Money Pie
Calculator

This Calculator by MoneyFit.org can provide you a simple approach to your monthly personal and household budgeting as well as what to do with tax refunds, gifts, and inheritances.

The entire pie represents your net income (monthly salary or refund or gift). Recommended percentages are adjustable.

Money Pie Calculator

Money Pie Chart
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GIVE DETAILS:

This represents the amount of your income you might consider giving away. Possibilities include donations to the charity of your choice, tithes for a church, or helping a friend or neighbor going through a financially challing time (widowed, injured, unemployed, recently divorced, new parent, etc.). Whether you give anonymously, as yourself or in the name of someone else is up to you.

Generosity tends to keep us grounded in reality when it comes to differentiating between needs and wants. This, in turn, usually leads us to be better managers of our remaining funds than if we had not given anything to begin with.

We recommend you use a checking account or cash for these funds.


LIVE DETAILS:

This represents the amount of your income you might consider living on. Living expenses include housing and utilities, groceries (not dining out), necessary clothing, transportation expenses (car payment, gasoline, insurance) and communications (cell phone, Internet).

Allowing your LIVING expenses to take up 100% of your income is the main cause of the paycheck-to-paycheck syndrom as well as growing credit card and other consumer debts.

We recommend you deposit these funds into a checking account from which you pay your regular bills.


PREPARE DETAILS:

This represents the amount of your income you might consider saving for short-term goals and emegencies. This can include vacations and travel, gift and holiday giving, vehicle repairs and replacement and appliance and furniture replacement.

We recommend you keep these funds in separate savings accounts at a bank or credit union.


PLAN DETAILS:

This represents the amount of your income you might consider investing for the long-term. The most common purposes include retirement funds, down payments for a future home, and child education expenses.

We recommend you keep these funds in investment accounts that offer tax advantages. Examples include 401(k)/403(b) employer-based accounts, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA - traditional or Roth), real estate, etc. See a Certified Financial Planner for more information and guidance.


IMPROVE DETAILS:

This represents the amount of your income you might consider using using to increase your household earning potential. Usages might involve additional education, training or certification programs as well as starting or purchasing a business.

We recommend you keep these funds in high-earning savings, certificates of deposit, or bonds that will allow you to access them within a reasonable time period.


ENJOY DETAILS:

This represents the amount of your income you might consider using using to enjoy living. Potential uses include dining out, entertainment and movies, impulsive purchases or splurges, and other opportunities for fun.

Being human, we tend to spend money on these purchases and experiences regardless of whether we budget for them, so having some fun money will avoid the likelihood of having to rob Peter to pay Paul by the end of the month.

We recommend you keep these funds in cash on hand or in a checking account separate from your bill paying checking. This decreases the possibility of accidentally spending bill paying money on fun.

How this Calculator Can Help

If you are moving to a new town, moving jobs, getting a raise, getting married (or divorced), or otherwise heading toward a new financial situation in life, the Money Pie budget calculator offers a quick and simple approach to figuring out how much you should spend each month on housing, food, and entertainment. Additionally, the Money Pie tool recommends how much to put toward your emergency and short-term savings goals and your long-term investment plans. Even your efforts to build your income potential are included. Lastly, but not least, the sweetest pieces of the Money Pie are generosity and fun.

This calculator can help you fix the dilemma of living paycheck-to-paycheck. Too many households spend 100% of their income on housing, food, clothing, and entertainment, leaving nothing for savings, investments or generosity. Living within the Money Pie budget recommendations, you can have your cake and eat it too.

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