For example, if my husband and I own a rental property together, we’d set up a joint account that mainly takes care of all the bills related to that rental property.

My husband collect stamps on a regular basis, so he has his own checking account that only for stamp-related purchase. It makes a lot easier to see how much he has spent on his stamps.

We also have a joint account that only takes care of the household expenses, such as mortgage payments, utility bills, food, insurance, car payments and any household related expenses. This account basically handles all our “fixed” expenses, so we have a good idea on how much our monthly fixed expense is.

Besides “fixed” expense account, we also have our “vacation” joint account. Every month we put aside some money and deposit it to this account. Vacation is very important to our family. Knowing how much we can afford a vacation gives us the ability to plan ahead and enjoy our vacation even more!

So, should you and your spouse use a single joint checking account or should you choose to keep separate accounts? Well, it all depends on how you use these accounts for.
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The key is for the both of you to agree before implementing the system, so that you both have ownership.
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My fiance and I have a similar approach to many of the commenters above. We figured out what our monthly bills (rent, food, insurance, gas, etc.) were and deposit enough into a joint checking account to cover them. With the rest of our paychecks, we transfer certain percentages into various ING savings accounts (for down payment, vacation, etc.) and our retirement accounts. What’s left we get to spend on ourselves/gifts/charity/etc. (we’re still discussing whether we will keep separate accounts for this – I’d like to). He is doing a combination of freelance and part-time work right now, so his income is uneven, while I’m fortunate(especially in Michigan!) to have a fulfilling salaried job with benefits. Because my income is higher, I contribute about twice as much to the joint checking and savings. I’m fine with it, since he is doing what he loves and setting himself up for future success and fulfillment in his career. I expect that we will take turns as the higher earner over the course of our marriage, and I want us to contribute proportionally to our incomes with no judgement or guilt, since we make career decisions together and want the best for each other spiritually and intellectually as well as financially.

Some commenters mentioned that they give their partner an allowance (or receive one) from a joint account or the the other person’s account, but I think I would feel uncomfortable doing this. I’d rather keep some of the money I bring in, or have him keep his, than transfer from one of us to the other. I’m not sure why.