21 Savage Money Tips: The 50/30/20 Rule

The 50/30/20 rule is a popular way to master your budget.

Here’s how it works: Divvy up your take-home pay into the following three buckets:

50% — needs 💡
30% — wants 🛍
20% — savings or paying off debt 💰

It’s a simple rule, but it packs a powerful punch to your financial game. 💪

To break it down a bit further:

• Needs. This includes your essentials — think rent, bills, food, and insurance premiums. Things you simply need to get by in your day-to-day. 
• Wants. These are the nice-to-haves. You can probably do without, but they provide feels of comfort, ease, or joy. For instance, all the things in your Amazon “save for later” cart, and those wish-list items you have favorited on your phone.
  
• Savings or debt repayment. How much you put toward debt and how much you put toward savings is totally up to you. You might want to tuck away that entire 20% toward your emergency fund, or make greater headway on crushing your debt. Or, it might work in your favor to go splitsies — half toward savings, half toward debt. 
  

Not sure which to choose? Ask yourself, What’s going on in your life? You might want to hurry-curry up that credit card payment to save money on interest so you can move on to other money goals. On the flip side, if you’d feel far more secure having more zeros tacked on to what you have saved, go ahead and hone in on that emergency stash.

Making positive moves with your finances begins with keeping tabs on where your take-home pay is going, and putting that money into three main buckets — wants, needs, savings or debt payments. It’s simple, but super impactful. For more ways to handle your money like a savage, stick with us. We got the lowdown on how to level up your money game. Issa easy-peasy.