Vocations · Professional Development · Money

A cushion sized
to your real bills.

List the costs you would still have to pay if your paycheck stopped. The calculator sets the goal, shows how much is left to save and tells you the month you reach each milestone.

Size my fundWhat you get

The emergency savings calculator

The worked example is made up: a first shared apartment, $900 saved and $250 a month to put away. Nothing you type leaves this browser.

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What you get

Vocations · Professional DevelopmentFree

What you finish with
Your emergency savings goal, the gap, the months your savings cover now, and the month you reach one month of costs, three months and the full goal at what you can set aside. It prints as a one-page plan and downloads as a spreadsheet.
Who it is for
Students and young adults with a first job or apartment, families, workers between jobs or changing careers, and personal finance teachers.
Format
Browser calculator for a phone, tablet or computer, by touch or keyboard. Up to 30 costs. Prints a plan; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); export and import a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Professional Development space in Caveat Vocations.
Support
Questions, a correction or a request: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. List each essential monthly cost: what you would still owe if your income stopped.
  2. Choose the months of costs to hold. Start with one if three feels far away.
  3. Type what you have saved for emergencies and what you can set aside each month.
  4. Read the goal, the gap and the month you reach each milestone.
  5. Print the plan or download the spreadsheet.

Size my fund

How the goal is worked out

Essential costs times months, then the gap divided by what you set aside.

Savings by month at $250 a month, from $9001 mo3 monowmonth 16Savings by month1 mo3 monowmonth 16
Essential costs of $1,610 a month make a three-month goal of $4,830. From $900 at $250 a month it takes 16 months.

The arithmetic

The goal is your essential monthly costs times the months to hold. The gap is the goal minus what you have. Months to reach a milestone are what is still needed divided by the monthly amount, rounded up; the page names the calendar month from today. Interest is left out, so a savings account that pays interest gets there a little sooner.

Choosing the size

Three to six months of essential costs is a common aim, with more for a single income, irregular pay or a job that takes long to replace. A smaller first target matters most: even one month of costs covers many car repairs and medical bills without new debt. Keep the money where you can reach it within a day or two and where it is protected, such as an FDIC-insured bank or NCUA-insured credit union savings account.

Sources

  1. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. An essential guide to building an emergency fund (consumerfinance.gov): start with a small goal, save automatically, and keep the fund easy to reach.
  2. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Money Smart financial education program (fdic.gov/money-smart): saving for unexpected expenses and deposit insurance.
  3. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households (the annual SHED report): how households would cover an unexpected expense.
  4. National Credit Union Administration, MyCreditUnion.gov: share insurance for credit union savings.

The worked example is made up. This page does arithmetic on your own figures; it is not financial advice. Your figures stay in this browser. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.