Emergency Fund Calculator
How much to keep aside for a bad month, and how to get there.
Your plan, month by month
How this was calculated
Results are estimates for general information and planning, not financial advice. Banks and institutions may calculate differently (rounding, fees, rate changes). Confirm figures with your lender or a qualified adviser before deciding.
About the Emergency Fund Calculator
An emergency fund is money set aside for the month something goes wrong — a lost job, a hospital bill your insurance does not fully pay, an urgent repair. How much you need depends on your situation: the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s guide to building an emergency fund says exactly that, and suggests starting from the unexpected expenses you have actually had.
So this calculator builds the target from your own numbers: your household’s essential monthly costs, less any income that would carry on, times the months you want to be able to manage, plus the one-off costs you might face. It then compares the target with what you have saved and works out the monthly saving that closes the gap by the month you choose. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
How to use it
- Enter your essential monthly costs for the whole household, including what your dependants need — rent or EMI, food, bills, insurance premiums, fees, medicines. Leave out what you would stop paying in a crisis.
- Enter any income that would continue if your own stopped — a partner’s pay towards the household, rent you receive, a pension.
- Choose the months to cover — how long you want to be able to manage without your income.
- Add one-off costs you might face: what your health insurance would not pay, an urgent home or vehicle repair.
- Enter what you have already saved for emergencies, the months in which you want to reach the target and, if the money earns interest, the rate. Read the target, the gap and the saving needed each month; copy the summary or download the plan as CSV.
Examples
Partner’s income ₹10,000 would continue · 6 months · ₹50,000 medical + ₹20,000 repair · ₹1,00,000 saved · reach it in 12 months
Target ₹2,80,000 (₹35,000 × 6 + ₹70,000) · gap ₹1,80,000 · save ₹15,000 a month
Three months of cover (₹1,75,000) is reached in month 5 of the plan.
As above, the fund earning 6% a year
Save ₹14,116 a month — the interest does the rest
₹30,000 of costs, ₹35,000 of income that would continue, ₹40,000 of one-off costs
Target ₹40,000: only the one-off costs need a fund
How the target is worked out
Monthly need = essential monthly costs − income that would continue
Target = monthly need × months to cover + one-off costs
The saving needed is the gap spread over the months you choose: (target − saved) ÷ months. With interest at an annual rate r, the monthly rate is i = (1 + r)^(1/12) − 1, savings are added at the end of each month, and the saving is (target − saved × (1 + i)^n) ÷ [((1 + i)^n − 1) ÷ i]. The months of cover shown are what your balance would pay for after the one-off costs are set aside.
Choosing the months
There is no single right number; the months are your judgement of how long a bad patch could last. Things that usually call for more months:
- Irregular income — self-employment, commission, seasonal or contract work.
- One earner for the household, or dependants — children, parents — who rely on you.
- Work that takes longer to find again in your field or town, or no notice-period pay.
- Large fixed costs that you cannot cut quickly, such as an EMI.
A steady job, a second income and low fixed costs point the other way. Try a few values: the target changes in proportion.
Insurance and one-off costs
Health insurance lowers the medical part but rarely to zero: deductibles, co-payments, room-rent limits and items the policy excludes are paid by you — check your policy and enter what you would still pay. Without health cover, think about what a hospital stay could cost. Life insurance pays out on death; it does not replace your income if you lose your job, so it does not lower this target. Insurance premiums themselves belong in the monthly costs, since they must keep being paid.
Where to keep it and how to build it
The CFPB’s guide suggests keeping emergency savings somewhere safe, accessible and where you are not tempted to spend them on non-emergencies — for example a dedicated account at your bank or credit union. Money that can fall in value may be worth less exactly when you need it. To build the fund, the guide recommends saving a specific amount automatically, putting part of windfalls such as a tax refund towards it, and setting a new goal once you reach one. Even a small fund helps.
Limitations
- The target is your own estimate. The months, the costs and the one-off amounts are your choices; the calculator only adds them up.
- Prices rising while you save are not added to the target; for a plan longer than a year or two, add a margin.
- Interest is assumed steady and is not taxed in the plan.
- One fund for the whole household. It does not decide how to split it between accounts.
Privacy
Everything is calculated in your browser. Your costs, income and savings are never uploaded or stored on a server.
Frequently asked questions
How much should my emergency fund be?
Enough to pay your essential costs for the months you want to cover, plus the one-off costs you could face. With ₹35,000 a month of need, six months and ₹70,000 of one-off costs, that is ₹2,80,000. The months are your judgement — more if your income is irregular or others depend on you.
Should I count my partner’s income?
Count the part that would keep coming in and go towards household costs if your income stopped. It lowers the monthly need. If both incomes could stop at once — for example in the same family business — leave it out.
Does health insurance mean I need a smaller fund?
It lowers the medical part, but you still pay deductibles, co-payments, room-rent limits and excluded items. Enter what you would still pay as a one-off cost. Without health cover, plan for the cost of a hospital stay.
Where should I keep an emergency fund?
Somewhere safe, accessible and out of everyday reach, as the CFPB’s guide puts it — for example a dedicated account at your bank or credit union. Money that can fall in value might be worth less exactly when you need it.
What if I cannot save that much each month?
Give yourself more months, or start with a smaller first target such as one month of costs — the plan shows when you reach one, three and six months. Saving a fixed amount automatically makes it easier to keep going.