The 50/30/20 budget rule was popularized by Sen. Elizabeth Warren—then a Harvard Law professor—and her daughter, Amelia Warren Tyagi, in their 2006 book “All Your Worth: The Ultimate Lifetime Money Plan.” They called it a “good rule of thumb” for getting your budget in order.
The 50/30/20 budgeting rule by US Senator Elizabeth Warren divides your after-tax income into three categories: 50% for needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings. Your “needs” include obligatory expenses like rent or mortgage payments.
The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals. Let's take a closer look at each category.
The 50/30/20 rule can be a good budgeting method for some, but it may not work for your unique monthly expenses. Depending on your income and where you live, earmarking 50% of your income for your needs may not be enough.
Does 401(k) count as savings in a 50/30/20 budget plan? Yes, a 401(k) can count as savings in a 50/30/20 budget plan. But if 401(k) contributions are automatically deducted from your paycheck, they're not included in your take-home pay calculation.
It doesn't account for irregular expenses. The 50/30/20 rule assumes that your expenses are relatively consistent each month, but that's not always the case. Large, irregular expenses like car repairs or medical bills can throw off your budget and make it difficult to follow the rule.
The remaining half should be split between savings and debt repayment (20%) and everything else that you might want (30%). The rule is a template that is intended to help individuals manage their money, to balance paying for necessities with saving for emergencies and retirement.
If the 50/30/20 budget was once considered the golden standard of budgeting, it's not anymore. But there are budgeting methods out there that can help you reach your financial goals. Here are some expert-recommended alternatives to the 50/30/20.
Elizabeth Warren's Proposed “50/30/20 Rule” for Simple Budgeting. According to Investopedia, “Senator Elizabeth Warren popularized the so-called '50/30/20 budget rule' (sometimes labeled '50-30-20') in her book, All Your Worth: The Ultimate Lifetime Money Plan.
Bottom Line. Living on $1,000 per month is a challenge. From the high costs of housing, transportation and food, plus trying to keep your bills to a minimum, it would be difficult for anyone living alone to make this work. But with some creativity, roommates and strategy, you might be able to pull it off.
The golden rule of saving money is “save before you spend,” also known as “pay yourself first.” Another common money-saving rule is “save for the unexpected.” In other words, build an emergency fund.
The 30% Rule Is Outdated
Rather than looking at what consumers should be spending on housing, however, the government selected these percentages because that's what consumers were spending.
The golden rule of government spending is a fiscal policy that a government should borrow only to invest, not to fund current spending. In other words, the government should borrow money only to make investments that will produce long-term benefits for the future.
Federal agencies create budget requests and submit them to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB). OMB refers to the agencies' requests as it develops the budget proposal for the president. The president submits the budget proposal to Congress early the next year.
The President's budget proposal—referred to by statute as the Budget of the United States Government—is required by law to be submitted annually.
The 50/30/20 rule is a way of budgeting that divides up your money into three categories: needs (50%), wants (30%) and savings (20%). Some people love this way of managing their money, but, uh—we've got some issues here. For example, are you in debt?
The biggest chunk, 70%, goes towards living expenses while 20% goes towards repaying any debt, or to savings if all your debt is covered. The remaining 10% is your 'fun bucket', money set aside for the things you want after your essentials, debt and savings goals are taken care of.
By allocating 70% for what you need, 20% for what you want (either immediate luxuries or future savings goals), and 10% for your goals (like paying off debts and saving or investing in your future), you can work towards a greater sense of financial wellbeing.
Living on a $1,500 a month budget is absolutely possible. Whether you're in-between jobs, starting a business, paying off debt, or simply saving money, careful budgeting will help you meet your goals. Don't be fooled, though. Living on $1,500 a month or less is an extreme goal which requires extreme measures.
We recommend the 50/30/20 system, which splits your income across three major categories: 50% goes to necessities, 30% to wants and 20% to savings and debt repayment.
If you're looking for a ballpark figure, Taylor Kovar, certified financial planner and CEO of Kovar Wealth Management says, “By age 30, a good rule of thumb is to aim to have saved the equivalent of your annual salary. Let's say you're earning $50,000 a year. By 30, it would be beneficial to have $50,000 saved.
By age 50, most financial advisers recommend having five to six times your annual salary saved. While wages fluctuate quarter to quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates the average annual salary is about $61,900.
A popular standard for budgeting rent is to follow the 30% rule, where you spend a maximum of 30% of your monthly income before taxes (your gross income) on your rent. This has been a rule of thumb since 1981, when the government found that people who spent over 30% of their income on housing were "cost-burdened."