How Much Should I Save For a Rainy Day?

This is your ‘I’ve-had-a-majorly-bad-day’ fund. You never know what may crop up in life so it’s wise to set money aside to keep you afloat in case of losing your job, needing house repairs, a car breakdown, or any other major expense that comes out of the blue.

How much should I keep aside?

Saving for a rainy day is a priority over saving for life’s big goals or starting your investment portfolio. It’s that important. But how much do you need? A rule of thumb is to have at least three months worth of your essential outgoings (that’s your rent, home bills, and food shop to start) available in an easy-access bank account. BUT it also depends on your personal circumstances; if you have a family, mortgage or you work in an industry where it's harder to find another job, then save for more months. 

How to work out how much?

List your monthly essentials, which include those subscriptions you can’t get out of quickly (mobile, gym, credit card bill, magazines)

For example...

Not sure what your essential outgoings are? Try an expenses app. We recommend Spending Tracker. It’s free and easy to use.

Don’t go overboard

Yep, you heard us right. There is such a thing as saving too much for a rainy day! If you have six months’ salary sitting in a low interest account, you’re missing out on some serious cha-ching. This extra money can be put to work to earn you more. Try MOXI’s Ready to Invest tool. It helps you plan your saving goals and find the best places to stash your cash.

If you have not yet reached your rainy day fund target and need to save more, we have a guide for that too.