Budget based on your lowest-earning month, not your average income
This calculator analyzes your past 12 months of income to create a sustainable budget that works even in slow months.
Enter your monthly income for the past 12 months:
How to use this calculator
Enter your actual monthly income for the past 12 months. Include all freelance revenue before expenses. The calculator shows your average, lowest, and highest months, then recommends a sustainable monthly budget that accounts for income variability.
How the budget is calculated
The recommended budget is the lower of 80% of your average income or 90% of your lowest month. This conservative approach ensures you can cover expenses even in slow months while saving excess from good months.
Budget = MIN(Average × 0.8, Lowest Month × 0.9)Frequently asked questions
Why budget on the low month instead of the average?
Because you need to pay bills every month, not on average. If you spend your average income but earn below average for 3-4 months, you'll drain savings or go into debt. Budgeting conservatively means good months build savings that cover slow months.
What do I do with income above my budget?
Save it. When you earn more than your budget, transfer the excess to savings immediately. This builds your runway and smooths out the inevitable slow months. Aim to keep 3-6 months of expenses saved at all times.
My income varies wildly — is this budget too conservative?
If your lowest month is dramatically below average (50% or less), you either need to smooth your income by signing retainers, reduce expenses significantly, or maintain very high savings. Extreme income variability is hard to budget for without a large safety buffer.
Should I include business expenses in this calculation?
No. Enter gross revenue here, then subtract your typical business expenses from the recommended budget to get your personal spending budget. Business expenses should be relatively stable month-to-month anyway.
How can I reduce my income variability?
Sign monthly retainers with anchor clients, diversify your client base so no single client is more than 30% of revenue, build productized services with predictable pricing, or add passive income streams. Reducing variability makes budgeting easier and life less stressful.