Budget Like A ProBudget planner for UK households
Built around how UK money actually works: take-home pay, council tax over ten or twelve instalments, four-weekly pay cycles and annual renewals — all in pounds.
Everything that reliably lands in your account each month.
Rent or mortgage, bills, insurance, travel, subscriptions, debt payments.
What you want to keep putting away, including your emergency fund.
Yearly bills, Christmas, a car service — spread across the months.
Available to spend
£320
a month on whatever you like
That's £960 over three months, £1,920 over six and £3,840 over a year — before you add anything you're already planning.
Add something you're planning
A holiday, a new sofa, a weekend away. Enter what it costs and when it lands to see the effect on the year ahead.
The whole thing — flights, hotel, spending money.
When you'll actually pay for it.
The next twelve months
| Oct | £20 |
|---|---|
| Nov | £20 |
| Dec | £20 |
| Jan | £20 |
| Feb | £320 |
| Mar | £320 |
| Apr | £320 |
| May | £320 |
| Jun | £320 |
| Jul | £320 |
| Aug | £320 |
| Sept | £320 |
- Over 3 months
- £60
- left after everything planned
- Over 6 months
- £720
- left after everything planned
- Over 12 months
- £2,640
- left after everything planned
Setting aside £300 a month for 4 months covers it, leaving £20 a month for everything else.
An estimate based on the figures you entered. It assumes your income and costs stay roughly the same, and doesn't include interest, pay rises or anything you haven't listed. It's a planning tool, not financial advice.
UK-specific things worth getting right
- Council tax over ten months. Many councils bill across ten instalments, leaving two payment-free months. Plan on the ten-month figure, not the annual average, or those two months will feel richer than they are.
- Four-weekly pay. Thirteen pay days a year, not twelve. One month each year gets two pay days — plan around the single-pay-day months.
- Energy in winter. If you pay variable rather than fixed direct debit, your winter months can be double the summer ones.
- Annual renewals. Car and home insurance, MOT, broadband contracts and school costs cluster; spread each across the months before it's due.
Keep going
Questions people ask
Does this work with weekly or four-weekly pay?
Yes. Convert to a monthly figure first: weekly pay × 52 ÷ 12, or four-weekly pay × 13 ÷ 12. That avoids the classic mistake of treating four-weekly pay as monthly and quietly over-counting a month's income each year.
Should I budget from take-home pay or gross salary?
Always take-home. Income tax, National Insurance, pension contributions and student loan repayments come out before anything reaches your account.
Is Budget Like A Pro free to use?
The calculators on this site are free and need no account. The full planner has a free tier and a paid plan — see the pricing page.