Most of us create a monthly budget, because a majority of our bills only happen once a month. We all know that certain months of the year are more expensive than other months because of irregular, but expected expenses. For example, holiday spending, school registration fees, car registration, etc. These expenses can make budgeting extremely difficult. If we don’t remember to include them, they may end up derailing other spending and saving goals.

But, since we can expect them, we can plan for them. Let me teach you one method to plan for all of your yearly, irregular expenses at once.

Revolving Savings Account

A revolving savings account can help you keep track of and plan for all of your irregular expenses throughout the year. These are the expenses you’re planning on, they just don’t happen every month. Start by listing out all the expenses you want to include. Possible examples: car registration, oil changes, sports fees, birthdays, holidays, anniversaries, etc.

Do you have to include all irregular spending? No, you could choose to include any expense over a certain amount ($100 for example), or include everything except holiday spending. The best way to do it is whichever way works best for you.

EXPERT TIP: It can be really helpful to use a monthly calendar view when organizing and listing your irregular expenses.

After listing all the irregular expenses you want to include in this account, add up the total yearly cost and divide the total by 12 (monthly) or 24 (semi-monthly). This will give you the total amount to set aside every time you’re paid to make sure all your irregular costs are covered. Here’s an example:

JANUARY: Car Registration, $125

FEBRUARY: None

MARCH: Kids Soccer Team Fees, $600

APRIL: None

MAY: Anniversary, $150

JUNE: None

JULY: None

AUGUST: School Registration, $500

SEPTEMBER: Car Registration, $125

OCTOBER: None

NOVEMBER: None

DECEMBER: Christmas, $500

TOTAL: $2,000

$2,000 / 12 = $166.67 each paycheck

$2,000 / 12 = $83.33 each paycheck

The last step is to take the total amount and set up an automatic transfer to a savings account every month. This is your revolving savings account. To make this account work, you should always be contributing the same amount each month, no matter how much you may be taking out to pay for the expected expenses. Using the example above, in August this person is taking $500 out of the account for School Registration. They would still transfer $166.66 (or $83.33) into the account that month.

This process of always putting in and taking out is what makes the math workout so you will always have what you need when you need it.

Looking for more?

Join our FREE live webinar: Sleigh Your Holiday Spending

October 27 & 29, 2026 at 12pm MT- Join us to learn how to set up a personalized holiday spending plan, prioritize purchases, and make spending decisions a breeze. Join our experts to learn:

-Best practices for tracking and managing spending

-Strategies for cutting costs without sacrificing holiday cheer

-How to create a realistic holiday budget