Paycheck Budget Calculator

Budget by paycheck, not by month. Enter how often you are paid, your take-home pay and your bills, and see your next 6 paychecks, which bills each one has to cover and how much is safe to spend. Works for weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly and monthly pay.

1. Your pay

$
$

2. Your bills

The 4 bills below are examples. Replace them with your own.

Due day is the day of the month (1 to 31). A bill due on the 31st falls on the last day of shorter months.

Your next 6 paychecks

How budgeting by paycheck works

A monthly budget assumes all your money arrives on day one. It doesn't. If rent is due on the 1st and you are paid on the 6th and 20th, the paycheck on the 20th has to cover rent, and a monthly budget hides that.

  1. List each payday and the day before the next one. That is one pay period.
  2. Assign every bill due inside a pay period to the paycheck that starts it. A bill due on a payday belongs to that payday's paycheck.
  3. Take out savings first, then the bills. What is left is safe to spend on food, fuel and everything else until the next payday.
  4. If a period goes negative (shown in red), set money aside from the paycheck before it, or ask the company to move the due date.

Biweekly pay gives you 26 paychecks a year, so twice a year you get a third paycheck in one month. Those months are a good time to boost savings.

Estimates only. Check exact due dates with each company; weekends and holidays can move paydays.