Find out if you can afford to quit, before you resign
Most people who regret quitting didn't misjudge the job. They misjudged the money: how fast savings drain, what insurance really costs, how long the gap lasts. WorkFree turns that guesswork into numbers you can plan around.
Salary isn't the question. Runway is.
A good income tells you nothing about whether you can stop earning it. What matters on the day you resign is how many months of essential spending your savings cover, after the costs that only show up once the paycheck stops.
The four things that quietly break quit plans:
Insurance shock
In the US especially, replacing employer health coverage can add hundreds of dollars a month that never appeared in your old budget. Elsewhere, lost benefits like income protection still matter.
Optimistic side income
Freelance and side-hustle income usually ramps slower than planned. Counting projected income as guaranteed income is the most common runway mistake we see.
Fixed obligations
Rent, mortgage, debt minimums, and family costs don't pause while you regroup. A runway built on a "lean" budget you've never actually lived on will come up short.
Market timing
If hiring in your field takes five months, a three-month runway is a plan to run out of money. Job-search time belongs in the math, not in the hope.
Free calculators for every part of the decision
Quit My Job Calculator
Savings, expenses, side income, and your target date, combined into a readiness check with clear next steps.
Runway Calculator
How many months your savings last at your real burn rate, with scenario testing for cuts and extra income.
Emergency Fund Calculator
Size the buffer you need before a resignation makes sense, based on dependents, debt, and income stability.
Savings Goal Calculator
The gap between what you have and what you need, and the month you could realistically close it.
Budget Planner
Build the line-item post-quit budget that makes every other calculator honest.
Side Hustle Income Calculator
See how part-time or freelance income, including a realistic ramp-up, changes your runway and risk.
Five steps from "I want out" to a safe exit
- Calculate your runway. Real savings divided by real monthly burn, including insurance, taxes, and the costs your employer currently absorbs. Run the numbers.
- Build or verify your buffer. Set an emergency fund target that reflects your dependents and obligations, not a generic rule. Size your buffer.
- Audit benefits and obligations. Health coverage, retirement accounts, unused leave, stock options, notice requirements, settled before you say a word at work. Start with insurance.
- Choose your path. New job first, sabbatical, freelancing, or building a side income to bridge the gap, each changes the math differently. Compare the options.
- Plan the exit itself. Timing, the resignation conversation, your notice period, and your first month out. Follow the full guide.
The guides most people need first
How to Quit Your Job Safely
The complete sequence: financial prep, benefits, timing, the conversation, notice, and your first weeks out.
How Much Money to Save Before Quitting
Why "six months of expenses" is a starting point, not an answer, and how to set your own target.
Quitting Without Another Job Lined Up
An honest look at the risks, who can absorb them, and how to shrink the gap before you jump.
Health Insurance After Quitting
COBRA, marketplace plans, and what changes in the UK, Canada, Australia, NZ, Singapore, and Ireland.
What this looks like in practice
The borderline case
Four months of expenses covers a quick transition, but one slow hiring cycle erases it. The plan: cut burn 15%, line up interviews before resigning, and treat month two as the deadline to adjust.
The wait-and-build case
With fixed family costs, the same savings buy half the runway. Here the honest answer is usually a savings target and a date, not a resignation letter this quarter.
The bridge case
Side income that already covers most of the burn changes everything: runway stretches from 7 months to 18+. The risk shifts from "running out" to "income volatility", a different plan entirely.
The pressure case
When staying feels unbearable but the market is slow, alternatives matter: negotiated leave, internal moves, or a sabbatical can buy recovery time without spending the runway.
How our numbers work, and what they can't tell you
Every calculator on this site does transparent arithmetic on inputs you provide. We publish the formulas, the assumptions, and the limitations on our methodology page. Outputs are educational estimates, not personal financial advice: they can't see your tax situation, your contract, or your country's fine print. Where rules differ by country, we say so. Where we don't know, we say that too. Our editorial policy covers how content is written, reviewed, and updated.
Frequently asked questions
How much money should I have before quitting my job?
A common working target is six months of essential expenses if you are quitting without another job lined up, and three months if you have a signed offer. The right number for you depends on dependents, debt payments, health insurance costs, and how long hiring takes in your field. Our savings guide and quit calculator help you set a number based on your situation rather than a rule of thumb.
Is it bad to quit without another job lined up?
It is riskier, not automatically bad. The risk is mostly financial and depends on your runway, your insurance situation, and the hiring market for your role. People with twelve months of expenses saved and in-demand skills face a very different decision than someone with six weeks of savings and a mortgage.
What happens to my health insurance and retirement accounts when I quit?
It depends on your country. In the US, employer health coverage typically ends shortly after your last day, and you choose between COBRA continuation and a marketplace plan; your 401(k) stays yours but usually needs a decision about where it lives. In the UK, Canada, Australia, NZ, Singapore, and Ireland the healthcare picture is different but pensions, super, CPF, and payouts still need attention. Our benefits guides cover each case.
Are these calculators financial advice?
No. They are educational planning tools that do arithmetic on numbers you provide, using assumptions we publish on our methodology page. They cannot account for your full situation, and outputs are estimates, not recommendations from a licensed adviser.
The Job Exit Checklist
Every task in one place, money, benefits, paperwork, the conversation, and your first 30 days out, so nothing surfaces after it's too late to fix.
Get the checklist