Budget Planner
The Budget Planner is a detailed monthly budget where you add every income source and every bill or expense, grouped by category, to see exactly where your money goes, whether you have a surplus or shortfall, and how your spending compares to the 50/30/20 rule. Your budget is saved privately in your browser. The 50/30/20 breakdown is calculated only from the expense rows you've explicitly tagged as needs, wants, or savings — your monthly surplus (income minus all entered expenses) is shown separately and is not automatically counted toward the 20% savings target unless you add it as its own expense row categorized "Savings." New expense rows also default to the "Need" category until you change the dropdown, so an uncategorized bill gets counted as a need rather than excluded from the totals. Because everything runs live in your browser from whatever labels and amounts you type in, the accuracy of the surplus and 50/30/20 percentages depends entirely on how carefully you categorize each row — nothing is inferred from the expense name itself.
Monthly income
Bills & expenses
Income
$4,500
Expenses
$3,000
Surplus
$1,500
50/30/20 breakdown
You're spending $3,000 of $4,500 — a $1,500 monthly surplus to save or invest.
Your budget is saved privately in this browser — it never leaves your device and no account is needed.
How This Tool Works
Add each income source and each bill or expense with its category. The planner totals everything, shows your monthly surplus or shortfall, breaks spending down by category, and saves your budget in your browser so it is there when you come back.
Formula & Method
Monthly surplus = total income − total expenses. Each expense is grouped into needs, wants, or savings/debt, then compared to the 50/30/20 guideline (50% needs, 30% wants, 20% savings and debt payoff).
Example Calculation
Monthly income: a $4,300 primary paycheck plus $500 in freelance income totals $4,800. Expenses are entered and tagged by category: needs — rent $1,400, groceries $450, utilities $180, car payment $320, and insurance $150 (sums to $2,500); wants — dining out $300, subscriptions $80, shopping $270, and entertainment $150 (sums to $800); savings — a $300 emergency-fund deposit and $200 extra 401(k) contribution (sums to $500). Total expenses = $2,500 + $800 + $500 = $3,800, leaving a surplus of $4,800 − $3,800 = $1,000. Against the 50/30/20 guideline (each category as a % of the $4,800 income): needs = $2,500 ÷ $4,800 = 52% (flagged as over the 50% target), wants = $800 ÷ $4,800 = 17% (comfortably under the 30% target), and savings = $500 ÷ $4,800 = 10% (under the 20% target) — even though $1,000 is left unspent, only the $500 explicitly tagged "Savings" counts toward that figure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is my budget data private?+
Yes. Everything you enter stays in your own browser using local storage — it is never uploaded to or stored on our servers, and no account is required. Clearing your browser data removes it.
What is the 50/30/20 rule?+
A simple budgeting guideline: aim for about 50% of take-home pay on needs (housing, food, utilities), 30% on wants, and 20% on savings and debt payoff. The planner shows how your budget compares.
Can I use this for a household, not just myself?+
Yes. Add every income source (both partners, side income) and every shared bill and expense. The totals and surplus reflect the whole household.
Will my budget still be here when I come back?+
Yes, as long as you use the same browser on the same device and do not clear your site data. It is saved locally, so it will not sync across devices.
Does my leftover surplus count as savings in the 50/30/20 breakdown?+
No — the savings percentage only totals the expense rows you've specifically tagged "Savings," like a 401(k) contribution or a transfer into a savings account. Your monthly surplus (income minus everything you've entered as an expense) is shown as its own number and isn't automatically folded into that 20% target — if you want it reflected there, add it as its own expense row tagged Savings.
What category should I pick if I'm not sure an expense is a need or a want?+
Every new expense row defaults to "Need" until you change the dropdown, so it's worth double-checking the category on anything you add. Miscategorizing a want as a need (or vice versa) won't change your total spending or surplus, but it will skew the 50/30/20 percentages, since those are calculated purely from how each row is tagged.
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<a href="https://everyfix.net/tools/budget-planner/">Budget Planner</a> by <a href="https://everyfix.net">EveryFix</a>Related Tools
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