Bracing for impact: 5 ways to fine-tune your budget

The U.S. unemployment rate increased to a nearly four-year high of 4.3% in August of this year, and the recent labor market employment report showed the economy lost jobs over the summer. If you're looking for a job or getting nervous about losing the one you have, it might be time to tighten your budget in case money stops coming in for a while.

Financial uncertainty has been the theme of 2025, with stock market volatility and looming price increases from tariffs making it hard to know if your income will cover even the basics of housing, food, transportation and medical costs. Now is the time to build up emergency savings in case of a job loss, ensuring funds are available to cover essentials without having to resort to credit cards.

"A lot of people right now are looking at their daily, weekly and monthly expenses and trying to find ways they can save more. People are more on alert with their budgeting and saving," said Nate Crayton, senior financial center leader at Bank of Albuquerque.

When it comes to itemizing and tracking your spending, Crayton said he sees a lot of consumers who lose track of what they’re spending on. “I tell people to look at your monthly bank statements and highlight expenses. Ask yourself, do I need this, and should I be paying this much for it?’ This can help clean up expenses on things you no longer use or to help you see if you can get it for less somewhere else.”

Easing household outflows
If you want to reel in spending to put more in your emergency savings, there are several options to trim household expenses, including:

1. Explore the streams. We live in a subscription-based world, which means many of us make automatic payments to a handful of digital streaming services every month. By compiling and reviewing the list of your current subscriptions, you may confirm whether each is still worth keeping—or you may rediscover one that's been ignored but still provides value.

2. Ensure insurance is cost-effective. Call your insurance agent and ask about opportunities to trim premiums while keeping coverage at similar levels.

3. Give yourself credit. As long as you can pay the bill in full every month, determine which of your credit cards provides the best rewards that you can use to pay yourself back or buy essentials. However, if you owe money on your card, work toward paying it off rather than spending more on it, and use cash or a debit card for purchases. Interest fees on credit cards tend to negate reward benefits.

4. Rev up your auto loan. Comparison shopping is always a good strategy to save money. Shop around for a lender that will buy out your current auto loan and give you a lower interest rate or smaller monthly payments so you can put the difference saved into your emergency fund.

5. Allow some fun. Given the sense of belt-tightening a budget conveys, "few people actually want to save," said Andrew Iven, director of product management and competitive intelligence at BOK Financial®. Entertainment, travel and socializing are part of what brings joy in life, so include a reasonable amount of your budget to spend on enjoyment or put it in earmarked savings to fund a big-ticket dream item down the road.

The key to discovering ways to save involves overcoming the inertia of your day-to-day life, Iven said. "It's always hard to save since you have to do something different to make it happen," he explained. "One approach is to pay yourself first every month. It shifts the mindset from 'savings comes last' to 'it's a regular payment that's a priority.'"

Set a goal
Having some structure in your financial life will help you get organized with saving. Set a target budget level to cover expenses and use one of the many saving strategies out there to put a portion of your income into emergency savings. Make sure it's compatible with your incoming cash flow. If you can only save $10 a week, at least that's a start.

An ongoing process
Once you've reined in your spending and feel as though your household finances are on stable ground, it's the perfect time to enhance your financial safety net, Iven said.

Many experts recommend setting aside between three and six months' salary to buffer against job loss or salary cuts. While Iven sees the rationale behind this rule of thumb, building such a financial cushion can be tough.

"Having six months of salary saved gives you a safety net if you are suddenly without a job," he said. "But that is a big number for a lot of people, so I'd recommend breaking it down into smaller chunks and figuring out how you can get there gradually.

"If you can't get all the way there, something is definitely better than nothing if you suddenly lose your job."