Can I Afford It Calculator
Thinking about a laptop, a holiday, a new sofa or a wedding deposit? Put in five numbers and this calculator tells you whether the purchase fits your finances — and what your position looks like the day after you buy it.
What should I do next?
Based on the numbers you entered. Everything is worked out in your browser — nothing you type is sent anywhere.
What makes this tight
Paying 2.500,00 € from 9.000,00 € of savings leaves about 6.500,00 € — roughly 3 months of essential spending, rather than the three months this calculator treats as a comfortable buffer.
A stronger buffer would need about 1.150,00 €
That is the extra saving that would let you buy at this price and still keep three months of essentials (7.650,00 €) in the bank.
A more conservative price
Around 1.350,00 € would keep both your buffer and half of your savings intact — about 1.150,00 € below what you are looking at.
Waiting a few months
Saving half of your 1.650,00 € monthly disposable income would close that gap in 1 month.
Savings after buying vs a three-month buffer
- Savings left after buying
- 6.500,00 €
- Suggested buffer
- 7.650,00 €
- Short by
- 1.150,00 €
Three months of your essential spending and debt payments.
Try a safer scenario
These are hypothetical comparisons. Your own numbers above do not change.
Want to see where your money is going each month? Try the Monthly Budget Calculator →
These are educational estimates based on common rules of thumb, not individual financial advice.
This calculator is an educational estimate only. It does not account for tax, inflation, credit terms or your personal circumstances, and it is not financial advice. Speak to a qualified adviser before making a large financial commitment.
How this calculation works
The tool runs four short calculations and then combines them into a single verdict.
- Disposable monthly income = income − essential expenses − debt payments. This is the money genuinely free each month.
- Purchase-to-income ratio = price ÷ monthly income. A ratio above 100% means the purchase costs more than a full month of earnings.
- Purchase-to-savings ratio = price ÷ savings. Above 50% means you are spending more than half of your cash cushion in one go.
- Suggested maximum price = the lower of half your savings, or your savings minus three months of essential spending.
The verdict is "affordable" when the price sits under that suggested maximum, "tight" when it leaves at least six weeks of essential spending, "risky" when it leaves less, and "not affordable" when the price exceeds your savings or your disposable income is zero or below.
Worked example
Maya takes home $4,200 a month. Her essentials come to $2,100 and she pays $450 towards a student loan and a credit card, leaving $1,650 of disposable income. She has $9,000 saved and wants a $2,500 laptop.
- Three months of essentials and debt = $7,650.
- Savings minus that buffer = $1,350; half her savings = $4,500.
- The lower figure, $1,350, becomes her suggested maximum purchase.
The $2,500 laptop is above that ceiling but still leaves $6,500 — about two and a half months of essentials — so the result comes back as "affordable, but tight". Maya can go ahead, but waiting one month and adding $1,650 of disposable income would move her comfortably back into the safe zone.