How big should an emergency fund be?

Commonly three to six months of essential expenses. More if your income is variable or you're the sole earner.

What counts as essential expenses?

Housing, food, utilities, transport, insurance, and minimum debt payments — the costs you can't easily cut.

Where should I keep it?

Somewhere safe and easy to access, like an instant-access savings account — not tied up in investments that can fall in value.

Does it include my current savings?

Yes. The calculator subtracts what you've saved from the target to show the remaining gap.

Which currency does it use?

The currency follows the site language. The maths is identical in every market.

Can I share a calculation?

Yes. Use Share to copy a link that reopens the calculator with the same figures.

Emergency fund calculator

Enter your essential monthly expenses, how many months of cover you want, and what you've already saved. The calculator shows your target fund, the amount still to save, and how many months your current savings cover.

Use it to set an emergency fund target and see how close your current savings are.

Target fund

$12,000

Still to save: $8,000
Covered now: 2 months

The result updates as you type. The headline is the fund to aim for; the gap shows what's left, and months-covered tells you where you stand now.

How does it work?

Three to six months of expenses is a common target; more for variable income or a single earner. Base it on essential spending, not total spending.

Emergency fund formula

\text{target} = E \times m,\quad \text{gap} = \max(0,\ \text{target} - S)

target: Fund size to aim for.
E: Essential monthly expenses.
m: Months of cover you want.
S: Savings already set aside.
gap: Amount still to save.

With 2,000 a month in expenses and a 6-month target, the fund is 12,000. If 4,000 is saved, 8,000 is still to go and the savings already cover 2 months.

Method & sources

The target is monthly expenses multiplied by the months of cover. The gap is the target minus current savings, never below zero. Months covered now is current savings divided by monthly expenses.

Sources

Where this method comes from — use these references to understand the formula, assumptions, and limits.

An essential guide to building an emergency fund — U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, verified 2026-06-10

How we calculate

The target is monthly expenses multiplied by the months of cover.
The gap is the target minus current savings, never below zero.
Months covered now is current savings divided by monthly expenses.
Base the figure on essential spending, not total spending.

Rounding

Money is shown as whole units and months to one decimal. The calculation uses full precision.

What this calculator does

An emergency fund covers essential costs if income stops or an unexpected bill lands. This calculator multiplies your monthly expenses by the months of cover you want to set a target, then compares it with what you've saved to show the gap.

How to use it

Enter your essential monthly expenses.
Choose how many months of cover you want (3–6 is common).
Enter your current savings.
Read the target fund and how much is still to save.

A worked example

With 2,000 a month in essential expenses and a 6-month target, the fund is 12,000. If 4,000 is already saved, 8,000 is still to go and your savings already cover 2 months.

How many months should you target?

Three months suits stable, dual-income households; six or more is wiser for variable income, a single earner, or job uncertainty. Base it on essential spending — housing, food, utilities — not lifestyle extras.

Common mistakes

Using total spending instead of essential spending.
Forgetting irregular essentials like insurance or annual bills.
Keeping the fund somewhere hard to access in a hurry.

When it's useful

Setting a savings goal, checking whether your buffer is enough, or deciding how much to set aside each month to close the gap.

FAQ

How big should an emergency fund be?: Commonly three to six months of essential expenses. More if your income is variable or you're the sole earner.
What counts as essential expenses?: Housing, food, utilities, transport, insurance, and minimum debt payments — the costs you can't easily cut.
Where should I keep it?: Somewhere safe and easy to access, like an instant-access savings account — not tied up in investments that can fall in value.
Does it include my current savings?: Yes. The calculator subtracts what you've saved from the target to show the remaining gap.
Which currency does it use?: The currency follows the site language. The maths is identical in every market.
Can I share a calculation?: Yes. Use Share to copy a link that reopens the calculator with the same figures.

Related calculators

Embed this calculator

Add this calculator to your own site. The snippet includes the calculator iframe and a small attribution link:

<iframe src="https://wisecalcs.com/embed/en/emergency-fund-calculator" width="100%" height="520" style="border:0" loading="lazy"></iframe>
<p>Calculator from <a href="https://wisecalcs.com/en/finance/emergency-fund-calculator">WiseCalcs</a></p>