Intelligent Excel-Based Family Expense Estimator
Budget: $250 – $750 USD
Development of an Intelligent Excel-Based Family Expense Estimator Based on the 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey
1. Executive Summary
We are seeking an experienced Excel developer and financial modeler to build an intelligent, highly functional Excel tool that estimates monthly family expenses based on official national statistics from the 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey. This tool will serve as a reference and decision-support calculator that balances:
Government-published benchmarks,
Real household inputs (income, obligations, balance),
Financial sustainability,
Islamic principles for fair, adequate, and responsible spending.
This tool will ultimately help in determining a reasonable, justifiable level of family expenses, support internal decisions, and could be scaled to integrate with Power BI in future phases.
2. Purpose of the Project
The core objective is to build an Excel tool that:
Calculates the standard (benchmark) expense for a household using official statistical data, based on:
Geographic region
Nationality
Household size
Distributes the benchmarked expenses across four key categories aligned with COICOP:
Housing
Food
Education
Healthcare
Allows input of real-world financial data:
Monthly household income
Cash balance (in absence of income)
Financial obligations (with service bills treated as mandatory obligations)
Compares actual/proposed expenses against national benchmarks and provides:
Deviation %
Financial risk classification (Low, Medium, High)
Automated recommendations
Supports cases with no regular income, by projecting:
How long the available balance can sustain the household at benchmark levels
Whether spending adjustments are needed
Provides exportable reports, visual insights, and adheres to ethical and Islamic financial principles.
3. Primary Data Source (Non-Negotiable)
The 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey Excel file is the sole and authoritative data source.
File name:
Publication tables of Household Income and Consumption Expenditure Survey 2023_2.xlsx
Sheets to be used:
Sheet Description
1-4 Avg. Monthly Household Expenditure by Region × Nationality
8-4 Avg. Monthly Expenditure by Household Size × Nationality
12-4 COICOP Category Spend Proportions × Nationality
16-4 COICOP Category Spend Proportions × Region
All calculations and logic MUST be based on the above file. No assumptions, estimates, or substitutions are allowed unless derived explicitly from this data or approved.
4. Core Features & Functional Requirements
A) Data Preparation & Reference Tables
Clean and transform Excel data (remove headers, notes, footers)
Normalize wide tables (e.g. sheet 16-4) to long format using Power Query
Create clean lookup tables for:
Regions
Nationalities (Saudi, Non-Saudi, Total)
Household size bands
COICOP-to-Program mapping (Food, Housing, etc.)
B) Input Interface
User-friendly sheet for inputting:
Region (dropdown)
Nationality (dropdown)
Household size (dropdown)
Monthly income (numeric)
Available cash balance (numeric)
Monthly obligations (numeric)
Input validation to prevent incorrect data types
C) Benchmark Engine
Use region-based benchmarks when possible (preferred from 1-4 and 16-4)
Fall back to nationality-based if region data is missing
Weight household size when available (from 8-4)
Normalize COICOP shares to focus on the four key categories only
Compute total benchmark expenditure per household
D) Financial Comparison Logic
Deviation% = (Proposed Expense - Benchmark) ÷ Benchmark
Automatically classify risk:
Low if deviation ≤ ±20%
Medium between 20–40%
High if deviation > 40%
Determine approval route (if needed for operational use)
E) Scenarios Without Income
If income = 0 → use cash balance
Estimate how many months the balance can sustain the benchmark expenditure
Suggest optimal budget level to maximize coverage
5. Smart Features & Enhancements
Data Dictionary
Comprehensive documentation of all inputs, calculations, and output fields
Dynamic Visual Charts
Benchmark vs. actual expenses
Distribution by category
Deviation over acceptable thresholds
Conditional Formatting & Alerts
Highlight over- or under-spending in red/yellow/green
Alert if balance covers <3 months of standard expenses
Embedded Islamic Ethics Note
Include at the top of the file:
"This tool estimates expenses in accordance with Islamic financial principles: fairness, sufficiency, and responsibility. It aims to guide balanced decisions, avoiding extravagance or neglect, and supports justice in family financial matters."
PDF Report Generator
Button (via VBA or Office Script) that creates a clean, printable one-page report including:
Input summary
Benchmark expense
Deviations
Recommendations
Power BI Integration-Ready
Design tables and structure to allow future export or syncing to Power BI
Organize data model as Input / Processing / Output
6. Required Deliverables
Deliverable Description
Excel Tool (.xlsx) Fully functional and unlocked workbook
Data Dictionary (.xlsx/.docx) Field-by-field definitions and logic
One-click PDF Export Pre-formatted report output
Documentation Guide on how to use, update, and interpret the tool
Scalability Plan Notes on how this can later connect to Power BI
7. Technical and Ethical Standards
Category Requirements
Accuracy All data must match official survey tables exactly
Maintainability Formulas and data tables should be clearly organized
Usability Interface should be clean and require minimal training
Ethical Compliance Expense logic must reflect Islamic values: sufficiency, fairness, no excess
Localization Design for possible bilingual use (Arabic/English) in the future (optional)
8. Timeline
Preferred delivery: Within 7–10 business days
(Milestone delivery is welcomed: Prototype → Review → Final)
9. Budget
Please submit a proposal with:
Total cost estimate
Breakdown by phases (if applicable)
Optional: Separate line for Power BI integration readiness
10. Freelancer Evaluation Questions
Do you have experience building Excel financial models based on official statistics?
Have you developed smart calculators or budgeting tools before?
Are you proficient with Power Query, dynamic formulas, and VBA?
Can you provide a working prototype or preview within 3 business days?
Do you have familiarity with Islamic finance principles or family expense guidelines? (Optional but preferred)
11. Submission Format
Excel portfolio samples (preferred)
Confirmation that you will work strictly within the provided survey data
Clarity on revision/support policy after delivery
Final Note
We are not looking for a generic budgeting spreadsheet.
This project is a structured, benchmark-based, ethical financial tool with the potential to be scaled up into a larger analytics or decision-support system.
Attention to technical quality, ethical fairness, and data integrity is non-negotiable.
1. Executive Summary
We are seeking an experienced Excel developer and financial modeler to build an intelligent, highly functional Excel tool that estimates monthly family expenses based on official national statistics from the 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey. This tool will serve as a reference and decision-support calculator that balances:
Government-published benchmarks,
Real household inputs (income, obligations, balance),
Financial sustainability,
Islamic principles for fair, adequate, and responsible spending.
This tool will ultimately help in determining a reasonable, justifiable level of family expenses, support internal decisions, and could be scaled to integrate with Power BI in future phases.
2. Purpose of the Project
The core objective is to build an Excel tool that:
Calculates the standard (benchmark) expense for a household using official statistical data, based on:
Geographic region
Nationality
Household size
Distributes the benchmarked expenses across four key categories aligned with COICOP:
Housing
Food
Education
Healthcare
Allows input of real-world financial data:
Monthly household income
Cash balance (in absence of income)
Financial obligations (with service bills treated as mandatory obligations)
Compares actual/proposed expenses against national benchmarks and provides:
Deviation %
Financial risk classification (Low, Medium, High)
Automated recommendations
Supports cases with no regular income, by projecting:
How long the available balance can sustain the household at benchmark levels
Whether spending adjustments are needed
Provides exportable reports, visual insights, and adheres to ethical and Islamic financial principles.
3. Primary Data Source (Non-Negotiable)
The 2023 Household Income and Expenditure Survey Excel file is the sole and authoritative data source.
File name:
Publication tables of Household Income and Consumption Expenditure Survey 2023_2.xlsx
Sheets to be used:
Sheet Description
1-4 Avg. Monthly Household Expenditure by Region × Nationality
8-4 Avg. Monthly Expenditure by Household Size × Nationality
12-4 COICOP Category Spend Proportions × Nationality
16-4 COICOP Category Spend Proportions × Region
All calculations and logic MUST be based on the above file. No assumptions, estimates, or substitutions are allowed unless derived explicitly from this data or approved.
4. Core Features & Functional Requirements
A) Data Preparation & Reference Tables
Clean and transform Excel data (remove headers, notes, footers)
Normalize wide tables (e.g. sheet 16-4) to long format using Power Query
Create clean lookup tables for:
Regions
Nationalities (Saudi, Non-Saudi, Total)
Household size bands
COICOP-to-Program mapping (Food, Housing, etc.)
B) Input Interface
User-friendly sheet for inputting:
Region (dropdown)
Nationality (dropdown)
Household size (dropdown)
Monthly income (numeric)
Available cash balance (numeric)
Monthly obligations (numeric)
Input validation to prevent incorrect data types
C) Benchmark Engine
Use region-based benchmarks when possible (preferred from 1-4 and 16-4)
Fall back to nationality-based if region data is missing
Weight household size when available (from 8-4)
Normalize COICOP shares to focus on the four key categories only
Compute total benchmark expenditure per household
D) Financial Comparison Logic
Deviation% = (Proposed Expense - Benchmark) ÷ Benchmark
Automatically classify risk:
Low if deviation ≤ ±20%
Medium between 20–40%
High if deviation > 40%
Determine approval route (if needed for operational use)
E) Scenarios Without Income
If income = 0 → use cash balance
Estimate how many months the balance can sustain the benchmark expenditure
Suggest optimal budget level to maximize coverage
5. Smart Features & Enhancements
Data Dictionary
Comprehensive documentation of all inputs, calculations, and output fields
Dynamic Visual Charts
Benchmark vs. actual expenses
Distribution by category
Deviation over acceptable thresholds
Conditional Formatting & Alerts
Highlight over- or under-spending in red/yellow/green
Alert if balance covers <3 months of standard expenses
Embedded Islamic Ethics Note
Include at the top of the file:
"This tool estimates expenses in accordance with Islamic financial principles: fairness, sufficiency, and responsibility. It aims to guide balanced decisions, avoiding extravagance or neglect, and supports justice in family financial matters."
PDF Report Generator
Button (via VBA or Office Script) that creates a clean, printable one-page report including:
Input summary
Benchmark expense
Deviations
Recommendations
Power BI Integration-Ready
Design tables and structure to allow future export or syncing to Power BI
Organize data model as Input / Processing / Output
6. Required Deliverables
Deliverable Description
Excel Tool (.xlsx) Fully functional and unlocked workbook
Data Dictionary (.xlsx/.docx) Field-by-field definitions and logic
One-click PDF Export Pre-formatted report output
Documentation Guide on how to use, update, and interpret the tool
Scalability Plan Notes on how this can later connect to Power BI
7. Technical and Ethical Standards
Category Requirements
Accuracy All data must match official survey tables exactly
Maintainability Formulas and data tables should be clearly organized
Usability Interface should be clean and require minimal training
Ethical Compliance Expense logic must reflect Islamic values: sufficiency, fairness, no excess
Localization Design for possible bilingual use (Arabic/English) in the future (optional)
8. Timeline
Preferred delivery: Within 7–10 business days
(Milestone delivery is welcomed: Prototype → Review → Final)
9. Budget
Please submit a proposal with:
Total cost estimate
Breakdown by phases (if applicable)
Optional: Separate line for Power BI integration readiness
10. Freelancer Evaluation Questions
Do you have experience building Excel financial models based on official statistics?
Have you developed smart calculators or budgeting tools before?
Are you proficient with Power Query, dynamic formulas, and VBA?
Can you provide a working prototype or preview within 3 business days?
Do you have familiarity with Islamic finance principles or family expense guidelines? (Optional but preferred)
11. Submission Format
Excel portfolio samples (preferred)
Confirmation that you will work strictly within the provided survey data
Clarity on revision/support policy after delivery
Final Note
We are not looking for a generic budgeting spreadsheet.
This project is a structured, benchmark-based, ethical financial tool with the potential to be scaled up into a larger analytics or decision-support system.
Attention to technical quality, ethical fairness, and data integrity is non-negotiable.