Methodology
This tool is designed to be transparent and decision-useful. It’s not a perfect budget simulator — it’s a consistent model that lets you compare cities and salaries quickly.
Inputs
- Annual salary (gross)
- City (starter monthly costs)
- Household (single / couple / family)
- Rent level (cheap / average / expensive)
Core calculation
- Take-home pay = salary × (1 − effective tax rate)
- Essentials = rent + food + transport + utilities
- Disposable = take-home − essentials
Comfort score (0–100)
The score is based on the percentage of take-home income left after essentials. Higher is better. The thresholds are:
- 70+: Comfortable
- 50–69: Okay
- 30–49: Tight
- <30: Struggle
How to interpret results
- If rent is 45%+ of take-home, most people feel constant pressure.
- Household changes everything: couples share rent, families multiply essentials.
- Use “cheap vs expensive rent” to test sensitivity quickly.
Data and improvements
City data corresponds to current market estimates for 2026. We continuously update our database to reflect changing rent prices and living costs.