Dividend tracking is not a very fun activity. But it sure is necessary if you want to be certain that your investments make sense and you’re heading in the right direction.
Indeed, tracking your dividends can be done through many trading platforms today. But if this isn’t as customizable as you’d like or you simply have more than one brokerage account, you probably need to do it on your own.
Now, when I say “on your own”, I only half-mean that. If you don’t want to spend so much time, there are dividend tracking apps out there that will cut the work by more than half. These are basically apps you can use to track your dividend portfolio’s performance and adjust your positions as necessary.
If, on the other hand, you want to go old-school and track your dividends on your own using a spreadsheet, there are ways you can go about it too. There is also the option to save a lot of time by using a pre-made but still customizable spreadsheet.
Let’s take a look at each way and you can be the judge of what option fits you best…
The Completely Manual Way to Dividend Tracking
Tracking your dividends the old-school way is not for all. Period. But if you have the time and enthusiasm for it, I think it’s worth it.
First, because creating your own spreadsheet is very flexible. This way, you can customize everything and only set the information that matters to you most; not to mention setting the order that information is going to be presented in.
Second, it is simply fun to do it this way!
If these reasons are enough for you, then I suggest you take a look at this guide that shows you how to use Google Sheets and GoogleFinance to create an amazing spreadsheet from scratch.
If, however, you are a Microsoft Excel guy, this guide will serve you well.
But if you don’t have the time or energy to spare, then you can either use Wealthica to export your dividends to a spreadsheet (If you are using Wealthsimple, read how to export your Wealthsimple data to Google Sheets — If you are using Questrade, read how to export your Questrade data to Google Sheets) or try the semi-manual way to do this yourself…
The Semi-Manual Way to Dividend Tracking
As I said, creating a dividend tracking spreadsheet from scratch isn’t for everyone.
But that’s OK because there are countless pre-made customizable spreadsheets out there that will only require you to enter some values.
Let’s take a look at two of them:
📝Invest Some Money Spreadsheet
I think I needed to start with this spreadsheet first because unlike most ones out there, this is exclusively focused on dividend tracking. And this is what you’re here for in the first place.
The first thing you will notice here is that this is a very minimalistic spreadsheet. And this makes sense because a dividend tracking spreadsheet only requires a few key values to help you efficiently track your dividends
You can also automate this step by using Wealthica’s spreadsheet export feature. You can first export your data from Wealthica to a spreadsheet and link this spreadsheet with the dividend tracking sheet.
All in all, if you are looking for something to get started with quickly and you don’t require too many bells and whistles, this spreadsheet is for you.
📝Public Stock Dividend Tracker
Here’s another dividend tracking spreadsheet that is mostly focused on dividend tracking.
This spreadsheet is simple to use and it has the most relevant columns you’re going to need. The only thing that is required on your part is to enter some values.
The other thing that I like about this spreadsheet is that it has a dividend income pie and chart! No better way to identify the sources of your dividend income and how it has changed over time…
Again, you can automate this step by using Wealthica’s spreadsheet export feature. You can first export your data from Wealthica to a spreadsheet and link this spreadsheet with the dividend tracking sheet.
The Automatic Way to Dividend Tracking
Is customizing a spreadsheet to your liking too much work for you? Do you want something more user-friendly to track your dividends? Enter the world of dividend tracking apps!
Simply put, a dividend tracking app is going to do what a spreadsheet does and more in a simplified (but sophisticated at the same time) manner. Let me explain…
Dividend investors are not exempt from the need to track everything from capital appreciation to dividends along with having a complete picture of their finances in one place.
If you just want to track your dividends and be done with it, you can simply pick a tool that’s made just for this like dividend.com or Track Your Dividends.
But what about tracking everything from cash to capital appreciation and real estate assets? What about being able to connect all of your bank, brokerage, and crypto exchange accounts in one place?
Well, if you want to have your cake and eat it too, I suggest you take a look at our net worth tracker, Wealthica. It is designed to track everything that constitutes your investment and overall financial situation by allowing you to securely link all of your financial institution accounts in one place!
And the best thing? It’s free to use!
You might think that a dividend tracking app wrapped inside a net worth tracker is not going to provide the same value as a dividend tracking spreadsheet. I understand that skepticism, but here are a few reasons that this isn’t the case with Wealthica:
- It lets you see all of the dividend transactions from all your brokerage accounts in one place
- It gives you the ability to create different groups for your portfolios, so you can easily track all of the different accounts of your family members
- It will provide you with income reports
- And it will also give you detailed reports about the dividends that were paid to you
In other words, Wealthica is as much for people who need to get the complete financial picture as for dividend investors who want a reliable way to track their dividends like yourself.
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Wealthica: The simplest way to track your dividends.
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Ready to Start Tracking Your Dividends?
As you may already have realized by now, there are 3 most distinct ways of tracking your dividend portfolio:
- Creating a dividend tracking spreadsheet from scratch and track the things that are most important to you
- Using a premade spreadsheet that will only require giving it some values from you
- Taking advantage of the technology that is out there and tracking your dividends using a dividend tracking app
As I told you, creating a custom spreadsheet is only a good idea if you’re either passionate about this stuff or you have at least enough time to spare.
In most cases, if you’re a spreadsheet guy and you’re at least a little bit familiar with using one, then a premade dividend tracking spreadsheet is going to do wonders for you.
If, however, you’re not the DIY type or you simply don’t want to mess with any spreadsheet, a dividend tracking app will serve you well.
And not to mention that many apps like these have reached the point where they can do even more if you want them to. Wealthica is one of them and it’s ideal if you also care to include your other assets and income sources into your financial picture.
Start tracking your dividends
Wealthica: The simplest way to track your dividends.
Signup for a Free Wealthica Account Now
Sign up for a free account and start tracking your dividends in a simplified manner today!