Find out how much rent you can afford based on the 30% rule and your full financial picture.
The 30% rule is a general guideline. Your actual affordability depends on local cost of living, lifestyle, and financial goals. Landlords typically require income of 2.5-3× the rent. This is not financial advice.
Top: one $6,000 gross month split into rent, debt, savings, other spending and what is left. The shaded band is everything up to the 30% guideline. Bottom: the same $6,000 converted into a rent cap ladder, where the 25–30% band is the comfortable zone and the 50% rule is the hard ceiling once debt payments are subtracted.
Maya earns $6,000 a month gross, pays $500 a month across a car loan and a student loan, wants to bank $600 a month, and spends roughly $800 on food, transport, insurance and utilities. She is looking at a one-bedroom listed at $1,800 a month.
Calculate how much rent you can afford based on income and debts. 30% rule, DTI ratio, comfortable rent range. Free, no signup.
This calculator determines how much rent fits your finances using three lenses at once: the classic 30% rule dividing gross income, a debt-to-income approach that accounts for your actual loan payments, and a cash-flow view that subtracts real monthly obligations before declaring a number comfortable. Enter income, debts, and target rent, and the tool returns your affordable range, the percentage each option consumes, and a verdict on whether the specific apartment you're eyeing fits. High-cost-market adjustments are built in — the strict 30% rule was calibrated in a cheaper era, and in 2026 metros the tool shows what stretching to 35–40% costs elsewhere in your budget.
Renters setting a ceiling before apartment hunting avoid falling in love above their number. Roommates splitting rent compute the income combination that makes a place work — two incomes at different levels, with the split set accordingly. Relocators compare salary-adjusted affordability across metros before accepting an offer. Landlords and agents pre-qualify honestly with applicants using the same standards landlords themselves apply (many require income at 2.5–3× rent). Anyone renewing a lease against a rent increase tests whether the new number still clears their thresholds.
(1) Enter gross monthly income — combined household income if applicable. (2) Add monthly debt obligations: car loans, student loans, credit card minimums, other recurring debt. (3) Optionally enter your target rent to test it directly. (4) Read the results: maximum rent under the 30% rule, the DTI-adjusted figure that reserves room for debts, and a comfortable range; the target test shows what percentage of income your chosen rent consumes and flags the threshold it crosses.
The rule descends from 1980s housing policy — a threshold above which a household was considered cost-burdened — and it assumed a cheaper housing market. In 2026, renters in high-cost metros routinely exceed it: median one-bedroom rents push the 30% line past $2,200 in many coastal cities, which requires $88,000+ income, well above typical local median earnings. HUD itself acknowledges the strain by using an adjusted standard — 40% of adjusted income for some assistance programs. Workable modern practice: treat 30% as a floor for comfort and 40% as the practical ceiling, then apply two overrides. First, the DTI view: with significant student or car debt, even 30% of gross can crowd out savings — compute affordability after debts, not before. Second, the savings floor: whatever the percentage, if rent prevents contributing to retirement and a three-month emergency fund, it is unaffordable at any ratio. This calculator shows all three lenses precisely because no single rule survives contact with a real budget.
The 30% rule: your gross monthly income should be at least 3x the monthly rent. On $5,000/month income, you can afford up to $1,667 rent. However, high-debt individuals should use the 28/36 rule: housing costs should not exceed 28% of gross monthly income, and total debt payments (including rent) should not exceed 36%.
Yes. Enter your monthly debt payments (student loans, car payment, credit card minimums) and the tool calculates your debt-to-income ratio (DTI). A DTI above 36% may disqualify you from many rentals. It also shows a "comfortable" rent range (25% of income) versus the maximum (35% of income).
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