Monthly essentials
Last updated 28 August 2026
Why essentials, not total spending
An emergency fund is there to cover the months when income stops, and in those months your spending would not look like it does now. Subscriptions get cancelled, meals out stop, holidays are shelved. Sizing the fund against your full budget produces a target so large it never gets reached, which is its own kind of failure. Sizing it against essentials — housing, utilities, food, transport, insurance, minimum debt payments — gives a number that is both genuinely protective and actually achievable. Three months suits a stable job with a second income in the household; six is the common advice; freelancers and single-income households are usually better served by nine or twelve.
Common questions
How many months should I aim for?
Three months suits a secure job with another income in the household. Six is the usual advice for a single stable salary. Nine to twelve makes more sense for freelance, commission-based or seasonal income, where a gap can last longer and arrive without warning.
What counts as an essential expense?
Anything you would still have to pay if your income stopped tomorrow: housing, utilities, food, transport, insurance and minimum debt payments. Leave out subscriptions, dining out, holidays and anything else you would cut in that situation.
Where should the money be kept?
Somewhere you can reach within a day or two without penalty, which usually means an instant-access savings account rather than investments. The point of this money is availability, not growth — an emergency rarely waits for a good time to sell.
Is my information stored anywhere?
No. The calculation happens in your browser and nothing is uploaded or saved.