This is the way to do it. My wife and I have a joint account and we each have personal accounts. We've determined how much money our joint expenses are each month (let's say $1000 to keep things simple). This covers mortgage, utilities, food, etc. I have my paycheck automatically put $250 into this account each pay period (I get paid twice a month). She does the same. Household expenses are paid out of this account and the rest of our paychecks get deposited into our personal accounts. We never fight about money, because we don't really ever have a need to.