Split your take-home pay into needs, wants and savings with the popular 50/30/20 rule.
Needs = rent, food, utilities, minimum debt payments. Wants = dining out, subscriptions, hobbies. Savings = emergency fund, investing, extra debt payoff.
A simple budgeting guideline: spend about 50% of your after-tax income on needs, 30% on wants, and 20% on savings and paying down debt.
Take-home (after-tax) pay. The rule is based on the money that actually lands in your account.
That's common in high-cost areas. Treat the split as a target — trim wants first, and aim to grow the savings share over time.