This Is Why Most Budgeting Advice Doesn’t Work, According to These Money Experts

Delmaine Donson / iStock.com

Commitment to Our Readers

GOBankingRates' editorial team is committed to bringing you unbiased reviews and information. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate financial products and services - our reviews and ratings are not influenced by advertisers. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and our products and services review methodology.

20 Years
Helping You Live Richer

Reviewed
by Experts

Trusted by
Millions of Readers

Despite the common advice to start a budget, many people find it difficult to stick to a budget or feel like budgeting just doesn’t work for them. Rich & REGULAR, a popular money podcast by Kiersten and Julian Saunders, recently shared a fresh perspective on why most budgeting advice falls short.

Let’s explore why most budgeting advice doesn’t work and how a more flexible, realistic approach can help you take control of your finances and actually stick to your budget.

The Problem with Rigid Budgets

Many budgeting guides present budgets as strict rules that must be followed without exception. Kiersten Saunders likens this to making wedding vows to your budget, like saying “till death do us part.” Once you commit, you’re expected to stick to it no matter what. When budgets are too strict, people often feel guilty or ashamed if they mess up, which can lead to giving up altogether.

According to data from the 2025 Discover Consumer Personal Finance Outlook Survey, only 22% of people set a budget and stuck to it. This suggests that rigid budgeting approaches may discourage consistent use.

The Saunders said budgets should be adaptable tools that evolve with your changing circumstances, not rigid mandates that cause stress. When you allow yourself some breathing room, budgeting becomes less of a chore and more of a helpful guide.

Life Is Seasonal

Another common problem with budgeting advice is the assumption that every month looks the same. Some months will require higher spending than others. For example, you may travel in the summers, spend money on school supplies in the fall and pay for piles of gifts during the holidays.

“If you treat them all the same, then the high months become emergencies instead of just patterns that you can prepare for” Kiersten Saunders notes.

A solution to this is to budget on a quarterly instead of monthly basis. Also look at your past spending to see what large seasonal expenses will happen each year, and save in advance to pay for them. This way, you can manage seasonal money fluctuations without the stress.

Emergencies Can Disrupt Your Budget

Life happens. Major events like having children, losing a job, facing medical emergencies, or identity theft can throw your budget off course.

Rich & REGULAR stress that these disruptions are not personal failures but realities everyone faces. By giving yourself wiggle room into break your budget in case of emergency, you can be flexible and manage your money without shame.

This is one of the reasons that building a financial buffer by saving an emergency fund is so important. A recent Bankrate survey found that 24% of Americans have no emergency savings at all. For those folks, emergencies would completely disrupt their budget.

Building buffers and flexibility into your budget can help you absorb shocks without feeling like you’ve failed. Planning for the unexpected is just as important as tracking daily expenses.

One-Size-Fits-All Formulas Don’t Fit All

Popular budgeting formulas like the 50/30/20 rule (50% needs, 30% wants, 20% savings) are easy to understand, but Rich & REGULAR warn that they are not a one-size-fits all solution. At best, these formulas are guidelines that must be adapted to your personal circumstances and lifestyle.

If you try to rigidly adapt a rule of thumb to your life, it’s going to make budgeting miserable. Kiersten points out that, “You’re not going to get extra credit for sticking to the wrong budget. There’s no gold star for suffering through a plan that doesn’t fit your life anymore.”

In fact, they couple wrote adaptable money advice into their book “Cashing Out,” despite their editor’s opinion that everyone is looking for strict, specific and prescriptive advice, because they understood that one size does not fit all.

Share This Article: