# Divorce budget calculator

> Source: https://www.healthcalcpro.com/money/divorce-budget · Last reviewed: 2026-09-28

To know whether you can afford life after a divorce, compare your new solo income (take-home pay plus any support you receive, minus support you pay) with your solo monthly expenses. If expenses are higher, your savings divided by the monthly gap is how many months you can cover it. This calculator does that math in your browser.

**Important:** This is a planning tool, not legal or financial advice. Support amounts, property division and taxes depend on your state and your agreement. Ask your attorney or a financial planner before you rely on any number.

Use the interactive calculator at https://www.healthcalcpro.com/money/divorce-budget. It runs in the browser and stores nothing.

## How the divorce budget calculator works

The calculator adds your take-home pay and any child or spousal support you expect to receive, then subtracts support you will pay. That is your solo monthly income. It then adds up eight expense groups for a one-person (or one-parent) household.

Income minus expenses is your monthly gap. A positive number is room to rebuild savings. A negative number is the amount your savings must cover each month until something changes.

## What share of income should housing take?

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) calls a household cost-burdened when monthly housing costs, including utilities, are more than 30% of monthly income. The calculator adds your rent or mortgage and utilities and flags the total when it passes that mark. It is a warning sign, not a rule: in high-cost areas many households pay more, but the rest of the budget gets tight.

## How big should my emergency fund be after a divorce?

A common planning target is three to six months of essential expenses. After a divorce, with one income and new fixed costs, the higher end gives you more room. The calculator shows both amounts based on the expenses you enter.

## Expenses people forget in the first year

These costs often appear after the divorce is final and are easy to leave out of a first budget:

- Your own health insurance if you were covered through your spouse's employer
- Car insurance and phone plans that used to be on a family policy
- Deposits and moving costs for a new home
- Legal fees that continue after the decree, such as refinancing or retirement account division
- Childcare that a second parent used to cover

## Frequently asked questions

### Should I count child support as income?

Enter it as support received if it is ordered and paid reliably. If payments are uncertain, run the calculator once with it and once without it, and plan around the second number.

### Is my data saved or sent anywhere?

No. The calculator runs in your browser. Nothing you type is stored or sent to us.

### What if my monthly gap is negative?

Look first at the largest lines, usually housing and transportation, and at costs that will end on a known date. The runway figure tells you how many months your savings cover while you make those changes.

## Sources

- [HUD USER, CHAS background: definition of housing cost burden (housing costs including utilities above 30% of income)](https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/cp/CHAS/bg_chas.html)

## Related products by the same team

- [Divorce Financial Recovery Planner](https://www.healthcalcpro.com/kits/divorce-financial-recovery-planner): A 90-day plan to rebuild your money on one income. (Etsy digital download)
- [Annual Budget Spreadsheet](https://www.healthcalcpro.com/kits/annual-budget-spreadsheet): A 13-tab budget you will still be using in March. (Etsy digital download)