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How much cash should you keep at home for a blackout?

The Dutch central bank recommends €70 per adult and €30 per child to get through the first 72 hours. Sweden's Riksbank suggests, for example, 1,000 kronor in cash per adult.

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Why cash matters in a crisis

In a power or network outage, card terminals, ATMs and online banking can stop working at the same time. Cash at home lets you buy food, water or fuel when cards don't work.

Official benchmarks

De Nederlandsche Bank (the Dutch central bank) recommends keeping €70 per adult and €30 per child for the first 72 hours of an emergency.

Sweden's Riksbank recommends that households have several ways to pay during disruptions – for example 1,000 kronor in cash per adult.

There is no official amount for every country, so use these as a reference and convert to your own currency.

Practical tips

Keep small notes – shops may not have change.

Store it somewhere safe but easy to reach quickly, not in a place you can't access in a hurry.

Get your household's full 72-hour plan

Ready72h turns official guidance from Sweden (MSB), Germany (BBK) and Poland (RCB) into a calm, practical plan: a complete 72-hour supply checklist, a family communication plan for when phones go down, and a “15 minutes to leave the house” go-bag list. Apartment and house versions, printable PDF plus an offline app that tracks your progress.

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FAQ

How much emergency cash for a family of four?

With the Dutch benchmark: 2 adults × €70 + 2 children × €30 = €200 for 72 hours.

Why not just rely on cards?

In a power or network outage card payments and ATMs may not work at all.

Sources

  1. De Nederlandsche Bank – Contant geld in jouw noodpakket
  2. Sveriges Riksbank – Rekommendationer till allmänheten

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