🇮🇳 India

Monthly Budget Calculator India — FY 2025-26

Allocate your monthly in-hand salary using the 50/30/20 rule adapted for India. See city-specific breakdowns for rent, groceries, utilities, and insurance. Track your actual savings rate against the 20% target and get a comprehensive financial health score with specific improvement actions.

Your take-home salary after TDS and PF deductions
Affects rent and cost assumptions in the breakdown
No
Home loan, car loan, personal loan, etc.

Try another scenario

How to Use This Calculator

50/30/20 Budget tab

Enter your monthly in-hand salary and city type. The calculator allocates your income using the 50/30/20 rule with India-specific line items: rent, groceries, utilities, insurance, transport, domestic help under needs; dining, entertainment, shopping under wants; and SIP, PPF, emergency fund under savings. If you have active EMIs, toggle that option to see how loan repayments affect your budget.

Savings Tracker tab

Enter your actual monthly expenses across all categories. The calculator computes your real savings rate, compares it against the 20% target, and gives you specific, actionable suggestions to close the gap. See exactly where your money goes and identify the biggest opportunities to save more.

Financial Health Score tab

Enter your income, EMIs, insurance status, emergency fund, and investments. The calculator scores your financial health from 0 to 100 across five dimensions: savings rate, emergency fund coverage, insurance, debt-to-income ratio, and investment allocation. Each dimension shows a score with specific improvement actions.

Share your result

Every input is encoded in the URL. Click Share to send your exact budget scenario to a friend, spouse, or financial advisor, or save it for later comparison.

The 50/30/20 Rule

The 50/30/20 rule is a simple budgeting framework popularised by US Senator Elizabeth Warren. It divides your after-tax (in-hand) income into three categories:

50% — Needs (non-negotiable expenses)
Rent / housing, groceries, utilities, insurance premiums, transport, domestic help, school fees, EMI repayments

30% — Wants (discretionary spending)
Dining out, entertainment, shopping, travel, subscriptions (OTT, gym, magazines)

20% — Savings & Investments
SIP in mutual funds, PPF contributions, emergency fund, NPS, EMI prepayment, RD

India-Specific Adjustments:
• In metros (Mumbai, Bangalore), housing alone can consume 35-45% of income. Adjust wants downward to compensate.
• Those living with family can push savings to 30-40% since housing costs are shared.
• Insurance (term life + health) is a need, not a want. Budget ₹1,500-₹3,000/month for adequate coverage.
• Domestic help (cook, maid) is an India-specific fixed expense: ₹3,000-₹10,000/month in metros.

The 50/30/20 split is a starting guideline, not a rigid rule. The key principle: pay yourself first by automating the 20% savings on salary day via SIP standing instructions before spending on wants.

Example

Arjun — Bangalore software engineer, ₹75,000/month in-hand

Arjun is 27, works at a startup in Bangalore. His CTC is ₹12 LPA, and after PF and TDS, his in-hand salary is ₹75,000/month. He lives in a rented 1BHK and has no car loan.

Step 1: Apply 50/30/20 split

Monthly in-hand₹75,000
50% Needs₹37,500
30% Wants₹22,500
20% Savings₹15,000

Step 2: Needs breakdown (metro Bangalore)

Rent (1BHK HSR Layout)₹20,000
Groceries₹6,000
Utilities₹3,000
Transport (bike + metro)₹3,500
Insurance (term + health)₹2,500
Domestic help (cook)₹2,500

Step 3: Savings allocation

SIP (NIFTY 50 index fund)₹7,500
PPF (tax saving)₹3,000
Emergency fund (liquid fund)₹3,000
Buffer / top-up₹1,500

Arjun saves ₹15,000/month (20%). His SIP of ₹7,500/month at 12% CAGR will grow to ₹17.4 lakh in 10 years. His PPF will build a tax-free corpus. In 12 months, his emergency fund reaches ₹36,000 — close to 1 month of expenses, building towards the 6-month target of ₹2.25 lakh.

FAQ

In cities like Mumbai and Bangalore, rent alone can take 35-45% of in-hand salary for a decent 1BHK. This means the strict 50/30/20 split may not work. A more realistic split for metro workers earning under ₹1 lakh is 60/20/20 or even 55/25/20. The key is to protect the 20% savings portion regardless of how you split needs and wants. If rent is very high, cut wants aggressively rather than sacrificing savings. Sharing accommodation can bring rent within the 30% guideline.
The standard recommendation is 6 months of essential expenses (not income). For someone spending ₹40,000/month on needs, that is ₹2.4 lakh. For a family with ₹60,000 in monthly expenses, target ₹3.6 lakh. Keep this in a liquid mutual fund (not FD — you need instant access) or a high-yield savings account. Build this before starting any investment. If you are just starting out, target 3 months first, then build to 6 months over a year.
Two types are non-negotiable: Term life insurance (₹1 Cr cover costs ₹500-₹1,000/month at age 30, non-smoker) and health insurance (₹5 lakh family floater costs ₹800-₹1,500/month). Do NOT rely on employer health coverage alone — you lose it if you change jobs. Buy a pure term plan, not a ULIP or endowment (those are poor investments disguised as insurance). Critical illness and personal accident riders are good add-ons but not essential for starters.
Priority order: (1) Build emergency fund to 3 months of expenses first. (2) Get term life and health insurance. (3) Start SIP — allocate 50-60% of your savings budget to equity mutual fund SIP for long-term wealth creation. (4) PPF for tax saving under 80C — allocate 20-25% (minimum ₹500/year to keep account active, max ₹1.5 lakh/year). (5) NPS for additional tax benefit under 80CCD(1B) up to ₹50,000. Once emergency fund is complete, redirect that allocation to increase SIP.
20% is the baseline target for a healthy financial life. Below 10% means you are living paycheck to paycheck. 20-30% puts you on track for comfortable retirement. Above 30% means you can build significant wealth or achieve FIRE (financial independence). India's household savings rate is around 30% of GDP, but this includes forced savings like PF. The key metric is your investable savings rate — money actively invested in SIP, PPF, NPS, or other growth assets, not just sitting in a savings account.

Related Calculators

Add This Calculator to Your Website

Embed the sum.money Monthly Budget Calculator on your site. Free, responsive, always up-to-date.

<iframe src="https://sum.money/embed/in/monthly-budget-calculator" width="100%" height="600"></iframe>