Freelance income doesn’t arrive on a schedule, but your rent does. This spreadsheet uses the “pay yourself a salary” method: every payment goes into a buffer, a tax percentage is set aside automatically, and you pay yourself the same amount every month. Good months refill the buffer and slow months draw it down, so you always know how many months of runway you have.

Made for freelancers, contractors, creators, gig and platform workers, seasonal workers, and anyone with commission or variable pay.

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WHAT’S INCLUDED
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1 spreadsheet file (.xlsx) with:

• Start Here: how the system works plus step-by-step setup
• Dashboard: pick a month to see income, tax set aside, salary, spending, buffer and runway, plus budget vs actual by category. Charts: uneven income vs steady salary, buffer balance by month, and income mix
• Setup: year, tax set-aside %, starting buffer, buffer goal and your own income categories
• Income Log: date, client/source, category, gross, fees. Net income, tax set-aside and take-home are calculated. Mark invoices “Expected” to forecast without counting them yet
• Baseline Budget: monthly costs tagged Essential / Flexible / Savings, with your bare-bones and full-budget totals
• Spending Log: track spending by budget category
• Pay Yourself: salary calculator based on your real income history (average, lowest and highest month) and your budget, with a recommended salary, buffer goal, runway and a progress bar
• Tax Set-Aside: reserved vs paid for each estimated-tax period (defaults to US IRS quarterly dates, editable for your country), next due date, and a tax payment log
• Monthly Ledger: an automatic month-by-month view of income, fees, tax, buffer in/out, salary paid and runway

Sample data is shaded yellow and marked as an example. Delete it and enter your own.

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HOW TO USE IT
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Google Sheets (free): Upload the .xlsx to Google Drive, open it with Google Sheets, then File > Save as Google Sheets. Formulas, dropdowns, colour rules and charts carry over (chart styling may look a little different).
Excel: Open the file directly. Works in Excel 2019, 2021 and Microsoft 365, and in LibreOffice Calc. No macros.

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GOOD TO KNOW
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• The tax set-aside is a simple percentage you choose, meant to help you save. It is not tax advice and does not calculate the tax you actually owe. Ask a qualified tax professional what rate suits you.
• Not tested in Apple Numbers.
• For personal use. Please don’t resell or redistribute the file.

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This is a digital download. No physical item will be shipped. Your download link appears right after checkout and is emailed to you. You can also find it anytime under My Account > Downloads. Colours may look slightly different on screen vs. print.

AI disclosure: This product was created with the help of AI tools, which were used to assist with drafting the content, building the formulas and layout, and generating the preview images from the actual files. The files were then reviewed and tested before listing.

pay yourself

Irregular Income Budget