What Rent Can You Actually Afford?
The usual advice is "spend 30% of your salary on rent". In Indian cities that's often wrong in both directions. This works it out from what you actually take home and what you actually spend.
- Take-home
- —
- Commitments
- —
- Savings target
- —
- Living costs (food, transport, bills, phone)
- —
- Left for rent
- —
- Deposit you'll need up front
- —
How this is worked out
No mystery formula. It takes your take-home, subtracts what you've already committed, subtracts what you want to save, subtracts a realistic cost-of-living figure for your city, and what's left is what you can put on rent.
The living-cost figure is the part most calculators skip. In Bengaluru or Mumbai, food, transport, bills and a phone plan run ₹14,000 to ₹19,000 a month for one person sharing a flat — that's not optional spending, and pretending it is produces a rent number you can't actually sustain.
Why "30% of salary" doesn't work here
The 30% rule comes from Western markets with different cost structures. In India it breaks in two directions at once.
- On a low salary it's far too generous. On ₹30,000 take-home, 30% is ₹9,000 — but your food and transport don't shrink proportionally, so you're left with almost nothing.
- On a high salary it's too conservative. On ₹2,00,000 take-home, 30% is ₹60,000, and you'd struggle to spend that on a room even in Bandra. You'd be over-paying for space you don't need.
- It ignores the deposit entirely, which in Mumbai is five to six months and is the actual thing that stops people moving.
The deposit is the real barrier
Everybody budgets for rent and almost nobody budgets for the deposit. It varies enormously by city and it's due in one lump, in cash, before you get the keys.
| City | Typical deposit | On a ₹15,000 room |
|---|---|---|
| Mumbai | 5–6 months | ₹75,000 – ₹90,000 |
| Bengaluru | 3–6 months | ₹45,000 – ₹90,000 |
| Hyderabad | 2–3 months | ₹30,000 – ₹45,000 |
| Pune | 2 months | ₹30,000 |
| Delhi NCR | 1–3 months | ₹15,000 – ₹45,000 |
| Uttarakhand | 1–2 months | ₹15,000 – ₹30,000 |
The way around it: join an existing flatshare rather than taking a fresh lease. Deposits on a room in an already-running flat are usually far smaller — often one or two months — because the main deposit is already with the landlord.
Ways to move the number
- Share a room rather than take one. Roughly halves your rent. Common in Marathahalli, BTM Layout, Ameerpet, Wakad and most student belts.
- Split a 3BHK three ways instead of a 2BHK two ways. Per person it's almost always cheaper, and you get the same private room.
- Move one area out. Wakad instead of Hinjewadi, Marathahalli instead of Bellandur, Thane instead of Powai. Usually ₹3,000 to ₹6,000 a month for fifteen extra minutes.
- Live where you work. A shorter commute saves transport money and time, and time is the thing people undervalue most.
Splitting with someone? The rent split calculator divides rent fairly when the rooms aren't the same size, and the rent index has real ranges for 40+ areas.
Common questions
Should I use take-home or CTC?
Take-home, always. CTC includes PF, gratuity and benefits you can't pay rent with. The gap between CTC and in-hand is often 20 to 25 percent, which is the difference between comfortable and stretched.
What if my salary is variable?
Use your lowest recent month, not your average. Rent is fixed and monthly; your income being lumpy is your problem, not the landlord's.
Does this include the deposit?
It shows you what deposit to expect for your city, but doesn't subtract it from the monthly figure — the deposit is a one-off you need saved before you move, not a recurring cost.
Is the living-cost estimate accurate for me?
It's a reasonable middle for one person sharing a flat, covering food, local transport, utilities, internet and phone. If you eat out constantly or never do, adjust the savings target to compensate.
Is Bunkd free?
Yes. Free to use, and no brokerage on either side.