1. Budget

It might seem basic, but it’s important to create a budget. There are loads of different ways, but all of them look at how much money you have coming in and how much you can afford to spend on different areas of your life. This is essential for money management and financial stability.

Using a 50/30/20 approach is useful: 50% for essentials like rent, bills and groceries, 30% for clothes, meals out, etc., and save the remaining 20%. Be realistic about your income and use it wisely so that you can afford the essentials and still have money to enjoy yourself and to save.

2. Know what you spend

Make sure that you know what you are spending your money on. It’s easy to lose track and get a nasty shock when you check your bank account. There are a number of apps that can help you keep track of your spending including those from the banks, like Monzo.

Getting cash out at the beginning of the week and spending that rather than using your card is also a useful way of tracking what you spend. That way it’s easy to know what you have left to spend and what you’ve used.

3. Have an emergency fund

If you start saving and create an emergency fund, this will help you if anything sudden or unexpected occurs. This really can happen at any time and happens to everyone at some point in their life.

Keep the emergency fund in a separate account so you don’t accidentally use it for essentials or a holiday!

4. Plan your meals

You’ll probably find that a significant portion of your budget goes on food. Planning your meals in advance means that you only buy what you need when you shop, reducing waste and cutting down on unnecessary costs.

5. Compare prices

Always compare prices, not just on your purchases but also on household expenses like electricity and gas bills, your car and house insurance, and when you shop for groceries. It is easy to save money by switching to a different provider or to a different shop.

6. Credit score

A good financial tip is to start building your credit score early. It takes time to build up a good credit score and it will be useful when you buy a car on finance or you are looking to get a mortgage.

One of the ways of building a credit score is to get a credit card, but you need to use it wisely so as not to get into unnecessary debt. Only spend money on credit that you know you already have, then try to pay it off before the end of the month so you are not charged any interest.

7. Subscriptions

Do not waste money on subscriptions that you are not using, whether it’s a gym membership or a subscription to Amazon Prime that you barely use. Cancelling subscriptions can save you a lot of money without much effort and you can use the money for other things or put it into your savings.

8. The future

Planning for the future and saving money are extremely important even if it doesn’t seem very exciting!

Your emergency fund is important, but so are retirement savings or opening long term ISAs that will mature a long way down the line. Once you turn 22, a certain percentage of your earnings should go into a retirement fund automatically. This will show up on your payslip under the name of the pension organisation that your workplace uses. You can increase the amount that is paid into the fund if you can afford it.

You can split your savings and set some aside for short term savings, like a holiday, and some into long term savings, like an ISA.

Managing money can be hard, but these tips will hopefully make you feel more confident about your financial future.