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Emergency fund calculator
Your target buffer is three to six months of essential spending. Work out your number, see the gap, and when you will close it.
Essentials = rent or mortgage, bills, food, transport, and minimum debt payments. Not your full lifestyle spend.
Your emergency fund target
£5,400
3 months × £1,800 essentials
You have£2,000 · 37%
Gap to close: £3,400
At £200 a month you get there in 17 months, around November 2027.
Common questions
- How big should an emergency fund be?
- The standard guidance is three to six months of essential spending: rent or mortgage, bills, food, transport, and minimum debt payments. Three months suits stable employment with a second household income; six or more makes sense if you are self-employed, the sole earner, or your income is irregular.
- Should I count my full monthly spending or just essentials?
- Essentials only. An emergency fund covers the cost of keeping your life running if income stops; subscriptions and discretionary spending would be the first things you cut, so including them inflates the target and makes it harder to reach.
- Where should I keep an emergency fund?
- In an easy-access savings account paying a competitive rate, separate from your current account. It needs to be reachable within a day or two without penalty, which rules out fixed-term accounts and investments. A cash ISA works if you have allowance to spare.
- Should I build the fund before paying off debt?
- Expensive debt (credit cards, overdrafts) usually charges far more interest than savings earn, so the common approach is a small starter buffer of around one month, clear the expensive debt, then build the full fund. Low-rate debt like a mortgage or student loan can run alongside saving.
Not sure if this is your top priority? The Money Health Check ranks it against everything else.