50/30/20 budget planner
Enter your monthly take-home pay and adjust the sliders to see how your spending splits across needs, wants, and savings. Annual costs like car insurance or holidays can be entered yearly and converted to a monthly figure automatically.
Not sure of your take-home pay? Use the Take-home Pay Calculator
How you compare to the 50/30/20 targets
Spending breakdown
Needs / Wants / Savings split
Remaining income: £0 per month not yet allocated.
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OpenHow this is calculated
- Start by entering your monthly take-home pay (after tax and National Insurance). Use the Take-home Pay Calculator if you are not sure of the exact figure.
- The 50/30/20 rule splits take-home pay into three buckets: 50% for needs (rent, bills, food), 30% for wants (dining out, holidays, subscriptions), and 20% for savings and debt repayment.
- Work through each category using the sliders. For annual costs like car insurance or holidays, toggle "Annual" and enter the yearly figure — the calculator divides it by 12 and shows the monthly equivalent.
- The results show your actual spend in each category versus the 50/30/20 targets. The bar chart breaks each category into its individual items; the pie chart shows your overall split.
- The 50/30/20 rule is a guide, not a rule. If you live in London or Edinburgh, housing alone may take more than 50%. The chart helps you see where your money goes and decide where to adjust.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 50/30/20 rule?
The 50/30/20 rule is a budgeting framework that divides your take-home pay into three buckets: 50% on needs (essential costs you cannot avoid), 30% on wants (lifestyle choices), and 20% on savings and debt repayment. It was popularised by Elizabeth Warren in All Your Worth. The proportions are a starting point, not a strict rule.
Should I use gross salary or take-home pay?
Take-home pay. Budgeting from your gross salary overstates what you actually have available, because tax, National Insurance, and pension contributions come out first. Use the Take-home Pay Calculator to get the right figure.
How do I handle annual costs like car insurance?
Toggle the "Annual" switch on any item that you pay yearly. Enter the annual figure and the calculator divides by 12 to give you a monthly equivalent. This approach smooths out large annual bills and gives a more accurate monthly budget picture.
Is 50/30/20 realistic in the UK?
It depends on your income and location. In high-cost cities like London, housing alone can absorb 40–50% of take-home pay for many people. In lower-cost areas, 50% on needs is more achievable. If your needs exceed 50%, the most effective levers are usually housing cost, commuting, and food.
Where do pension contributions go?
Pension contributions from your take-home pay sit in the Savings (20%) bucket. Employer contributions do not come out of your take-home pay, so they are not budgeted here. If your employer auto-enrols you at 3%, your own contribution (typically 5%) is the figure to enter.
What counts as a need versus a want?
A need is something you cannot reasonably cut without affecting your ability to work or live: rent, council tax, utilities, groceries, essential transport. A want is a choice: eating out, streaming services, gym membership, holidays. When in doubt, ask whether you could function normally without it for six months.
A simple month-by-month spending notebook for putting your needs / wants / savings split into practice once the calculator has done the maths.
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This calculator is for general guidance only. It does not replace advice from a qualified financial adviser on your personal circumstances.
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