Dave Ramsey’s Household Budget Percentages (2026)
Saving money on dave ramsey household budget does not have to be complicated. We rounded up the essentials so you can spend less and skip the guesswork.
Key Takeaways
- Share This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice, advisory, or brokerage services.
- We may earn compensation from some links on this page.
- One thing you can say about Dave Ramsey is that he keeps things simple.
One thing you can say about Dave Ramsey is that he keeps things simple. His baby steps are simple to grasp, as are his other rules (such as how much house you can afford).
So, what does Dave say about recommended household budget percentages?
And what does his ideal household budget look like?
Let’s find out…
Table of Contents
ToggleDave Ramsey’s Recommended Household Budget Percentages
Ramsey uses a combination of income percentages and set figures drawn from national income averages to determine his recommendations. Additionally, his recommended budgeting percentages differ based on factors such as the size of your household, whether you need childcare, where you are in the baby steps process and other variables.
In other words, there’s no one size fits all budget.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t learn from his general guidelines.
Here are Ramsey’s ideal percentages across his 12 budget categories, using the example of a family of four with take-home pay of $6,000 per month who needs part-time childcare, has employer-paid health insurance, and has paid off their non-mortgage debt:
- Housing costs: 25%
- Saving: 15%
- Food: 12%
- Childcare: 12%
- Giving: 10%
- Miscellaneous: 5%
- Insurance: 4%
- Utilities: 4%
- Personal spending: 4%
- Lifestyle and entertainment: 4%
- Transportation: 3%
- Health: 2%
Dave Ramsey’s Budget Categories Explained
Of course, your circumstances may vary from this example, which is why you shouldn’t follow Ramsey’s recommendations blindly. While he has more information on his site about determining your own ideal budgeting percentages, here’s a breakdown of how to approach each category.
Housing: Ramsey uses a strict percentage limit here, stating that your total housing payment shouldn’t exceed 25% of your take-home pay. This figure is the same whether you’re renting or paying on a mortgage. For homeowners, Ramsey suggests a 15-year fixed mortgage with 10% to 20% down.
Saving: The end goal is to save 15% of your gross income for retirement. But depending on where you’re at in Ramsey’s baby steps framework, your savings might be going towards building your emergency fund or your debt snowball (paying off non-mortgage debt). Once you’ve saved a three-month emergency fund, you can start saving for retirement and other bigger purchases. Note that if you’re in debt-payoff mode, Ramsey says you should save as much as you can , even if that figure exceeds 15%.
Food: Ramsey suggests using the following national averages from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to help determine your desired budgeting percentages for groceries. He suggests $267 - $315 for singles, $640 for couples, and $928 to $1,109 for a family of four (noting that these numbers can vary based on dietary restrictions and lifestyle choices).
Childcare: According to Ramsey, Childcare expenses , which can range from $10,700 to $15,900 per year per child , should be budgeted in an additional and dedicated category to cover the costs of parents being able to work. Babysitting expenses for one-off occasions like date nights should be budgeted within the entertainment category instead.
Giving: Ramsey recommends tithing 10% of your take-home pay to your church, charities or worthy causes, even if you’re in debt. If you choose not to tithe at this rate, you can reallocate the 10% elsewhere in your budget.
Miscellaneous: This category should be around 5% of your take-home pay and can be used for non-emergency expenses during the month, such as a gift for a family or friend. If you have any leftover funds in the miscellaneous category, you can put them toward your financial goals.
Insurance: For Ramsey, the four essential types of insurance you want to budget for are health, home, auto and term life. Ramsey also suggests considering identity theft protection, long-term disability insurance, umbrella/liability insurance (if you have a net worth of at least $500,000), and long-term care insurance (if you’re over 60).
Utilities: Ramsey suggests using the national average of $218 per month on natural gas, electricity and water to help determine your allocation here. Ramsey doesn’t assign internet or phone bills to any budgeting category; utilities would be the most logical classification for these costs and would increase the average to roughly $400 per month.
Lifestyle and entertainment: The average American household spends $2,912 per year on entertainment, or about $243 a month. However, if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, Ramsey advises cutting back in this category for the time being.
Transportation: When it comes to fuel, maintenance and public transportation, national figures show that the average household spends $151 per month. However, this figure is low because it does not include car payments. Since Ramsey views car payments as non-mortgage debt, those payments should be allocated into the savings category (with the goal of paying off the loan(s) using a debt snowball).
Health: Ramsey uses the national average of $86 per month on medical services and supplies to budget for this category, pointing out that these numbers can vary drastically depending on the household and its month-to-month health circumstances.
Originally published at thewaystowealth.com.
R.J. Weiss
Our editorial team researches and verifies every money-saving guide before publishing. Editorial policy · About us
