Post-Quit Budget Planner
Every other calculator on this site asks for your "monthly expenses." This is where you build that number honestly, line by line, including the costs your employer quietly covers today. Garbage in, garbage out applies to runway math more than anywhere, so download the total when you are done.
Fill in the lines that apply, totals update as you type. Nothing you enter is stored or sent anywhere.
Using your number
The essentials total is the figure to carry into the runway calculator and quit my job calculator, it is what you must cover with no income. The discretionary line shows the gap between a lean month and your normal one: useful headroom if a job search runs long. Most people who redo this exercise honestly find their real burn is higher than the round number they had in their head, which is exactly the surprise you want to have now, not in month three.
Build it honestly
- Start from statements, not memory. Pull three months of bank and card activity. The gap between what people think they spend and what they spend is reliably 10-20%.
- Annualise the irregular. Car service, insurance excess, renewals, gifts, the one holiday, total last year's and divide by twelve. These hide from monthly budgets and then arrive.
- Add what your employer absorbs. Health cover above all in the US, but also any subsidised phone, equipment, or commute that becomes yours to fund.
- Subtract what disappears. Commuting, work lunches, the professional wardrobe, genuine savings once you stop showing up. Do not double-count them as costs.
Methodology, in plain English
Monthly burn equals the sum of every line you enter. Essentials and discretionary are totalled separately so you can see your survival number versus your comfortable one; the annual figure is the monthly total times twelve. The planner does not store data, suggest amounts, or judge your spending, it adds up what you type. Carry the essentials total into the other tools. Full notes on the methodology page. Educational estimates, not financial advice.
The lines people forget
Health insurance (US)
The employer paid it silently; now it is yours. Get a real COBRA or marketplace quote before trusting any total. Insurance guide
Annual costs, monthised
Renewals, services, excesses, gifts, the holiday. A twelfth of each belongs in the monthly figure.
Inflation on essentials
Rent reviews and rising bills do not wait for your job search. Budget slightly above today's number, not below.
The "just this once" line
Repairs, vet bills, a flight home. Build a small buffer into the budget rather than pretending these months will not happen.
Read next
Runway Calculator
Feed your essentials total in and see how many months it buys.
Emergency Fund Calculator
Size the separate cushion your budget implies.
Post-Quit Budget Template
A printable version to keep and update month to month.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as an essential expense after quitting?
Anything you would still have to pay if your income stopped tomorrow: housing, utilities, food, transport, insurance, minimum debt payments, and family or childcare costs. Discretionary spending, dining out, subscriptions you could cancel, travel, is worth listing separately so you can see what a lean month really looks like versus your normal one.
What expenses do people forget in a post-quit budget?
The big one in the US is health insurance, which the employer often paid silently. Others include annual costs divided into monthly terms, car maintenance, insurance excesses, renewals, gifts and holidays, plus anything your job currently subsidises, like commuting, equipment, or a phone plan. These are the lines that quietly break a runway estimate.
How do I use this budget with the other calculators?
The total monthly figure here is the monthly expenses input for the runway calculator, the quit my job calculator, and the emergency fund calculator. Building it line by line first is what makes those tools accurate, every one of them is only as honest as the expenses number you feed it.
Should I budget my current spending or a leaner version?
Budget the version you can actually live, and have lived. A theoretical lean budget you have never tested tends to break within weeks. If you plan to cut, try the cut for a month while still employed; if it holds, use that figure, and if it does not, use your real one.
People also ask
How do I make a budget for after I quit my job?
Start from three months of bank and card statements, list every essential line you would still pay with no income, add a twelfth of irregular annual costs, and add what your employer currently covers such as health insurance. Subtract work-only costs like commuting that disappear. The total is your real post-quit monthly burn.
How much should I budget for health insurance after quitting in the US?
It varies widely by age, location, and plan, so the only reliable figure is a real quote. Price both COBRA continuation and a marketplace plan before you trust any budget; for many people it is the single largest new line after quitting, so guessing low is the most expensive mistake here.
What is a realistic monthly budget when unemployed?
A realistic gap budget is your essential expenses only: housing, utilities, food, transport, insurance, debt minimums, and family costs, plus a small buffer for the irregular. It is lower than your normal spending because discretionary lines pause, but it is rarely as low as people first guess once health cover and annual costs are added.
Is the budget planner free and private?
Yes. It is free with no signup, adds up only what you type, and stores nothing. The optional PDF summary of your budget is generated locally on your device.
Turn the budget into a plan
The Job Exit Checklist covers everything beyond the math: benefits, paperwork, the conversation, and your first 30 days out.
Get the free checklist