How much rent can I afford?
Landlords usually ask for a gross income of 3.5 times the rent, or 4 times when you rent together. Work out straight away how much rent you can afford.
Load the calculator to see how much rent you can afford.
How much rent can you afford with your income?
When renting a home in the private sector, landlords and letting agents always check whether your income is sufficient. To minimize the risk of payment issues, they typically require a gross monthly income of 3 to 4 times the base rent.
How does the calculation work?
You easily calculate your maximum rent by dividing your total gross monthly income by the landlord's income requirement factor.
Example calculation Do you earn €3,500 gross per month (including holiday allowance) and does the landlord require 3.5 times the rent? Then you can afford a home of up to:
€3,500 ÷ 3.5 = €1,000 base rent per month.
What counts as income?
In most cases, in addition to your fixed gross salary, you can also include holiday allowance (8%) and a guaranteed 13th-month bonus. Renting together with a partner? For dual incomes, many landlords count the second salary for 50% to 100%, though the joint requirement may increase to 4 times the rent.
With the rent calculator above, you instantly see which price range you can realistically target, ensuring you only apply for rental properties you actually qualify for.
Questions about rent and income
Landlords and property managers need assurance that you can comfortably afford your monthly living costs. They typically enforce an income requirement of 3x, 3.5x, or 4x the monthly base rent as gross income. For example, if an apartment costs €1,200 per month and the landlord requires 3.5x the rent, your gross monthly income must be at least €4,200 (€1,200 × 3.5).
Yes, nearly all professional landlords and letting agents in the Netherlands count fixed annual holiday allowance (typically 8%) and a guaranteed 13th month or year-end bonus as part of your gross annual salary. You simply divide your total gross annual income (including these fixed allowances) by 12 to determine your qualifying monthly income. Irregular bonuses, performance pay, and non-standard overtime are usually excluded or only partially considered.
If you are renting as a couple, you can combine your incomes, though they often do not both count for 100%. The most common rule is that the highest income counts for 100%, while the second income is factored in at 50% to 100%. In addition, landlords may apply a slightly higher joint multiple for dual earners (for instance, requiring 4x the rent jointly instead of 3.5x).
Self-employed professionals (ZZP) and business owners do not have a fixed monthly payslip. Landlords typically look at your average net pre-tax profit over the last 2 to 3 completed financial years. You will need to provide certified financial statements prepared by an accountant or bookkeeper, along with final tax assessments from the Dutch Tax Administration (Belastingdienst).
This depends entirely on the landlord. Some private landlords accept a guarantor (such as parents), provided the guarantor meets a substantially higher income threshold (often 5x to 6x the monthly rent). However, larger institutional landlords and property management agencies frequently exclude guarantors from their rental criteria.
While landlords focus on gross income multipliers, you should also consider your net budget. Financial advisory guidelines (such as Nibud in the Netherlands) recommend spending no more than 30% to 35% of your net monthly income on total housing costs (base rent, utilities, and service charges). This ensures you maintain sufficient budget for groceries, insurance, savings, and unexpected expenses.