Project cost tracking

Ohjayp

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I'm looking for a better way to track costs and spending on my arcades. I'm curious to know what people use to track their projects? I know when things move from "hobby" to "lifestyle" tracking spending goes out the window 🤣. But I really try to be conscious of how much I'm spending and try not to burden my family's finances with my hobbies.

So I'm looking for recommendations. What are some things that everyone uses? I'm currently using a basic numbers spreadsheet but what I would really like is an app or software (Preferably free-ish) that will allow me to track in greater detail. I want to know things like which category costs the most or what vendor I buy from the most. (Probably Home Depot). When I was laid off in 2020 I don't believe I've been on a laptop since. I've been full time iOS/iPadOS so something within that ecosystem or cross platform would work best.

Here's an example of what I'm using currently.
IMG_1672.jpeg

I realize this is totally nerdy and most people probably wouldn't want to know what they've spent on a single arcade but any help would be appreciated.
 
I just use a Google sheets form to track spending and budget.
Agreed.

No need to reinvent the wheel here. You don't need a fancy app to track costs. A simple spreadsheet will do the job just fine.



BTW...I used to be very paranoid about how much I was spending on restoring a game but I realized the closer I tracked it, the less fun it was.

I'm still very price-conscious about the hobby but I found it to be much more enjoyable when I wasn't counting every penny.

I just get what I need and I shop for the best price. It's just money. Work hard and make more. Problem solved. :)
 
Agreed.

No need to reinvent the wheel here. You don't need a fancy app to track costs. A simple spreadsheet will do the job just fine.



BTW...I used to be very paranoid about how much I was spending on restoring a game but I realized the closer I tracked it, the less fun it was.

I'm still very price-conscious about the hobby but I found it to be much more enjoyable when I wasn't counting every penny.

I just get what I need and I shop for the best price. It's just money. Work hard and make more. Problem solved. :)
I don't track per game. Just purchases and sales. I have a general idea on most games though. The year end pie charts are always scary though...
 
The year end pie charts are always scary though...
This is the exact information that I don't want to know. It would take all the fun out of it.

I honestly recommend NOT tracking what you spend in this hobby. You will be a happier person for it. And quite frankly, what problem are you even solving by knowing the exact dollar you spent on every little project? What does that even change? Are you going to restore a game or not? That's the only question you need to ask yourself. I'm an "all or nothing" kind of person. I will either not spend a dime or I will go ALL in and spend whatever it takes to do it right. Adhering to some kind of arbitrary budget just winds up in a half-assed restore.

In addition, there is a very good chance you will go to sell a game one day and realize you barley broke even on it. Or even worse, you are significantly upside down. You are just setting yourself up for disappointment.
 
I use the Notes app on my iPhone and the iPad sitting on my workbench, saved to the cloud. That lets me update the note wherever I am and with whichever device I have in front of me. I create a new note for each item and track both the cost and the activities in one document. I can add pics and anything else to keep it all together in one spot.

That doesn't allow me to add up across projects … but that's probably for the best. I don't want to see the yearly total. 🤮
 

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I just use a Google sheets form to track spending and budget.
I gave this a thought and figured it would be more like excel than I wanted. I'll give it a try tonight.

Thanks 64
 
Agreed.

No need to reinvent the wheel here. You don't need a fancy app to track costs. A simple spreadsheet will do the job just fine.



BTW...I used to be very paranoid about how much I was spending on restoring a game but I realized the closer I tracked it, the less fun it was.

I'm still very price-conscious about the hobby but I found it to be much more enjoyable when I wasn't counting every penny.

I just get what I need and I shop for the best price. It's just money. Work hard and make more. Problem solved. :)
I didn't think of it that way. I usually ruin most things by being cheap 🤣😂🤣. The funny thing is my wife is always like, "shut up and buy it". I think I'll take the just get what I need approach since I'm just getting started.
 
I use the Notes app on my iPhone and the iPad sitting on my workbench, saved to the cloud. That lets me update the note wherever I am and with whichever device I have in front of me. I create a new note for each item and track both the cost and the activities in one document. I can add pics and anything else to keep it all together in one spot.

That doesn't allow me to add up across projects … but that's probably for the best. I don't want to see the yearly total. 🤮
The tried and true notes app! I use notes/reminders for many things in my life. Just doesn't seem to fit my needs for this.
 
I honestly recommend NOT tracking what you spend in this hobby. You will be a happier person for it. And quite frankly, what problem are you even solving by knowing the exact dollar you spent on every little project? What does that even change?
If you need to do this then you probably shouldn't be doing it. Treating a hobby like a business is the best way to suck all the fun out of it.
I think y'all are right and both gave me a new way to look at it. But I'm not looking at it in terms of budgeting/business. I really want to know how much I'm spending in certain aspects of restoration. Am I spending too much on electronics, does bodywork cost the most or is it replacement parts etc.

Im hoping these metrics will help me choose better projects, better parts, better vendors stuff like that. But so far the consensus seems to be just go with it 🤣😂
 
This is the exact information that I don't want to know. It would take all the fun out of it.

I honestly recommend NOT tracking what you spend in this hobby. You will be a happier person for it. And quite frankly, what problem are you even solving by knowing the exact dollar you spent on every little project? What does that even change? Are you going to restore a game or not? That's the only question you need to ask yourself. I'm an "all or nothing" kind of person. I will either not spend a dime or I will go ALL in and spend whatever it takes to do it right. Adhering to some kind of arbitrary budget just winds up in a half-assed restore.

In addition, there is a very good chance you will go to sell a game one day and realize you barley broke even on it. Or even worse, you are significantly upside down. You are just setting yourself up for disappointment.
Yeah, I came to that conclusion as well especially with restorations. I'd rather not know the total cost. Unless it's a high-end game, restorations almost never make sense financially.
 
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