One comment that I always got when I took my own career break was, “You’re so lucky. There’s no way I would be able to afford to take time away from work.” While I am definitely fortunate to have had a well-paying job, the barrier to entry for many types of career breaks is a lot lower than people might think. This article can help you think through your own personal costs of funding a career break and how it may be more possible than you might think.

So. How much?

Unfortunately, like many things in life, there isn’t a magic number. Your savings requirement depends on four main things: 

• How much you spend
• How long you’re gone
• How much income you have during the break
• How much financial runway you want when you return

The basic calculation is simple. But the variables are where things can get complicated. Let’s walk through the pieces of a career break plan.

How much you spend

One of the hardest considerations when taking a career break is figuring out how much you will spend on it. Here are a few of the costs that may be worth considering. Some are obvious, while others are often missed during the planning process.

Upfront departure costs: Often the first costs that will need to be covered in a career break plan.	Regular expenses during the break: The cost of actually being on the break.
Flights and other transportation Visas, residence permits, and passport renewal Vaccinations or medical examinations Travel equipment, luggage, and work technology Rental deposits and initial accommodation Moving, storage, or lease-breaking costs International driving permits or local licensing Selling, shipping, or storing a vehicle Pet relocation or long-term pet care	Housing, utilities, and internet Food and restaurants Local transportation Activities, entertainment, and travel Phone plans Health or travel insurance Medical care, prescriptions, and insurance deductibles Laundry, toiletries, haircuts, and other ordinary life expenses Banking, ATM, card, and currency-conversion fees Taxes or professional tax-preparation costs

Expenses that continue at home: These are often forgotten in the planning process. Life doesn’t necessarily stop at home when you take a career break.	Contingency costs: Shit happens. And as they say “If you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail.”
Mortgage or rent if the home is retained Property taxes, maintenance, and homeowners insurance Student loans, car payments, and other debt Storage Life, disability, or other insurance Dependants or family support Professional licences and membership dues Subscriptions and recurring services Mail handling and tax filing	Emergency flights home Unexpected medical care Replacing a stolen or broken phone or laptop Visa extensions or changes Unexpected accommodation changes Exchange-rate movements

Returning and reintegrating: The spending doesn’t end when you return.

Return flight Job-search living expenses Rental deposit and first month’s rent Temporary accommodation Furniture and household items Replacing a vehicle Work clothing and commuting expenses Credential renewal, training, or career coaching Health insurance while unemployed Relocating to a different city

The above are obviously not all the costs that you could incur during your career break, but some of the more notable ones to consider when planning your career break budget. 

How long you’re gone

There are many different timeframes you can choose to take on a career break. For some, a month is enough time to get a quick refresh. For others, 6 months to a year may make sense if their goal is to travel, volunteer, or live abroad for a time. A few may even choose to never return to their old career. The options are as unique as the individual. I originally planned to travel for one year. I’m now in the third year of my career break and gradually returning to work in my previous field.

When planning for extended time away, it is important to have a general idea of how long you would like your break to be. Things can always change, but having a baseline allows you to understand how long your savings will need to last you.

Income and cost offsets during the break

Another way to take a career break is to step away from your current role, and work in a different role. Here are a few common options:

• Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL): Programs such as the North American Language and Culture Assistants Program (NALCAP) in Spain, Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program in Japan, and English Program in Korea (EPIK) are available for those interested in these countries.
• Au Pair: When a young adult lives with a host family to provide childcare as a part of a cultural exchange. Typically for those under age 30, the Au Pair would receive accommodation, meals, and a small weekly allowance or stipend.
• World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF): WWOOF Organic Farm programs allow people to work on organic farms around the world in exchange for accommodation and meals.
• Working Holiday Programs: U.S. citizens may be eligible for working holiday opportunities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, and South Korea. Requirements vary substantially by country, including age, education, recent-graduate status, and program sponsorship. Many choose to work in hospitality or retail.

There are many more jobs one can choose to get during a career break, but the above options are just a few ways to spend some time away from your traditional career. Working during your break has the benefit of reducing necessary savings to take a career break.

How much should you have left when you return?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Unemployment data, the median unemployment duration for July 2026 (Seasonally adjusted) is around 10 weeks, but that doesn’t mean you should only save 10 weeks of living expenses. Many unemployed workers remain unemployed for six months or more. In the survey:

• 25.5% had been unemployed 27+ weeks
• Median duration: 10.5 weeks
• Mean duration: 24.9 weeks

The median spell of unemployment may be around ten weeks, but averages hide a meaningful group of people who remain unemployed for six months or longer. Career-break returners are not identical to the general unemployed population, but the data illustrates why planning around the best-case scenario is risky.

Industry and seniority matter too when considering a return buffer. Certain industries may have longer unemployment durations than others, and typically the more senior your role before leaving the longer it will take to find a comparable role when you return.

A common rule of thumb is to have at least a 3-6 month job-search buffer into a career-break plan. It’s important to note that the 3-6 months of living expenses calculation is just that: Living expenses. You’re not trying to replace 3-6 months of salary. No need to save up what you’d pay in taxes or the amount you would put into your savings. It also means that if you’re able to come back and move in with family while you get back on your feet, that cuts out the housing costs you would need. 

On the more conservative side of things, you may need to consider reintegration costs as well. For example, you may need more money for the initial deposit on a rental, to put a down payment on a vehicle if you sold yours, as well as any items you need to replace such as furniture, clothing, technology, or other miscellaneous items.

Putting it all together

When you take all of the above into consideration, you get a pretty straightforward basic formula for career break costs.

Career-break savings target = upfront costs + ongoing break expenses + obligations at home + return runway + reintegration costs + contingency – expected break income. 

While this isn’t a complete equation, it is a good starting point for someone thinking about their own career break.

Three example career breaks for someone going solo:

For our examples, we’ll use a hypothetical client, Alex. He is 28 years old, single, has no children, and is living in Dallas, Texas.* Your numbers will vary significantly depending on where you live. Additionally, we will simplify the expenses listed in our estimates, but for your specific situation you may want to add more costs listed in the “How much you spend” section.

Category	Annual Amount (USD)
Pre-trip income	$80,000 gross
401(k) contributions	$3,200 (4%)
Approximate Taxes	$14,200
Take-home pay	$62,600
Expenses (MIT Living Wage Calculator)	$42,800
Potential Savings	$19,800

*Why Dallas? We need a location to estimate taxes and living expenses. Dallas is a relatively representative lower-cost major US city; this isn’t intended to suggest that your costs will be the same.

To make things simple, let’s assume that Alex will start his career break at the end of his apartment lease, that he just gets rid of most of his stuff, leaves certain valuables with family, and doesn’t make any income from the sale of his possessions. Let’s also assume that he doesn’t take advantage of any credit card rewards or frequent flyer miles (although you may be in a situation where you can take advantage of these things).

A year at a language school in Japan

Alex is a huge fan of Japanese culture, and that led him to want to spend a year living in Tokyo to learn the language and experience the culture. 

Category	Amount (USD) 160 yen ⇔ 1 USD(Aug 28, 2026)
Visa/Admin Costs	$100
1 year of Language School Tuition	$7,063
Flights	$1,000 (Two one-way tickets)
1 year of Private Room Sharehouse Rent	$6,000
1 year of Utilities and Internet	$750
1 year of Public Transportation	$1,125
1 year of Restaurants and Groceries	$5,000
1 year of Student Health Insurance	$150
1 year of Entertainment/Personal Costs	$4,000
Occasional Travel within Japan	$3,000
Cost of the Break	$28,188
Contingency Costs*	$2,819
6 months of return to the US savings	$21,400
Total	$52,407**

*For the sake of example I calculated contingency costs as 10% of the cost of the break, but 10% is not a universal rule.

**Crazy enough these costs are on the more comfortable side. Study in Japan, a website approved by the Japanese government outlines a monthly cost of living of 105,000 yen. Which at today’s exchange rates is about $657 a month! That’s definitely living the cheap student lifestyle, but would only cost about $37,500 for the full year.

With estimated costs of $52,407, this means it would take Alex about 2 years and 8 months to save for his career break in Tokyo.

A year on a working holiday in Australia

There are many ways to do a working holiday, such as traveling around and doing farm work, picking up seasonal work as a ski or scuba instructor, and working at a cafe or restaurant in a city. In Alex’s case, he’s burnt out from his job and wants to try out being a barista and experiencing life in Melbourne for a year:

Category	Amount(USD)* 1.39 AUD ⇔ 1 USD(Aug 28, 2026)
Visa/Admin Costs	$604
Flights	$1400 (Two one-way tickets)
1 year of Rent in a Private room in a Sharehouse with Utilities and Internet	$13,842
1 year of Public Transportation	$1,000
1 year of Restaurants and Groceries	$6,600
1 year of Working Holiday Health Insurance	$660
1 year of Entertainment/Personal Costs	$3,600
Occasional Travel within Australia	$3,000
Cost of the Break	$30,706
Contingency Costs*	$3,071
6 months of return to the US savings	$21,400
Total	$55,177**

*For the sake of example I calculated contingency costs as 10% of the cost of the break, but 10% is not a universal rule.

**These figures are based on Study Australia’s Cost of Living Calculator. For someone who lives in the city, eats out moderately, and has regular entertainment expenses. 

The big difference for Alex here is that the working holiday visa gives him broad permission to work while in Australia, substantially reducing the amount he needs to save. The Australian minimum wage is $26.44, with additional pay for working nights, weekends, and public holidays. If Alex takes a month to find a job and gets a cafe job for 11 months* at 38 hours a week, he would get a take home income of approximately $40,000 AUD or $28,775 USD.

(Some jobs have 6 month work restrictions, but cafe and other hospitality jobs are exempt)

This means the total cost for Alex’s working holiday is $26,402, which is basically the cost of his visa, flights, contingency costs, and 6 months of savings for when he returns to the US. The total cost would be even lower if Alex cooked more meals, lived in a cheaper sharehouse, or worked more hours. It would take Alex a little more than 1 year and 4 months to save up enough for his trip.

A year backpacking around the world

This topic has been touched upon by many great bloggers who have deeper calculations on how much everything costs them. At some point I’ll share my own budget calculations for my own trip around the world, but for now, I’ll rely on the knowledge of others to provide a bigger picture. Shannon from A Little Adrift outlines that one person for one year costs $20,000 on the low end, and $32,000 for a midrange trip. 

Nomadic Matt (unrelated) has a very helpful website, and even a book called “How to Travel the World on $75 a Day”, which I’d highly recommend to anyone looking for more specific travel tips.

Some general rules of thumb are:

• Backpacking tends to be cheaper if you stick to more affordable places such as Latin America and South and Southeast Asia. If you have a dream to drink wine next to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, or eat Carbonara near the Colosseum in Italy, your costs tend to be higher. 
• The longer you spend in an area the cheaper things are. Monthly rates for accommodation tend to be cheaper, and being settled in one place avoids one of the most expensive parts of travel: Flights
• Hostels are usually the cheapest option, but not everyone wants to be woken up by their drunk roommates stumbling in their room at 3 a.m. when you have a tour to see Mt Fuji booked at 8 a.m.
• Traveling as a couple doesn’t necessarily double the price of everything. Flights and visas still cost the same of course, but sharing accommodation often keeps things cheaper, and many places offer package deals for couples

For our example, let’s assume a reasonable midrange budget of $75 a day or $27,375 a year for Alex’s solo backpacking adventure. Adding in $2,738 as a contingency buffer (10% is just an example, not a universal rule), and adding in the $21,400 for a 6 month buffer on his return to the US, that means he has $51,513 of savings required and could start his adventure after about 2 years and 7 months!

For the three examples, here is a summary of the key details:

Career Break	Break Cost	Break Income	Contingency Buffer	Return Buffer	Savings Required	Time to Save
Japan Language School	$28,188	$0	$2,819	$21,400	$52,407	2 years and 8 months
Australian Working Holiday	$30,706	$28,775	$3,071	$21,400	$26,402	1 year and 4 months
World Backpacking Trip	$27,375	$0	$2,738	$21,400	$51,513	2 years and 7 months

But I can’t save $20,000 a year! 

Yeah, that’s very fair. Not everyone is lucky enough to have that much free cash flow. But there are other ways to make a career break work that don’t require a trust fund or a huge paycheck.

• Focus on opportunities to work: 
  • As listed above, choosing to work during your career break can give you new experiences, allow you to see the world, and help pay for your time away. It may not make sense for people who want to break off from employment entirely, but for some it may provide options for a break that they may not otherwise have.
• Travel cheaper: 
  • Relying on credit card rewards or frequent flyer points can reduce or eliminate the cost of flights (although you want to make sure you’re able to make credit card payments in full to avoid paying interest fees). Many travel credit cards available in the US have large sign up bonuses. Additionally, there are free or low cost ways to lower costs.
  • Couchsurfing is a well-established platform where you can literally stay on someone’s couch (or at their place) for free. It’s generally a hospitality-exchange company where locals offer travelers a place for a few nights in exchange for cultural and social interactions.
  • Trusted House Sitters is a site that offers accommodation in exchange for taking care of people’s furry friends while they’re away. It can be a great option for pet lovers who want to save some costs.
• Set up your return job in advance:
  • Certain employers and professions offer formal sabbatical programs that allow employees to take extended leave and return to their positions.
  • Some employers may decide it’s worth arranging for you to return to your old role after the break as opposed to hiring and training someone else. 
  • Some may opt to find a new job and request a start date farther in the future. This allows them to quit their current role and have some time to take a short break. All these options drastically reduce the return buffer that you may need in your plan.

There are many ways to make a career break more feasible, the trick is to understand the pieces and adjust as necessary. 

TLDR:

• There is no universal career-break number.
• The four pieces to consider are how much you’ll spend, how long you’ll be gone, how much income you’ll receive during the break, and how much financial runway you want when you return.
• Calculate break expenses, continuing obligations, expected break income, return runway, reintegration costs and an emergency contingency.
• Income during the break can reduce the savings requirement dramatically.
• Maintain at least 3-6 months of return expenses; consider more if you are in a slow hiring industry or in a more senior position.
• A cheaper, shorter, or partially working break may be possible much sooner than you think.

Disclaimer: This article is for general educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute individualized financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. All examples are illustrative, and actual costs and requirements will vary based on your circumstances.