Budget Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. Your bank balance does not match the balance in your budget records. What should you do first?
Delete older transactions until the two balances agree
Change the budget balance to match the bank without reviewing transactions
Add the available credit on your card to the bank balance
Compare recorded transactions with account activity and identify missing or pending items
2. A $900 insurance premium is due in nine months. If you start now and save equal amounts monthly, how much should go into a sinking fund each month?
$75
$90
$100
$150
3. A subscription costs $12 each month. How much does it add to planned spending over one year if the price does not change?
$144
$120
$156
$1,200
4. Your monthly take-home income is $3,000. You plan $1,400 for housing and utilities, $500 for food and transportation, and $300 for debt payments. How much remains for saving and other categories?
$500
$800
$700
$1,100
5. When using a credit card for a budgeted grocery purchase, which recording method best avoids counting the expense twice?
Record only the later card payment as grocery spending
Record the purchase and the card payment as two separate grocery expenses
Record the grocery expense when purchased, then treat the card payment as a transfer that settles the balance
Wait to record anything until interest appears on the statement
6. What is the central purpose of a personal budget?
To calculate how much credit a lender may offer
To prevent every unplanned purchase, regardless of circumstances
To create a plan for using income across spending, saving, and financial obligations
To record only the bills that stay the same each month
7. Before a new month begins, you learn that your expected take-home income will be $200 lower. What is the most useful first budgeting step?
Update expected income and reprioritize planned categories before spending
Keep the existing plan and cover the difference automatically with credit
Remove a $200 expense without considering whether it is essential
Wait until the end of the month to record the income difference
8. Your freelance income changes substantially from month to month. Which approach creates the most workable starting budget?
Budget using the highest month from the previous year
Treat every month as if it will produce the average income exactly
Avoid setting category amounts until each month has ended
Use a conservative income estimate, prioritize essentials, and plan how to handle higher-income months
9. You expect $3,200 in take-home pay and assign $1,800 to needs, $650 to wants, and $400 to savings and debt goals. How much income is still unassigned?
$350
$250
$450
$750
10. Which item is most accurately classified as a variable expense?
Groceries, whose total changes with purchases
An annual renter’s insurance premium
Monthly apartment rent under a current lease
A fixed-rate car payment
11. After making every required minimum payment, which use of extra debt money follows the debt-avalanche method?
Pay extra toward the debt with the smallest balance
Pay extra toward the debt with the largest minimum payment
Divide the extra amount equally among all debts
Pay extra toward the debt with the highest interest rate
12. What does it mean to create a zero-based budget?
Maintain a checking account balance of exactly zero after bills
Begin every month without referring to previous spending
Reduce all optional spending categories to zero
Assign all expected income to expenses, savings, or debt goals so the planned remainder is zero
13. In the commonly used 50/30/20 budgeting guideline, how is take-home income generally divided?
50% savings, 30% needs, and 20% wants
50% needs, 30% wants, and 20% savings or additional debt payments
50% fixed bills, 30% taxes, and 20% emergencies
50% wants, 30% savings, and 20% needs
14. You plan to spend $900 on a necessary purchase six months from now. Ignoring interest, how much should you set aside each month to reach that amount evenly?
$100
$150
$125
$180
15. On a household budget, what does net income usually mean?
Income before taxes and payroll deductions
Income available after taxes and other payroll deductions
Income remaining after every monthly expense has been paid
Income earned only from sources other than a primary job
16. What is the primary budgeting purpose of an emergency fund?
To cover predictable annual expenses such as insurance premiums
To increase the amount available for routine entertainment
To absorb unexpected essential costs or an interruption in income
To replace all forms of insurance and credit