Bills and Debts Priority Worksheet

Who this is for

When the money will not stretch to every bill. List what is due with any arrears and what your own paperwork says happens if it is missed, rank them and plan what you can pay; the sheet sets the plan against the money you have.

Anyone facing more bills and debt payments than money this month, whether after a drop in income, a large unexpected cost or arrears that have built up, and anyone helping a relative through it.

What this helps you track

• Every bill and debt payment due this period, with any arrears
• What your own paperwork says happens if each one is missed
• Which payments protect your home, income, energy or a court order
• A ranked plan of what to pay against the money you actually have
• Who you have contacted to explain or arrange a lower payment

How to use it

1. Write the period the plan covers and the money you have available in it to pay bills and debts.
2. List every bill and debt payment due, with the amount due this period and any arrears; cross out starter rows that do not apply.
3. From the agreement, bill or letters for each, write what it says happens if a payment is missed, and pick what the payment protects.
4. Number them in the order you will pay, using the consequences you have written, and enter the amount you plan to pay against each.
5. The unpaid column, the totals and the summary are worked out in the browser and the workbook; on paper, add down the columns.
6. Contact each organisation you cannot pay in full, tick Contacted, and note what was arranged.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Which bills should come first?

The sheet does not decide for you. Debt advice services commonly start from what happens if each one goes unpaid, such as losing your home or energy supply or facing court action. Write those consequences down; a free adviser can help you rank them.

Where do I find what happens if I miss a payment?

In the agreement, the terms on the bill, and any reminder or arrears letters. Write what they actually say rather than what you fear, and if it is unclear, ask the organisation and note its answer.

What if the summary shows a shortfall?

Then the plan cannot cover everything this period. Contact the organisations you cannot pay in full before the payment is missed and ask what can be arranged, and speak to a free debt advice service where you live.

How is this different from the household bills tracker?

The bills tracker follows a normal month's bills being paid. This worksheet is for a period when there is not enough to pay them all, and helps decide the order and the amount for each.