Personal finance · free calculator
Irregular income cash buffer calculator
Size a cash buffer for freelance, commission, or seasonal income by modeling low-month income, fixed obligations, tax reserve, and known near-term expenses.
Recommended cash buffer
Build reserve with 61.7% funded
Amount still to build
4.3 months at your planned transfer
Low-income runway
How long current cash covers the monthly gap
Show the work
- Normal net income$4,875
- Low-month net income$2,194
- Monthly obligations$3,850
- Low-month gap$1,656
- One-month cash floor$3,850
- Stress reserve$6,625
- 12-month catch-up transfer$269
- Room after planned transfer$275
Irregular income needs a gap-based buffer
The useful question is not only "how many months of expenses do I have?" It is:
How many low-income months can my cash absorb before fixed obligations get tight?
This calculator estimates spendable income after a tax reserve, then compares a low-income month against essential expenses and debt minimums.
The buffer target is:
max(one month of obligations, low-month gap x target months) + known near-term expenses
That keeps the target practical for freelancers, commission earners, and side-business owners who still expect some income during a slow month but need enough cash to avoid debt or panic cuts.
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