Use Cash

• One of the best budget tools is to switch to a cash-only budget system for all of the categories where you consistently overspend. This will prevent your from blowing your budget because you cannot use your credit card or overdraft to make up the difference. In order for this strategy to work, you cannot take any cards into the store with you. Keep your receipts so you can see where the money has gone, and put the money from each category into a separate envelope so you can keep track of where you are with each category.
  
  

Debt Payoff Calculator

• There are many debt payoff calculators available online. This is a good budgeting tool because it can motivate you to find extra money to put towards your debt and speed up the process of getting out of debt. You will need to enter in all of your debts, the interest rate and minimum payments for each debt. There will be an option that allows you to enter in an extra amount to pay each month. Try putting in several different options and see how quickly you can pay down your debt and how much interest you save. Then find that extra money in your budget so you can get out of debt faster.
  
  

Emergency Fund

• An emergency is an important budgeting tool if you are trying pay down your credit cards. Emergencies such as car repairs, home repairs and unexpected medical bills will happen from time to time. Many people will put these unexpected expenses on their credit cards, but if you are trying to get out of debt you need to stop using your credit cards, even for emergencies. Put aside about $1,000 for an emergency fund, then you can use it and stop running up your credit cards.
  
  

Miscellaneous Spending Category

• Many budgets fail, and the extra money set aside for paying off debt gets used up because of the smaller monthly expenses that people fail to account for. This is not emergency spending, but it accounts for the smaller things that pop up periodically, such as school fees, gifts and other random expenses. Set up about $100 a month to cover these expenses. If you do not use the money, you can apply it to your credit card or roll it over to the next month.