50/30/20 Budget Calculator
Split your monthly after-tax income into 50% needs, 30% wants and 20% savings or debt payoff.
Calculate Your 50/30/20 Budget
Your take-home pay after taxes, not your gross salary.
Rent, utilities, groceries, transport, minimum debt payments.
Dining out, streaming, shopping, travel, hobbies.
Emergency fund, retirement, and payments above the minimum.
Enter your actual spending above to unlock the comparison table below it. Targets are a starting point, not a law.
Your Spending vs. Target
| Category | Target | Your actual | Your share | Over or under target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Needs (50%) | ||||
| Wants (30%) | ||||
| Savings and debt payoff (20%) | ||||
| Total |
A category shown as over target is not a failure on its own. If needs are over 50%, the fix is usually lower fixed costs or higher income, not cutting wants to zero.
How the 50/30/20 Rule Works
The 50/30/20 rule, popularized by Elizabeth Warren and Amelia Warren Tyagi in their 2005 book All Your Worth, divides your monthly after-tax income into three buckets. Half goes to needs, just under a third to wants, and a fifth to savings and debt repayment. Its strength is simplicity: you only need to sort spending into three categories, not track dozens of line items.
Wants target = after-tax income × 0.30
Savings and debt payoff target = after-tax income × 0.20
Actual share = actual spending in a category ÷ after-tax income × 100
What Counts as Needs, Wants, and Savings?
| Category | Includes | Does not include |
|---|---|---|
| Needs (50%) | Rent or mortgage, utilities, groceries, basic transport, health insurance, minimum debt payments, required childcare | Dining out, premium subscriptions, upgraded phone plans |
| Wants (30%) | Dining out, streaming and subscriptions, shopping beyond basics, travel, hobbies, gym upgrades | Groceries, rent, minimum payments |
| Savings and debt payoff (20%) | Emergency fund, retirement contributions, extra debt payments above the minimum, investments | Minimum debt payments, which count as needs |
Worked Example: $5,000 a Month After Tax
| Category | Calculation | Monthly target |
|---|---|---|
| Needs (50%) | $5,000 × 0.50 | $2,500.00 |
| Wants (30%) | $5,000 × 0.30 | $1,500.00 |
| Savings and debt payoff (20%) | $5,000 × 0.20 | $1,000.00 |
| Total | $5,000.00 |
Try a comparison in the calculator: on $5,000 a month, if you actually spend $2,800 on needs, $1,400 on wants and $800 on savings, your shares are 56%, 28% and 16%. Needs run $300 over target, wants run $100 under, and savings run $200 under — a clear, small set of moves to close the gap.
What If Your Needs Are Over 50%?
This is common in high-cost cities, where rent alone can eat a large share of take-home pay. Treat it as a signal about fixed costs, not as a reason to abandon budgeting. Options include renegotiating rent at renewal, refinancing a loan, cutting a car payment, or raising income. Until needs fall, you may run a temporary split such as 60/25/15 and work back toward 50/30/20 as costs change. Do not fund the gap with credit-card debt, which turns a tight month into a lasting one.
How to Use the 20% Bucket
Put high-interest debt first inside the 20% bucket, because its interest rate usually beats any savings return. Once expensive debt is cleared, split the bucket between an emergency fund and retirement or other long-term saving. Minimum debt payments stay in needs; only payments above the minimum belong in the 20% bucket. For a payoff plan, use the debt payoff calculator, and to find your take-home figure, use the paycheck calculator.
