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 the budget targets listed further down this page. 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: 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.
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.
Combined Tax Rate: If you chose Gross mode, enter your total tax rate. This includes federal, state, and local income taxes. It should also include the Social Security and Medicare taxes taken from your pay.4 The default is 22%.
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.
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 also carries self-employment tax for Social Security and Medicare, at a rate of 15.3%.5 If much of your income comes from self-employment, raise your tax rate to allow for it.
Rental Income: Enter money you collect from tenants if you rent out property.
Investment / Dividend Income: Enter earnings from stocks, bonds, dividends, or other investments.
Other Income: Enter any other money you receive, such as gifts, alimony, child support, or tax refunds. In Gross mode your tax rate is taken off this line too, but child support is not income for federal tax, and neither is alimony received under a divorce or separation agreement made after 2018.6 If much of your income is untaxed, use Take-Home mode and enter every amount after tax.
Housing & Utilities: Enter costs for rent or mortgage, property taxes, insurance, HOA fees, home repairs, and utilities like electricity, water, and internet.
Transportation: Enter costs for car payments, auto insurance, gas, repairs, parking, tolls, and public transit or rideshare services.
Debt Payments: Enter monthly payments for credit cards, student loans, and personal loans. Do not count purchases you already listed in other categories.
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.
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.
Savings & Investments: Enter what you put toward retirement accounts like a 401(k) or IRA, college savings, general investments, and your emergency fund.
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. 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.
Budget Targets Used by This Calculator
The breakdown table in your results checks your budget against these targets, measured as a share of your after-tax income. They also make up your budget health score:
- 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
- Charitable Giving: at least 10%
- All Other Spending: 25% or less
These are general targets. Your real numbers may look different based on where you live, your family size, and your goals. 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 pay, is your gross pay minus all the deductions taken from your paycheck, such as taxes, insurance premiums, and retirement plan contributions.4 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
A budget helps you make sure you have enough money every month, and it can help you save for your goals or emergencies. A budget helps you build an emergency fund, for which Fidelity's guideline is 3 to 6 months of essential expenses1. It also helps you reach goals like buying a home, paying off student loans, or retiring comfortably.
The best time to start a budget is now. Even a simple plan is better than no plan at all.