***This is my guest post on Tricia Goyer.com. To go ahead and read the full story, head here or start reading below! 

Budgeting for back-to-school is tough. Honestly, I didn’t realize how much of a challenge it was until last year when our boys went off the preschool for the first time. I had no idea how to budget for all those miscellaneous school related stuff and the various different unexpected expenses that kept popping up over the course of the school year. 

That’s why, I believe it’s important to make sure you have at least a $100 of wiggle room in your budget each month for the school year. I know that sounds like a lot of money (and it definitely is), but chances are, when you look back over last year’s budget, you’ll notice that you come very close if not over the $100 a month for all those last minute school function things and that whole “snack mom” thing.

👉 If you haven’t seen the awesomeness on Amazon that is these back-to-school supply bundles, seriously, go check them out and see if the supplies match what you need for your kiddos. 

How to Find an Extra $100

Here are just a few ways that can hopefully help you figure out how to find an extra $100 (or more!) in your monthly budget:

1. Cell Phones – Regardless if it’s just you and your spouse with a cell phone or it’s a whole family and then some on your cell phone plan, paying for cell service can be a little crazy. That’s why if you haven’t already, I highly suggest you switch over to a company like Republic Wireless (who I personally use) or Ting (several of my friends use them and love them).

You still get to have an awesome smartphone (I have the Moto G) but without the high cell phone bill (seriously, mine is only $25/mo with data!).

2. Insurance – Yeah, I know, you don’t want to talk about this subject because it’s one of those “necessary evils” and it’s a bazillion dollars BUT if you haven’t called around lately to gather new quotes for your different insurance needs, I highly suggest you do that today. You could save yourself hundreds of dollars in a year just from a simple phone call.

To read the full post, head here to Tricia Goyer’s site.