12 sources: 3 cross-sectional studies, 3 meta-analyses, 5 systematic reviews, 1 with design not recorded
Financial · Practice
Track Your Expenses
Recording what you spend for a few weeks: record-keeping is one of the areas where Miller 2015 reports financial-capability interventions had a positive impact.
Beta content: this dimension's review set is version 0.9-beta and upgrades in place after the Round-2 internal reviews.
1 of 16 sources behind this entry were read from the abstract only; they are marked in the sources list.
daily entries for a defined period
Beginner-friendlySelf-guided
Before you start
None; purely observational for the user
When to seek a professional
- Personal financial decisions, investment choices, or tax/legal questions: refer to a qualified fiduciary financial professional or accredited nonprofit financial counselor (e.g., NFCC-affiliated)
- Active debt crisis, collections, foreclosure, eviction, or bankruptcy risk: refer to a nonprofit credit counseling agency or licensed debt professional
How to do it
Track all spending for 2-4 weeks
The research behind this entry establishes something about dose, but not these exact parameters; treat them as a practical way to apply the finding rather than as the finding itself.
a notebook, spreadsheet, or expense appFor most adultsWorking adultsStudents
What the evidence says
What the sources say
This practice is one way to carry out what the sources on the concept entry (fin.financial-literacy-and-its-limits) studied: financial literacy and financial education. Miller 2015 (meta-analysis of 188 papers) reports that interventions had positive impact in some areas, such as increasing savings and promoting record-keeping, but not in others, such as credit default. Fernandes 2014 (meta-analysis) reports that financial-literacy interventions explained only 0.1% of the variance in financial behaviours. The full account, source by source, is on the concept entry this practice links to (fin.financial-literacy-and-its-limits).
Common misconceptions
- 'Tracking is only for people in trouble' (it is a diagnostic step for anyone)
What we won't claim
- Do not recommend specific investments, securities, funds, accounts, insurance, or financial products
- Do not provide personalized or individualized financial, investment, tax, or legal advice
- Do not promise or imply specific financial returns, savings amounts, or guaranteed outcomes
- Do not claim this content replaces a licensed financial advisor, accountant, or credit counselor
- Do not endorse a specific tracking app or interpret the user's data as personalized advice
12 sources: 3 cross-sectional studies, 3 meta-analyses, 5 systematic reviews, 1 with design not recorded
- Agreement
- Direction recorded for 0 of 12 sources; not yet recorded for the rest.
- The claim's outcome
- Outcome not yet recorded
- Certainty
- No source states a certainty rating.
- How the sources were read
- Some sources are based on abstracts, not full texts.
What each source measured and concluded (12)
systematic review · 2023
Wesslund et al. (2023) — Personal Financial Wellness Curricula for Medical Trainees: A Systematic Review
- What it measured
- Effectiveness of personal financial wellness curricula (curriculum methods, delivery, outcome measures)
- How it was read
- based on the abstract, not the full text
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review
- Studies and participants, as stated
- N=13 studies
systematic review · 2022
Igu et al. (2022) — Systematic review of personal finance training for physicians and a proposed curriculum
- What it measured
- Financial literacy and decision-making skills.
- How it measured it
- Self-reported improvements and objective measures like retirement account choices.
- How it was read
- read in full text
systematic review · 2025
Barone et al. (2025) — Financial Literacy and Economic Attitudes as Protective Factors Against Pathological Gambling? A Systematic Review
- What it measured
- Relationship between financial literacy/economic attitudes and pathological gambling
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review (PROSPERO protocol)
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 8 studies (from 880 papers)
meta-analysis · 2014
Fernandes et al. (2014) — Financial Literacy, Financial Education, and Downstream Financial Behaviors
- What it measured
- Relationship of financial literacy and financial education to financial behaviors
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Meta-analysis plus three empirical studies
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 168 papers covering 201 prior studies
systematic review · 2026
Aquino et al. (2026) — A Systematic Literature Review: Present Bias versus Financial Literacy as Determinants of Savings Behavior Among Entrepreneurs
- What it measured
- Comparative influence of financial literacy vs present bias on savings behavior
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic review (PRISMA 2020)
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 20 peer-reviewed studies (2020-2025)
systematic review · 2025
Tiwari et al. (2025) — Understanding the Impact of Financial Literacy on Investment Decision-Making: A Systematic Review of Behavioral and Demographic Influences
- What it measured
- Relationship between financial literacy and investment decision-making
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Systematic literature review (SPAR-4-SLR and PRISMA)
- Studies and participants, as stated
- Over a dozen peer-reviewed papers (2005-2025)
meta-analysis · 2017
Kaiser et al. (2017) — Does Financial Education Impact Financial Literacy and Financial Behavior, and If So, When?
- What it measured
- Impact of financial education on financial literacy and financial behavior
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Meta-analysis
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 126 impact evaluation studies
meta-analysis · 2015
Miller et al. (2015) — Can You Help Someone Become Financially Capable?: A Meta-Analysis of the Literature
- What it measured
- Impact of financial education/capability interventions on financial knowledge and behaviors
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
- What the review says it includes
- Meta-analysis
- Studies and participants, as stated
- 188 papers and articles
design not recorded · 2022
Cawyer et al. (2022) — Financial Literacy and Physician Wellness: Can a Financial Curriculum Improve an Obstetrician/Gynecologist Resident and Fellow's Well-Being?
- What it measured
- Well-being (Expanded Well-Being Index, E-WBI) and financial stress (Financial Stress Scale-College Version, FSS-CV)
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
cross-sectional study · 2020
Utkarsh et al. (2020) — Catch them young: Impact of financial socialization, financial literacy and attitude towards money on financial well‐being of young adults
- What it measured
- Financial well-being
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
cross-sectional study · 2021
West et al. (2021) — Income more important than financial literacy for improving wellbeing
- What it measured
- Financial wellbeing
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
cross-sectional study · 2024
Hu et al. (2024) — Financial Literacy and Mortgage Stress
- What it measured
- Mortgage stress
- How it was read
- screened only, not extracted
Key sources (16) · 4 not counted
Each source below is shown with its study design and a link to the original study, or, where it is not a completed research paper, with what kind of record it is; those are not counted. This is the audit trail.
systematic reviewPersonal Financial Wellness Curricula for Medical Trainees: A Systematic Review
systematic reviewSystematic review of personal finance training for physicians and a proposed curriculum
systematic reviewFinancial Literacy and Economic Attitudes as Protective Factors Against Pathological Gambling? A Systematic Review
meta-analysisFinancial Literacy, Financial Education, and Downstream Financial Behaviors
systematic reviewA Systematic Literature Review: Present Bias versus Financial Literacy as Determinants of Savings Behavior Among Entrepreneurs
systematic reviewUnderstanding the Impact of Financial Literacy on Investment Decision-Making: A Systematic Review of Behavioral and Demographic Influences
meta-analysisDoes Financial Education Impact Financial Literacy and Financial Behavior, and If So, When?
meta-analysisCan You Help Someone Become Financially Capable?: A Meta-Analysis of the Literature
PreprintThe Arrested Deployment Model of Financial Literacy
design not recordedFinancial Literacy and Physician Wellness: Can a Financial Curriculum Improve an Obstetrician/Gynecologist Resident and Fellow's Well-Being?
PreprintEvidence-Based Interventions for Financial Well-Being
PreprintDoes Financial Literacy Reduce Money Stress?
cross-sectional studyCatch them young: Impact of financial socialization, financial literacy and attitude towards money on financial well‐being of young adults
cross-sectional studyIncome more important than financial literacy for improving wellbeing
cross-sectional studyFinancial Literacy and Mortgage Stress
PreprintSo Many Courses, So Little Progress: Why Financial Education Doesn't Work - And What Does
Why do some records show a record type instead of a study design?
A study design is shown for a completed, peer-reviewed paper. A registered protocol, a preprint, a conference abstract, a referee report or a book chapter has not been through peer review as a finished paper, so it is labelled for what it is, and it is counted in no source count. Where a record could not be confirmed as a completed paper at all, it says so rather than guessing. They all stay in the list, and their DOI still resolves, because the count of what was screened is part of the audit trail.
- Protocol / registration A registered plan for a review or trial, not its results.
- Preprint Posted by its authors before peer review.
- Conference abstract A conference summary rather than a peer-reviewed paper.
- Peer-review report A referee's report on a paper, not the paper itself.
- Guideline / position stand A recommendation derived from evidence, which is a step further from the data than the evidence itself.
- Book chapter A chapter in a scholarly book rather than a journal paper.
- Type not recorded Our record does not say what kind of publication this is, so it is counted in no source count. That is a gap in our data, not a judgement about the research.
“Abstract only” means the review read that paper’s abstract, not its full text; “screened only” means it was included at re-screening and not extracted. Both stay in the trail with their DOI, because how a source was read is part of the audit.
Explore all 254 studies in Financial →
The full evidence base this focus area draws on, every study with its design and DOI.What it is for
Build a habit that sticksKnow where my money goes