How to budget your salary in Malaysia
Budget the money that actually reaches your account, give each ringgit a job on payday, and let your spending record itself. Here is a simple split that suits most Malaysian salaries, with a worked example.
1. Start from take-home pay
Your offer letter's salary isn't what you can spend. EPF, SOCSO, EIS and income tax (PCB) come off before payday, so budget the net amount on your payslip, the figure that lands in your bank account. If your income varies, use a low month, not an average one.
2. Split it four ways
- Needs: rent or your share at home, food, transport, utilities, phone and internet.
- Commitments: fixed monthly payments you've signed up for, such as PTPTN, a car loan, insurance and buy now, pay later instalments (SPayLater, Atome, Grab PayLater).
- Wants: eating out, shopping, streaming, holidays.
- Savings: an emergency fund first, then longer-term goals.
There's no single right ratio. A common starting point is about half for needs, up to a third for commitments and wants together, and at least a fifth for savings, then adjusting to your life.
3. A worked example: RM 3,500 take-home
| Part | What it covers | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Needs | Rent share RM 700, food RM 450, transport and petrol RM 200, bills and phone RM 150 | RM 1,500 | 43% |
| Commitments | PTPTN RM 150, car loan RM 550, BNPL instalments RM 100 | RM 800 | 23% |
| Wants | Eating out, shopping, streaming | RM 500 | 14% |
| Savings | Emergency fund, then goals | RM 700 | 20% |
| Total | RM 3,500 | 100% |
If commitments take more than about a third of your pay, the rest of the budget gets tight quickly. Hold off on new instalment plans until that share comes down.
4. Pay yourself first
Move the savings amount to a separate account on payday, before you spend anything. What's left is what you have for the month, so there's no need to "save whatever is left" at the end of it.
5. Track it without typing
A budget only helps if you can see where the money went. MyPurrse reads the payment alerts from your bank and e-wallet apps and writes each payment into a Google Sheet in your own Drive, so needs and wants record themselves. Set a monthly budget, and on Pro and Max split it by category. Add PTPTN, a car loan or a BNPL plan under Budget › Debts & loans: each month is ticked off when its payment alert comes in, and only the instalment counts as spending.
6. Check in once a week
Five minutes a week is enough: look at what you've spent against each part, clear anything waiting in To review, and move money between wants and savings if a part is running over.
Questions
Should I budget my gross or net salary?
Your net (take-home) pay. EPF, SOCSO, EIS and income tax (PCB) are deducted before the money reaches your account, so only the net amount can actually be spent.
Where do BNPL instalments go in a budget?
Under commitments, like a loan. Count the instalment you pay each month, not the full price of what you bought, or the month you bought it will look far worse than it was.
How big should an emergency fund be?
A common rule of thumb is three to six months of needs. Build it up from the savings part of your budget before investing for longer-term goals.
MyPurrse is in beta on Android; the Google Play listing opens to everyone in Q4 2026.