# Savings Goals Guide

Clone of Quillenhart **savings tab** — target, saved, % complete, monthly contribution grid — plus the 12-week ladder shape from [stephane_guertin/5629](https://dev.to/stephane_guertin_98bb6736/how-to-save-1000-in-12-weeks-using-a-spreadsheet-a-system-that-actually-works-5629).

## Why a savings tab exists

Income and expense logs tell you what happened. Savings goals tell you **where the surplus is going** — emergency fund, equipment, tax buffer — before it disappears into lifestyle creep.

## The weekly ladder (12-week sprint)

$1,000 in 12 weeks without saving the same amount every week:

| Weeks | Target/week | Subtotal |
|-------|-------------|----------|
| 1–4 | $60 | $240 |
| 5–8 | $85 | $340 |
| 9–12 | $105 | $420 |

**Total: $1,000.** Low start builds momentum; the spreadsheet recalculates remaining weeks if you miss one.

## Multi-goal tracker (Quillenhart shape)

| Goal | Target | Saved | % complete |
|------|--------|-------|------------|
| Emergency fund | $10,000 | $3,200 | 32% |
| Equipment upgrade | $2,000 | $800 | 40% |
| Tax buffer | $5,000 | $1,250 | 25% |

Log transfers as positive amounts on the transactions log with category `savings_transfer`.

Free template: [savings-tracker.md](savings-tracker.md) · [sample CSV](savings-sample.csv)