting advice. Not financial advice. It does not connect to your bank or move money; it only shows what you enter. Built by ReconciledBooksCo, a small shop run by an experienced accountant. Check with a qualified professional for your situation.
Excel and Google Sheets. No macros. Paid spreadsheet products include a blank file and a filled example, plus a Start Here tab in plain English.
Licensed for one household per purchase.
