The idea I almost didn't build

Do a quick search for budget tracking apps and you'll find an endless list. Some use AI, some take voice input, some connect to your bank. Pen & Sheet is none of those. This is how it got here.

Pen & paper

A few years ago, I had no idea where and how I was spending my money. It was more like: receive salary, start spending, and if something is left, maybe save it.

So in January 2019 I started writing down, as in actually writing with a pen on paper, every single thing I spend money on. Groceries, subscriptions, bills, entertainment, and so on. It was eye-opening. I could see where the money was going, trim what I didn't need, and tell when I was overspending, whether on purpose or because something unexpected came up.

Then came the obvious thought: wouldn't it be great to build an app for this?

Asking around

In 2024 I put together a Google Form asking people how they track and manage their salary. Around 30 people answered:

• 76% had run out of money without knowing where it went.
• Only 4 out of 30 used a dedicated app. Everyone else used Excel, pen and paper, or nothing at all.
• 60% expected a solution to be free.

(I also forgot to make the email field required, so I could only follow up with 9 of them. Lesson learned.)

The advice

Before building anything, I ran the idea past a tech colleague I'd worked with before. The answer was more or less: tracking is a behaviour. People might do it a couple of times, and then what? What keeps them coming back?

I argued that knowing where your money goes is worth it on its own. The reply was the same: it's a behaviour, and behaviours are hard to change.

That stuck with me. Add to it the question of how to charge for it. A monthly subscription for a money app is a hard sell, and to be fair, I'd question one myself. So I put the idea to rest and didn't build anything.

Why a sheet, not an app

I don't use a tracking app. I checked a few, but I was never comfortable opening an app every time I wanted to record something. Writing it down offline, with pen and paper, lets me focus more, and that's what I kept going back to.

What I wanted was the same experience in digital form. Open it, write down what you spent, see where you stand. No AI guessing your categories. No bank connection. Nobody else looking at your numbers.

A Google Sheet does exactly that. Your copy lives in your own Google Drive, it works on your phone and your computer, and Pen & Sheet never sees what's in it.

It also answered the two things that stopped me the first time:

• The behaviour. Pen & Sheet doesn't try to turn anyone into a tracker. It's for people who already write things down, or want to, and want more out of it.
• The money. One payment, no subscription. The sheet is yours.

Today

Pen & Sheet is live. It's the sheet I open every payday. Months run from one payday to the next, and in the middle of the month I can see whether I'm on track while there's still time to change something. Paper never told me that.

— Omar, still writing it down