Finance calculators

Budget Calculator

Updated Jun 18, 2026 By Jehan Wadia
Formulas
Income
Expenses
After-Tax Income
$0
$0 / yr
Assigned Expenses
$0
$0 / yr
Balanced — $0/mo

Budget Results

Total Income
$0
Total Expenses
$0
Net Balance
$0
Expense-to-Income Ratio
0%

Category Breakdown

Expense breakdown by category with recommended thresholds and status
CategoryMonthlyAnnual% of IncomeStatus

Expense Distribution

Budget Health Score

0
—

Personalized Insights

    Introduction

    A budget is a plan for your money. It shows how much you earn, how much you spend, and how much you have left. Without a budget, it is easy to spend more than you make and fall into debt. This free budget calculator helps you take control of your finances by putting every dollar in its place.

    Enter your income and expenses to see where your money goes each month. The calculator breaks your spending into categories like housing, food, transportation, savings, and debt. It compares your numbers to recommended spending limits used by financial experts. You will get a budget health score, a visual chart of your spending, and personalized tips to help you improve.

    This tool uses a zero-based budgeting method. That means your goal is to assign every dollar of income to a specific job — whether that is paying a bill, saving for the future, or covering daily needs. When income minus expenses equals zero, your budget is balanced and no money is wasted.

    Whether you are building your first budget or fine-tuning one you already have, this calculator gives you a clear picture of your money in minutes.

    How to Use Our Budget Calculator

    Enter your income and expenses below. The calculator will show you where your money goes each month, flag problem areas, and give you a budget health score with tips to improve.

    Income Mode: Pick "Gross (Pre-Tax)" if you enter your pay before taxes are taken out. Pick "Take-Home (After-Tax)" if you enter the amount you actually receive. If you are unsure what your take-home pay is, our take home pay calculator can help you figure it out.

    Combined Tax Rate: If you chose Gross mode, enter your total tax rate. This includes federal, state, and local taxes combined. The default is 22%, which works for many people. You can use our effective tax rate calculator to find your exact blended rate, or check the tax bracket calculator to see where your income falls.

    Primary Salary / Wages: Enter the main income you earn from your job. Set the dropdown to "Monthly" or "Annually" based on how you want to enter it. If you need to convert between formats, try the hourly to salary calculator or the annual income calculator.

    Secondary / Spouse Income: Enter any second income, such as a spouse's or partner's pay. Leave it at zero if this does not apply to you.

    Freelance / Self-Employment Income: Enter money you earn from side jobs, gig work, or your own business. Keep in mind that self-employment income has additional taxes — our self-employment tax calculator can help you estimate those.

    Rental Income: Enter money you collect from tenants if you rent out property. You can evaluate property performance with our rental yield calculator or cap rate calculator.

    Investment / Dividend Income: Enter earnings from stocks, bonds, dividends, or other investments. Our dividend calculator can help you project future dividend earnings.

    Other Income: Enter any other money you receive, such as gifts, alimony, child support, or tax refunds.

    Housing & Utilities: Enter costs for rent or mortgage, property taxes, insurance, HOA fees, home repairs, and utilities like electricity, water, and internet. If you are a homeowner, tools like the mortgage calculator and property tax calculator can help you break down those costs. Renters can use the rent affordability calculator to see if their housing fits their income. You can also estimate utility bills with the electricity cost calculator.

    Transportation: Enter costs for car payments, auto insurance, gas, repairs, parking, tolls, and public transit or rideshare services. Use the auto loan calculator to check your car payment details, or the fuel cost calculator to estimate your monthly gas spending.

    Debt Payments: Enter monthly payments for credit cards, student loans, and personal loans. Do not count purchases you already listed in other categories. If you are working on paying down debt, try the debt snowball calculator or the debt avalanche calculator to find the fastest payoff strategy. You can also use the credit card payoff calculator or the student loan calculator for more specific estimates.

    Living Expenses: Enter costs for groceries, dining out, clothing, household supplies, personal care, and other day-to-day spending.

    Healthcare: Enter health insurance premiums you pay out of pocket and medical costs like copays, prescriptions, dental, and vision. If you have a health savings account, our HSA calculator can help you plan contributions and tax savings.

    Children & Education: Enter costs for childcare, tuition, school supplies, child support, and other child-related expenses. Leave these at zero if they do not apply. If you are saving for college, the 529 calculator can help you project education savings growth. For child support estimates, try the child support calculator.

    Savings & Investments: Enter what you put toward retirement accounts like a 401(k) or IRA, college savings, general investments, and your emergency fund. Our 401(k) calculator and Roth IRA calculator can help you see how your retirement contributions will grow over time. Use the emergency fund calculator to figure out how much you need set aside, and the investment calculator to project long-term growth.

    Miscellaneous: Enter costs for pets, gifts, donations, hobbies, entertainment, subscriptions, travel, and anything else not covered above.

    Auto-Recommend for Me: Click this button to have the calculator fill in suggested amounts based on your income. You can then adjust each line to match your real spending.

    Add Custom Item: Click the "Add Custom Item" button inside any category to add an expense that is not already listed.

    Calculate: Press the "Calculate" button to see your full results, including a spending breakdown table, a donut chart, a budget health score out of 100, and personalized tips to improve your finances.

    What Is a Budget and Why Does It Matter?

    A budget is a plan for your money. It shows how much you earn, how much you spend, and what is left over. When you make a budget, you give every dollar a job. This helps you pay your bills, save for the future, and avoid debt.

    How a Budget Works

    A budget starts with your income. Income is all the money you bring home from work, side jobs, or other sources. If you are paid hourly, the salary calculator can help you determine your total earnings. Next, you list your expenses. Expenses are the things you spend money on, like rent, food, car payments, and electricity. When you subtract your expenses from your income, you get your net balance. If the number is positive, you have money left over. If it is negative, you are spending more than you earn.

    The Zero-Based Budget Method

    A zero-based budget means you assign every dollar of income to a category until you reach zero. Nothing is left floating around without a purpose. Money that is not assigned to bills or daily needs should go toward savings, paying off debt, or investing. This method keeps you in full control of your finances.

    Common Budget Guidelines

    Financial experts suggest these spending limits based on your after-tax income:

    • Housing & Utilities: 30% or less
    • Transportation: 15% or less
    • Food: 15% or less
    • Savings & Investments: at least 15%
    • Debt Payments: 10% or less
    • Healthcare: 10% or less

    These are general targets. Your real numbers may look different based on where you live, your family size, and your goals. Use a cost of living calculator to understand how your location affects your expenses. The key is to spend less than you earn and save consistently.

    Gross Income vs. Take-Home Pay

    Gross income is the full amount you earn before taxes are taken out. Take-home pay, also called net income, is what you actually receive in your bank account after federal, state, and local taxes are removed. Our net to gross calculator can help you convert between the two. You can also use the income tax calculator to estimate what you owe. Your budget should always be built around your take-home pay because that is the real money you have to work with.

    Why Budgeting Helps You

    People who follow a budget are less likely to overspend, carry high debt, or face money emergencies they cannot handle. A budget helps you build an emergency fund, which experts say should cover 3 to 6 months of living expenses. It also helps you reach goals like buying a home, paying off student loans, or retiring comfortably. Tracking your overall financial picture with a net worth calculator is another great way to measure progress over time.

    The best time to start a budget is now. Even a simple plan is better than no plan at all.

    Formulas used

    After-Tax Monthly Income (Gross Mode)
    I_{\text{after-tax}} = I_{\text{gross,monthly}} \times \left(1 - \frac{T}{100}\right)
    Monthly Amount from Frequency
    M = \begin{cases} A & \text{if frequency = monthly} \\ \frac{A}{12} & \text{if frequency = annually} \end{cases}
    Category Percentage of Income
    P_{\text{cat}} = \frac{E_{\text{cat}}}{I_{\text{after-tax}}} \times 100
    Expense-to-Income Ratio
    R = \frac{E_{\text{total}}}{I_{\text{after-tax}}} \times 100
    Net Balance
    \text{Net} = I_{\text{after-tax}} - E_{\text{total}}
    Budget Health Score (Category Factor — Max Type)
    f_i = \begin{cases} 1 & \text{if } P_i \le L_i \\ \frac{L_i}{P_i} & \text{if } P_i > L_i \end{cases}
    Budget Health Score (Category Factor — Min Type)
    f_i = \begin{cases} 1 & \text{if } P_i \ge L_i \\ \frac{P_i}{L_i} & \text{if } P_i < L_i \end{cases}
    Budget Health Score (Weighted Total)
    S = \sum_{i=1}^{n} w_i \times \text{clamp}(f_i,\, 0,\, 1)

    Frequently asked questions

    What is a zero-based budget?

    A zero-based budget means you give every dollar of income a job. You subtract all your expenses from your income until you reach zero. No money is left without a purpose. If you have dollars left over, you assign them to savings, debt payoff, or investing. This calculator follows this method and shows you when your budget is balanced.

    Should I enter my income as gross or take-home pay?

    Pick whichever one you know. If you enter gross (pre-tax) income, set your tax rate so the calculator can figure out your take-home pay. If you already know your after-tax pay from your paycheck, choose "Take-Home (After-Tax)" mode. Your budget is built on the money you actually receive, so the calculator always works with your after-tax amount.

    What tax rate should I use?

    Enter your combined effective tax rate. This includes federal, state, and local income taxes added together. The default is 22%, which works for many people. If you are unsure, check your last tax return. Divide the total tax you paid by your total income and multiply by 100. That gives you your blended rate.

    What does the Auto-Recommend button do?

    It fills in suggested expense amounts based on your income and standard budget guidelines. For example, it puts about 30% of your after-tax income toward housing and 15% toward savings. These are starting points. You should adjust every line to match what you actually spend.

    How is the budget health score calculated?

    The score goes from 0 to 100. It checks each spending category against recommended limits. Categories like housing, transportation, and debt lose points if they go over their limit. Savings loses points if it falls below its target. Each category is weighted by how much it affects your overall financial health. A score of 90 or above is excellent, 70 to 89 is good, 50 to 69 is fair, and below 50 needs attention.

    What do the status colors in the breakdown table mean?

    Green means you are on track and within the recommended range. Red means you are over the spending limit or below a savings target. Yellow means the amount is above typical levels and you should review it, but it is not as urgent as red.

    Can I switch between monthly and annual views?

    Yes. After you click Calculate, use the Monthly or Annual toggle above the results. All dollar amounts in the summary cards, breakdown table, and chart will update to show the time period you pick.

    How do I add an expense that is not listed?

    Click the "Add Custom Item" button inside any category. A new row will appear where you can type a name, enter an amount, and choose monthly or annually. You can add as many custom items as you need.

    Why does the tracker say I have unassigned dollars?

    That means your total expenses are less than your after-tax income. In a zero-based budget, every dollar should have a job. Put those extra dollars toward savings, your emergency fund, debt payments, or investments until the balance reaches zero.

    What if my expenses are more than my income?

    The tracker will turn red and show you are over budget. You need to either cut spending or increase income to balance things out. Look at the breakdown table to find which categories are over their recommended limits. Start cutting there first.

    Should I include 401(k) contributions that come out of my paycheck?

    If you enter gross income, yes. Put your 401(k) contributions in the Savings & Investments category. If you enter take-home pay and your 401(k) is already deducted before you get paid, you can still list it under savings to track it, but know that the money is already removed from your income number.

    How much should I spend on housing?

    The recommended limit is 30% or less of your after-tax income. This includes rent or mortgage, property taxes, insurance, HOA fees, repairs, and utilities. If you are above 30%, the calculator will flag it and your budget health score will drop.

    How much should I save each month?

    Aim for at least 15% of your after-tax income. This includes retirement contributions, emergency fund deposits, college savings, and general investments. The calculator treats savings as a minimum target, so your score goes up the more you save.

    What counts as debt payments in this calculator?

    Enter only the payments you make toward credit card balances, student loans, and personal loans. Do not include purchases you already listed in other categories. For example, if you buy groceries on a credit card and listed that amount under food, do not count it again as a credit card payment.

    Does this calculator save my data?

    No. All your numbers stay in your browser and are not saved or sent anywhere. If you close or refresh the page, your entries will be reset to the default values. You can take a screenshot or write down your results if you want to keep them.

    Can I use this calculator if I get paid biweekly?

    Yes. Convert your biweekly pay to monthly or annual first. If you are paid every two weeks, multiply your paycheck by 26 to get your annual amount, then enter it with the "Annually" option. Or divide that annual total by 12 and enter it as monthly.

    What is the donut chart showing me?

    The donut chart shows how your expenses are split across categories. Each colored slice represents one spending category. Larger slices mean more money goes to that category. It only shows categories where you spend more than zero. Hover over a slice to see the exact dollar amount.

    What if I do not have children or debt?

    Leave those fields at zero. The calculator will skip them in your results. Only categories with spending above zero appear in the chart and affect your budget health score.

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