Enter your gross monthly income and any monthly debts to see how much rent you can afford under the 30% rule, with conservative and stretch figures and a debt-adjusted maximum.
The 30% rule suggests keeping rent at or below 30% of gross income.
Results update automatically as you type. Guidelines only — landlords and your own budget set the real limit.
How Much Rent Can I Afford With a 70k Salary?
About $1,750 a month. A $70,000 salary is $5,833 a month before tax, and 30% of that is $1,750. If you want more room for savings, the 25% figure is about $1,458; the 35% stretch figure is about $2,042. Monthly debts can pull the realistic number lower.
| Annual salary | Gross per month | Rent at 25% | Rent at 30% | Rent at 35% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $4,167 | $1,042 | $1,250 | $1,458 |
| $60,000 | $5,000 | $1,250 | $1,500 | $1,750 |
| $70,000 | $5,833 | $1,458 | $1,750 | $2,042 |
| $80,000 | $6,667 | $1,667 | $2,000 | $2,333 |
| $100,000 | $8,333 | $2,083 | $2,500 | $2,917 |
So how much rent can you afford with a 100k salary? Roughly $2,500 a month at 30%. Paid by the hour, multiply your rate by 2,080 hours for a full-time year: making $20 an hour comes to $41,600, or about $1,040 a month in rent.
How the 30% Rule Is Worked Out
The headline budget is 30% of gross monthly income, with extra figures showing how existing debts narrow your ceiling.
Formula: Recommended max rent = Gross monthly income × 30%. Conservative = income × 25%, Stretch = income × 35%, and Max with debts = max(income × 43% − monthly debts, 0), reflecting a common rent-plus-debt ceiling.
- Gross monthly income: your pre-tax monthly income.
- Monthly debt payments: loans or credit cards, used for the debt-aware maximum (optional).
- Conservative (25%) and Stretch (35%): a tighter budget and the upper edge of what’s often still affordable.
- Max with your debts: the highest rent that keeps rent plus debts under roughly 43% of income.
Example Scenarios
| Gross Monthly Income | Monthly Debts | Recommended Max Rent (30%) | Max With Debts |
|---|---|---|---|
| $5,000 | $400 | $1,500 | $1,750 |
| $3,000 | $0 | $900 | $1,290 |
| $8,000 | $1,200 | $2,400 | $2,240 |
| $4,500 | $600 | $1,350 | $1,335 |
| $6,000 | $2,200 | $1,800 | $380 |
Is the 30 Percent Rent Rule Before or After Taxes?
Before taxes. The rule is applied to gross income, which is also what landlords ask about. Since take-home pay is lower, treat the result as a ceiling and check it against your real budget.
- Add utilities, renter’s insurance, parking and internet to the rent before comparing it with your budget.
- Upfront costs such as a deposit and first month’s rent need cash on hand, which this tool does not cover.
- If you carry heavy debt payments, trust the debt-adjusted figure over the headline number.
Landlords run a different check. Used as a 3x rent rule calculator, divide gross monthly income by 3: $5,833 a month supports rent up to about $1,944 on that test. Passing it doesn’t mean the rent is comfortable. The overview of renting on Wikipedia covers leases and tenant basics.
Common questions about affordable rent
How much rent can I afford with a 70k salary?
$70,000 a year is $5,833 a month before tax, so the 30% rule gives $1,750 a month. The conservative 25% figure is about $1,458 and the 35% stretch figure about $2,042.How much rent can I afford making $20 an hour?
Full time at 40 hours a week for 52 weeks, $20 an hour is $41,600 a year or about $3,467 a month. 30% of that is $1,040 a month in rent.Is the 30 percent rent rule before or after taxes?
It is conventionally applied to gross, pre-tax income, because that’s the figure landlords and lenders most commonly reference on rental applications. Your take-home pay is lower, so 30% of gross can feel tighter than it sounds.How does the 3x rent rule work?
Many landlords want gross monthly income of about three times the rent, so divide your monthly income by 3 to find the highest rent they are likely to accept. On $5,833 a month that is about $1,944; it’s a screening test, not a measure of comfort.How does entering monthly debts change my max rent?
Debts factor into the “max with your debts” figure, which caps rent plus existing debt payments at roughly 43% of gross income, a common combined debt-to-income ceiling used in housing affordability guidelines.Should I use gross income if I’m self-employed with irregular income?
You can, but use a conservative average of recent months rather than your best month, since irregular income makes committing to a fixed monthly rent riskier.Related Calculators
Still deciding between renting and owning, you can compare the long-run cost of renting versus buying a home, check how your existing debts stack up against your income, or work out what a security deposit will cost upfront before you sign a lease.