Irregular Income Budget Calculator

How it works

Salary = lowest month × (1 − tax set-aside %) · average after tax = average month × (1 − tax %) · average surplus = average after tax − salary · buffer target = months × salary · time to fill = (target − saved) ÷ average surplus

With freelance, commission, gig or seasonal income, budgeting on your average month leads to shortfalls in lean months. A common method recommended by extension services and the CFPB’s Your Money, Your Goals toolkit is to build the budget on a conservative baseline — your lowest recent month — and pay yourself that as a fixed salary from a separate holding account. Tax is set aside from every payment first, and good months refill an income buffer of one to six months of salary that covers the gaps.

Worked example

Your lowest month was 3,200 and your average 4,500. Setting aside 20% for tax, you pay yourself a salary of 2,560.00 a month, which covers 2,400 of essentials with 160 to spare. In an average month you set aside 900 for tax and 1,040 goes to the buffer and goals. A 3-month buffer is 7,680; with 2,000 saved, the remaining 5,680 takes about 6 months.

Sources: Penn State Extension — Budgeting with irregular income · CFPB — Your Money, Your Goals toolkit (income and budgeting modules)

Frequently asked questions