3 Clever Ways Microsoft Can Save You Serious Cash
Written by
Karen Doyle
Edited by
Rebekah Evans
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Microsoft, the technology juggernaut that provides individuals and businesses with the operating systems and applications they use every day, is not often considered when consumers are trying to save money.
After all, Microsoft and Apple combined have a near monopoly on personal technology. But there are ways that Microsoft products and services can save you money. Below are three clever ways you can save serious cash with Microsoft.
Also here are Microsoft products you may not even realize you use.
Build Your Own Budget With Excel
Budgeting apps are great if you need education and motivation to control your spending and increase your savings. But they can cost $100 a year or more. This may be worth it if you really need to gamify your budget, but if you already know what to do, an Excel spreadsheet can work just as well.
Do-It-Yourself Budget
You can create your own budget spreadsheet by creating columns for your income, your fixed expenses and your variable expenses. You can export your bank account and credit card statements in .xls format and use that data to track what you actually spend.
Standard Excel Budget Template
A budget template is provided free with Microsoft Excel. You can use this template that’s already set up for you by just clicking on it when you open a new spreadsheet in Excel.
Customized Templates From Microsoft
There are dozens of budget templates available in Microsoft Create, which is free to Microsoft 365 users. There are templates for individuals, couples, families, clubs and businesses. You can find specialized budget templates for planning a wedding or other event, for college students and many more specific situations.
Research Companies To Invest In With Copilot
Time is money, and one of the most time-consuming aspects of investing is selecting which companies to buy. Microsoft Copilot is an AI bot that you can ask for analysis of different companies you may be considering buying.
While you don’t want to blindly re-align your whole portfolio because AI said so, Copilot is useful when suggesting stocks to consider or when comparing a few different companies on a single metric. For example, when Copilot was asked, “Which company has a better P/E ratio: Amazon, Alphabet, Meta or Microsoft?” it returned a chart showing each company, its ticker symbol, its P/E ratio and notes on the relative position of each. If you are tempted to believe that an AI bot is objective, however, it’s worth noting that, of the four companies mentioned, Copilot returned a comprehensive analysis of only one of them: Microsoft.
There are several different versions of Copilot, but the free one you can access online is sufficient for these kinds of questions.
Get Organized With OneNote
Microsoft OneNote is commonly used by organizations for note taking and information sharing. But individuals can use it too, to track everything from grocery lists to subscription expiration dates. Being more organized can save you money in lots of ways.
By tracking your shopping list on OneNote, you are better able to stick to your list and avoid impulse purchases. With the OneNote app, it’s easy to jot down thoughts, ideas and reminders, like a reminder to get your car’s brakes checked before that small squeak turns into a bigger, costlier problem.
Saving money may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about the Microsoft products that we all use every day. But, when used properly, these programs and apps can certainly put some more cash in your pocket.
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