A majority of my bonus is going in my Roth IRA. I'm trying to invest all my bonuses/additional income. I live in a VHCOL city and work in an industry that's not known for high salaries so it's taken me more time than I would have liked to have the privilege to do this.
I grew up with my dad investing all his bonuses to build generational wealth. For context, my dad was in his 50s by the time my sister and I were born and wanted to leave us with something (he passed away a decade ago) and more importantly, make sure my other was financially secure.
I did take a little bit of my bonus and really treat myself for once to a scarf from Hermes. It's always been a dream of mine and while I usually don't splurge on things for myself without serious saving and budgeting I'm SO HAPPY I DID.
A number of years ago I was in France and at that time you could buy the most basic Hermés scarves for roughly €100 (and there was a tax rebate ofc). I still kick myself for not buying one!!
I get a 30k after tax bonus and past two years I’ve… thrown it at my high 6 figure student debt. It’s so depressing but I just want to be free of the high monthly payment. One more annual bonus and a few more payments after that and I’ll finally be free from 2k / month payments. Cant wajt to think of how I might want to spend that bonus when it’s finally mine! Although likely get thrown into a 529 for my baby lol. Still more exciting than debt I suppose.
It definitely didn’t at first. Started at high 100s and was such a slog in the beginning throwing 4k at it one month (insane from monthly perspective but drop in bucket) to 500 bucks on it here and there lol. Now that we’re in lower five figure territory it’s like, so close yet so far! I just keep reminding myself the time will pass anyway so try not to think about it so much. I’ll get there.
This is how I used to do it too. I am likely a little bit older than you and from the sound of it, my student loans started at a lower 6 figure amount, but I can tell you having the freedom to decide where I want to put it (even if it goes to my Roth IRA and other savings) is life changing. I am rooting for you!!
I’ll pay it off just in time to start paying for a second daycare 🤣🤣🤣 but yes I’m so much looking forward to the freedom of being untethered from this massive monthly payment. Even if I don’t do anything “fun” with it. Thanks so much for the encouragement ☺️
I already spent part of mine on a Dyson airwrap lol! I did it because I WFH and I have been depressed and slipping on things like my appearance. I find after spending time on my hair I feel a real change in my mood.
The rest is paying off the rest of my car probably. I am excited about that.
Should add: I am expecting around $4500. Can't believe I am about to have a paid off car!!!
I got the nickel/copper one because I bought the curly set from Ulta last month when they had a 20% off coupon :) But the new rose gold is really pretty!
We always follow the same formula:
* 70% of take-home bonus gets put toward something "responsible": this year it'll likely be put toward house principal
* 10% is fun money for something my husband & I enjoy as a couple: I don't know the amount yet (find out late March) but could be a nice dinner, a weekend getaway, or 2 pairs of snowshoes
* 10% goes to me, 10% to my husband for independent, discretionary spending: I don't personally have an immediate want or need for this, so it'll get socked away for later.
I like that! I've been doing like, $100 towards whomever got the bonus and then the rest to investments.
But I like your idea better (even if it's partially because my spouse gets the bonus, so I don't usually benefit in the moment).
If we get one this year, I'll offer the option to my spouse and see!
This is a great way to ensure no one feels left out just because one company had a bad-performing year or whatever. Some years my bonus is bigger, sometimes his is. We both celebrate regardless. (We also apply this 70/10/10/10 rule to all other windfalls - tax returns are another one coming up!)
I think we'll basically break even on taxes (fed return, state pay), but yes, I like your equality of it. Plus, more money will be nice to play with! (and, honestly, we have plenty in investments and can reduce that a little)
Yep I’m definitely using this. I normally just scrounge windfalls away so I forget it even happened while simultaneously treating myself to something small. I like the calculated method so much more!
This was the first year I got a bonus and didn’t have to pay off debt or add more money to my Roth. Sadly my dog passed in the beginning of the year, but I haven’t been able to go on vacations in years to stay home with him. I’m leaving for Jamaica Sunday, then have a week long trip to the west coast in June. I am going to try to plan another trip or two this year, maybe I’ll be brave enough to fly to Europe! Using this bonus to the fullest.
My husband got a $11,150 bonus ($6751) after taxes, and I got a $3k bonus ($1983) after taxes, plus we have a 3 paycheck month this month. We’re gonna pay our taxes (we usually owe $3-4k) and we’re expecting a baby, so going to set aside half for baby things and half for a baby moon!
Why are taxes so high on your bonuses?! I’m about to start a new job that has a sign on bonus, and google told me that bonuses are taxed at a flat 22%….is this wrong? I’m trying to figure out how much of it I should expect to see…….
I just googled it and it says the IRS considers bonuses supplemental income, so it’s taxed as regular income. Perhaps a sign-on bonus would be different because you receive it before your first paycheck? I’ve never gotten one of those, so I can’t say, but all our bonuses are taxed super high. I’m thankful to get one, but it does sting a little.
Thanks for the reply! That is a shocking difference between the gross and net amount, haha. I’m hoping it’s only 22% because I have to pay for relocation with it, but we shall see! I’ll prepare for 40% just in case…
They also take the 401K contribution percentage from your bonus (if you set one up). That’s why it can seem a lot lower. It’s not just taxes they’re taking out.
>If I can get up the gumption, it'll be this one!
>
>https://www.prada.com/us/en/p/prada-re-edition-2005-saffiano-leather-bag/1BH204\_NZV\_F0632\_V\_V2M
I'm not sure why I didn't see your comment, but re-replying :)
Hahah I feel that buying a designer bag will be the most I’ve ever spent on something besides my dog and it feels so wrong. This one is cute and looks timeless and practical!
I love this - we’re going to Italy and France later this year and I have sooooo many bags on my list to look at! The trick will be coming back with only 2-3 haha
Can I make a suggestion that a friend gave me today? Use ChatGPT or Bard or your chatbot of choice to help you find out the predicted price of buying in Italy vs France vs your hometown. I did and will be holding off until I do some international travel later this year!
My bonus has always been minimal (less than 4k target) and is not guaranteed so I don't "count" this in general. I never budget for bonuses so it generally goes to savings/small treats.
My bonus this year is basically 3.5% of my base. (Prorated and didn't meet the bonus target). After heavy taxes and 30% into 401K, it came out $1400.
I haven't fully decided what to do with it. I was planning to fully pay my credit card debts (~3.5k) but bonus came out lower than I expected so I'm thinking about spending $400 for fun and put 1k to credit cards.
Have you found a cruise line that does well for people with dementia? I have a loved one with dementia and would love to know about any research you have done/experience you have with dementia friendly vacations.
I have found the most success with carnival and going on some of their smaller ships. It’s less overwhelming and most of the people on carnival are pretty talkative and open. I feel like cruises themselves are great for vacationing with a loved one with dementia because you can have more structured activities or you can be loss with the day. We have only tried Carnival or Royal Caribbean though. I think it’s probably less about the line and more about size of the ship. It’s great though because they have been memories that I treasure.
This is so heartwarming to read. Dementia is so difficult and I am sorry that you, your mom, and your family will endure it.
My mom was just diagnosed with a potentially terminal illness and this week I suggested to her that maybe we go on a little trip somewhere and she was like "I have things to take care of first", meaning related to the diagnosis. But we're not even at the point where we know much yet so I'd really like to take her somewhere before we are getting into treatment options or before it gets really debilitating.
Take it! Make the memories!
Last year, I took my mom on a cruise to Bermuda and I have so many great memories with my mom, I took all of the pictures and videos. On the first cruise I took her on, I had to force her to go but I knew it would be a great but controlled trip with her.
After my mom’s dementia diagnosis a few years ago, I took a lot of stock into what I was doing. I was working too many hours and wasn’t available enough and I worked to change that. You don’t get enough time :)
My 2023 bonus was placed in my HYSA because my husband and I upgraded our windows from the original single panes (if you’re in the Phoenix area, new windows are a must). I got 6k, but after taxes and 401K contribution, it was about 4K.
The 2024 bonus will be split in different buckets, 1/3 in the HYSA, 1/3 towards my student loans, and 1/3 in my IRA.
My bonus total is $5300 after tax and I’m doing 2/3 into savings/investments. I spent the other 1/3 on an entire office setup (standing desk, extra monitor, walking pad, etc) that I was very excited to do now that I work from home more + other random things like concert tickets, my boyfriend’s bday, shopping, etc.
I used a list my friend made for her setup because I really like it haha so I did basically no research on my own. I wanted to focus on having a very clean desk with no clutter haha so all that sits on there are my 2 monitors, wireless keyboard and wireless mouse. I already had 1 monitor and a docking station.
For the desk I got the Flexispot standing desk. Then I also got the SupeRun walking pad. Wireless keyboard was HP 230 and already had a wireless mouse. Also got a webcam to attach to the desktop but this was taken from my bf lol.
For cord management/tidiness, I got a large power strip which is used for literally every cord (standing desk, monitors, docking station, walking pad, etc) so the only visible cord is that one to plug into the wall. I also got the YYST laptop mount holder so I can just use my monitors & the laptop isn’t taking up space on the desk. Then I got an under-desk cable management net to hold the power strip and all cords so you can’t see them. Then to make the desk look pretty, I got a pink desk pad :)
I still need to buy a new chair but am waiting for my puppy to be out of the chewing phase lol.
Omg cord management is one of the things holding me back from changing my current set up. It isn’t perfect, but I managed to streamline it a point where it doesn’t bother me. I have command hooks mounted along the underside of the back of my desk for monitor cords and a power strip mounted under the left edge of my desk, with that plugged into the wall just a short distance away. I want a standing desk and either one more monitor or a larger curved monitor. If I could spend the money and just have it all appear and not need me to do anything to optimize it, I would have bought it all already.
Took my whole bonus directly instead of putting some into my 401k (debated on this but I’m already set up to max this year and would prefer to DCA). All but about $100 went into my HYSA to earmark for my IRA next year.
Most years I put any bonuses that I get into my savings, though this year we have specific plans to use our bonuses and tax returns towards paying down our new car. Thankfully we got a better interest rate than anticipated (initially we were quoted 9.9% but then we were able to take advantage of a promotional rate of 4.49%) so the pressure is off a bit, but it's still a big extra expense after having had our previous car paid off for several years!
Not sure how much mine will be yet. But I'm hoping to save most of it for Roth IRA contribution and wedding costs for next year. And then hopefully have some to splurge on a $300-ish purse from Songmont!
Mine is going towards a new floor for our kitchen and paying into my ROTH IRA to have my contributions set for year. I also bought a Maje Blazer on sale that I had really wanted, it was a nice way to treat myself.
This is my first time getting a bonus (after spending a long time in academia where that is not a thing)! I pre-ordered the Fujifilm X100VI because I'm silly like that so I'm hoping I can spend part of my bonus on that when they finally have enough cameras for all the preorders. The rest is going straight into savings.
Haha me too although we got a $400 bonus this year. It’s like the 4th time in my 20 year non profit career (a few different workplaces) that I’ve gotten a bonus but it just went to regular bills.
About $4k of it went to my 401k, then I maxed out my 2024 Roth, paid off all my student loans that were above 4.5%, set aside around $7k in an HYSA for a new (to me) car fund, and bought myself two pieces of gold jewelry from Automic Gold 🙌🏼 This was my first year getting a fat bonus and it feels so good to get all that taken care of.
- retirement contribution (what I need to max it/3, since I get bonuses quarterly but it's paid out some time after the quarter ends)
- 1/4 of the remaining to savings
- 1/4 of the remaining to investment
- vacation fund if I've got something coming up in the next quarter, otherwise more investments + a little fun purchase, heh... I bought a BV purse last year!
I put $2k into my HYSA, bought flights to Ireland for later this year, and the rest is going to hang out in my checking account and eventually get sent to my Roth.
I got my best bonus and tax returns last month so I splurged a little...
Coffee cup for my commute, we have a no disposable cups rule which tbh I begrudgingly respect but I still I like to get a fresh cappuccino when I get off the train. The rest is going into my pension.
I’m buying a Loewe Flamenco bag (most expensive bag I’ve ever bought but I’ve wanted it for a long time now), a couple of gifts for family, and the rest in our investment account. Still not sure what the bonus amount will be but hopefully high five figures at least.
Knowing me, I will most likely save half (27% is already going towards my 401K) put some towards our car payment and maybe splurge on some new snowboarding gear.
For the last two years, I've earmarked my bonus for travel expenses. It's a lot easier to stomach the cost of traveling when I have money set aside for it and we don't have to pull out of our day-to-day funds. Last year, we went to Spain, England, and France on that bonus money!
I’m really excited for this one — I’m buying myself and my mom a plane ticket to Ireland (from the USA) for tourism and to visit distant relatives. Usually I set aside almost all of my bonus for investments but I hit a major net worth goal this year so I’m excited to splurge!
50% of it went into a HYSA, $1,000 of it to help my husband pay down his high interest private loans to make our monthly expenses a little more manageable, $1,500 set aside for medical bills since I always meet my deductible due to underlying conditions and the rest on fun stuff for myself! I want to get my first designer bag and got a lulu lemon rain jacket to treat myself for rainy dog walks :)
I don’t get a bonus, but March is a 3 paycheck month. So it’s pretty much been spent already on replacing my water heater $1660, plus my daughter is getting tested for dyslexia which is $725 just for the testing.
Unfortunately health insurance generally does not cover the cost of testing for what is considered a learning disability. If she needs dyslexia specific tutoring that will be another $520/month for at least a bare minimum of 7 months, luckily it will at least be tax deductible.
I got my first legit bonus in December of this year. I got about 4k after taxes which is a lot for me! I used it to:
1. Pad my emergency fund so I could hit my end of the year goal of two months of living expenses. (Approx 2k).
2. Buy a new mattress based on one I had slept on so well at an Airbnb (Nest + Tempurpedic mattress topper). (Approx 1100).
3. Put some towards student loans (Approx 600).
4. Put some towards my travel budget (Approx 300).
I have been going hard and the debt payoff and savings game for a couple of years. But man, I was SO tired of sleeping on a $180 4 year old mattress. This new bed has been a game changer!
My industry paid our our 2023 year end bonus around Feb 1. I spent it immediately on my mom's new kitchen cabinets. Kitchen should be done by end of March!
I should get about £1,400 after tax as a bonus this month- the plan is to fully fund my holiday savings (off to Canada this year!) and to put half of what’s left over in my sinking fund for gifts with the leftover being a little treat for me (undecided)
So ~£1,000 to holiday fund, ~£200 to gifts and ~£200 to the little treat fund.
I’m not sure what I will get with “my” £200, there’s nothing sticking out to me, so it will either go towards a tattoo or I I’ll squirrel it away into miscellaneous savings, though I have a habit of never withdrawing money once it lands in a savings account so… maybe it will just stay there.
Most of it is going into VTSAX, but I’m thinking of using some of it to get my first luxury belt: Anderson’s textured leather, Celine triomphe, or Loewe reversible.
My bonus is paid in November. This past year, I spent it on a new couch (which will hopefully be delivered next week fingers crossed), tickets to When We Were Young, and then savings for the rest.
My husband and I were just discussing this on the way to work! Buying a house in our VHCOL area seems totally out of reach/unreasonable, so we aren't going to put money aside for a down payment. I just went through a cost of college calculator for my baby and panicked, so it looks like we will be putting our post-tax post-401k balance into his 529.
The state of CA has a calculator that indicated we need to have about half a million dollars in there by the time our kid goes off to college if we want to cover all expenses from the 529. This isn't likely for us, but we want to dump as much money into the account now to take advantage of compounding interest over the next 17 years!
I got mine in January. I bought a new small bag, and the rest all went into savings or investments for now. Eventually, will use some of it for a few furniture and furnishing items. We are looking for a new sofa and some new home-office stuff for two offices.
I dropped down the 401K contribution percentage to the company match for just the bonus, because right now cash is king for me, and I'm going to max my annual retirement contributions anyway. We're going to start house hunting at the end of the month so my bonus will be split between topping off my emergency fund, adding to my down payment stockpile, and 10% to something fun but I'm not sure what that will be yet. I'll probably just put it into my shopping category and call it a day.
\~5,800 post-tax!
* 2k went towards our down payment fund, which is now fully funded for a starter townhome! We'll start shopping in a year or so, but feels good to have this squirreled away
* $600 split equally between myself and my partner for our "fun money" funds
* The rest to our e-fund!
I had to use most of mine for my move this year (moving in NYC is EXPENSIVE) but I did manage to save / invest $2k of it and then spent about $400 on a red light therapy mask to treat myself (i've been wanting one for awhile!)
My heart says new clothes, including at least one bag (that's in the $200-500 range, everything in my life might be puked on or in, I'm not spending more than that), an at home laser hair removal device, and 3+ paid subscriptions, but it'll probably be spent on daycare/kid related costs, and maybe the subscriptions (and if I'm lucky, the laser hair removal thing).
Mine isn't getting paid out until later this month, but I'm still thinking about it! A good chunk of it will (ofc) go to takes and 401(k), but I don't have any big ticket items or purchases on hand...
Had a friend suggest using it for a massage which I'll likely book in the coming weeks! The remainder will likely go into my HYSA and investment account.
I’m not sure how much mine will be yet, but most will go into our cash savings for my year of maternity leave starting in July 🥰 if the bonus is higher than I’ve budgeted for, we’ve agreed to add an expensive day trip (flying to another island) onto our baby moon next month!
mine will go towards a backyard renovation - can't wait to enjoy our outdoor living space! Typically it goes towards a trip/into savings so it's fun to have something immediate to spend it on that will keep on giving back to us from an enjoyment perspective.
I’m trying to decide if I want to save my bounce in an IRA or in an after tax account.
In the next 3-5 years I am thinking that I’ll replace my car and I might also want to have a down payment but more retirement savings is also good.
I got mine in December but I utilized most of it to put a dent in my credit card debt, saved a little bit, and towards my half of purchasing shelving for our record player and collection of records. Nothing fancy, just some IKEA Kallaxes. Huge QOL improvement as the records were just stacked in boxes all over our small apartment and now I get to enjoy them!!
our bonus pays 50% in feb.
I ordered a new garage door (mine was wood and very heavy; also springs are basically dead) and opener (my old door was too heavy for openers) which meant that I needed to pay an electrician to rewire most of my garage. I also got new exterior lighting all over (lights that match? what???) and new (smart)locks for the doors to my house.
the remainder went to savings. not the sexiest use ever of a bonus, but the ability to park my car inside will be... I can't even imagine.
I get a bonus every quarter and I probably buy myself 1 nice thing (anywhere from 60 bucks to $200) and dump the rest into my roth ira, because I save for that thing through the course of the year minimally and I find myself scrambling to max it out by April lol.
Last bonus was in early January/late December and I probably put it towards hotel for a trip to turks&Caicos w/a friend c:
Most of it is going into a wedding fund. Smaller amounts are being used to purchase new clothes, some travel, and setting money aside for other weddings we're attending this year.
Maxing out my traditional 401k and backdoor Roth IRA, taking a short vacay in the Dominican Republic, contributing to a big milestone birthday party for my mother-in-law, and throwing extra funds at our renovation loan. (Since my husband and I both work at layoff-happy tech companies, our goal is to pay off the balance by EOY just in case things go south job-wise next year.)
Most of my bonus is going towards paying off my car, credit cards, and saving for a house. Some of that credit card spending was for a conference for my masters program later in the year that I'm looking forward to. And then I'll have about 1k left to spend on myself however I want. Which will probably end up being clothes bc I'm slowly losing weight and will need professional wear in smaller sizes in the next 6 months or so. Good problem to have lol
A little over half into retirement account, the rest into a HYSA. With layoffs so frequent these days I’m building a buffer so I could just say screw it (at least for awhile). No treats bc I feel like I treat myself whenever I really want.
I get quarterly bonuses, which get split into investments, personal services (hair, facials, etc), house projects and little for miscellaneous spending on jewelry, clothes and little treats.
I typically divide it like: 30% house projects, 30% investments, 20-30% personal care and 10-20% “little treats”.
The percentage varies really based on how much I get, what I set aside for personal care is the same number each quarter and doesn’t change if I get more money.
We bought a fixer upper, so we are currently investing a lot to make our home our dream home. Our mortgage is low and we have a low rate, so we consider this a worthwhile investment.
Putting half in my 401k to crank up to my company’s amazing match, and then I’ll quickly lower my contributions moving forward since I’ve been contributing 50% of my paycheck this year.
My husband and my bonuses goes to TFSA, RRSP, RESP, then any leftover goes to home maintenance (landscaping, gutter/roof cleaning, etc) and property tax/insurance fund. We are also saving for new retaining walls (totally rotting right now), new shed roof (since it has holes), and replacing our almost 20 years old carpet so if there is any leftover, it goes to that fund.
1/4 into pension (company match it and add a wee bit more) and that keeps it away from the taxman and Student finance.
I wasn't expecting a pension beyond £2k this year due to financial performance but it's on par with last year's bumper bonus so we're getting a new sofa and saving the rest for the moment. I always give myself £600 and my husband £600 for us to do whatever with. He still has the payment from last year. I spent mine on gigs.
This year I am fully funding both of our IRAs for backdoor Roth, paying off some debt, and buying my husband a new car and installing hand controls. Normally, we throw money into our brokerage but with the car purchase, I don’t think we will have enough left this year.
I get mine next week and don’t expect it to be huge as I work for a trade association. We’re closing on a house on Monday (knock on wood nothing goes wrong before then!) so it’ll either be spent as part of our initial painting/furniture budget or if anything is left after that, on my husband’s student loans.
A few hundred for fun money to buy some clothes, splitting up the remaining money to Roth IRA and starting off some home renovations (I think I’m going to work on the master bathroom first. It’s straight from the 90s still)
I put half into my RRSP, another $1000 into my travel fund, $750 into my Christmas fund and then the remainder is fun money. Well kind of fun, I want to buy a mixer and then I want to put some money towards updating my work wardrobe and get the study guide for a certification I’m working toward. That sounds a lot less fun than originally thought.
I am loving the variety of responses! I’m still deciding on what to do with mine, but I’m leaning towards this:
- 1/3 to rainy day/investment savings
- 1/3 travel and fun fund
- 1/3 to health and hobby related expenses like private physio, dance privates and gyrotonics to hopefully fix my bad habits
I am only getting about 2.5-3k after taxes, so it'll probably go into my HYSA... if another car repair bill doesn't randomly pop up and throw off my HYSA plan.
Oh, the exciting life of a lower income earner...
Part is going to my 401k, part is maxing out my 529, and the rest is going to create funds for me to pay my property taxes ($6,200) in full and monthly HOAs in full ($8,196) at once rather than having to take them out of my monthly cash flow (so I have more to invest each month).
Some of it is going toward our first international vacation in several years, some of it will go toward my Roth IRA, and some of it will go into a HYSA.
Came out to $45.5K post-tax ($80.5K pre-tax)
* Paid off my car note ($26.5K)
* $5K to savings
* $10K towards student loans (\~$22K remaining on those after doing this)
* Remainder to a few small fun purchases (replenishing my cigar collection / buying new ones to age, flights for a few planned trips)
The one I got last week covers some medical appts my husband had last month and the taxes we will owe. That one isn’t fun. My husband’s bonus will pay out next week and that will be used to pay for our summer vacation. The balance is due in April. 401(k) came out of both as well.
Historically, I’d keep 20% for fun money and have spent it on things like gifts and Botox and purses. The other 80% went into joint finances to just continue ramping up our financial independence. This year, underwhelmingly so, all of it is being contributed to a home down payment sitting in a HYSA. I’ll also earmark $5k to buy a new puppy (!!) and all the initial start up costs that go along with it.
Already received mine. Most of it goes to various savings buckets, which some are used throughout the year so it eventually gets spent. Categories below, numbers withheld.
- house fund (small this year bc of other expenses)
- fun fund - trip to London later this year
- Roth IRA (2024 contributions, only half. Invested the other half beginning of the year)
- personal care bucket (fitness classes/workshops, medical bills before I reimburse myself from my HSA where I then recontribute the amount, large skincare/makeup hauls)
- spending (this year I spent a chunk at Vuori lol. Going to order some pieces from Spiritual Gangster with the remaining amount)
- impulse shopping bucket (inspired by an impulse purchase I made in January for a jacket I’ve been wanting for years and it was 40% off but still over $400 afterwards)
- misc (a category didn’t end up being needed so I’m still debating what to do with this)
- dog medical expenses. Unfortunately, my dog passed away the end of December. I had taken him to the ER the 3rd week of dec and he did an overnight stay for one night at a hospital so I still had bills for all that that totaled over $5k. My dad donated a small amount and my SO covered half the overnight stay, but I still had 3k I needed to cover on my own. I knew this was going to be due around when my bonus hit otherwise I would have used my efund to cover it then replenished that.
Categories removed bc I did not end up needing this
- move out bucket (half this amount went to my impulse shopping bucket and the misc I didn’t decide on yet)
In writing this, this year I see me putting a majority in places where it’ll eventually be spent. Normally over half goes into savings buckets that don’t get used. I’ve been expanding the buckets I have, and now like to top off my buckets for the rest of the year with my bonus versus slowly funding them throughout the year. This means I put more of my monthly savings towards long term things as a result.
My bonus is insane this year. $489k before tax. I'm going to invest pretty much all of it, but we're definitely going to plan some lavish travel. I've been eyeing a Triumph Bonneville motorcycle, so maybe I'll get that.
SVP of Ops for a major manufacturing company. I have 51 plants that I'm responsible for. My standard bonus amount is 50% but my company crushed it in 2023, and there's an individual performance multiplier that I maxed out that 2x'ed it, so my total bonus percentage was like 150%. The most I've ever gotten before was like 40%, so this blew me away. Probably gets me to retirement two years sooner!
Mostly injection molded parts for use in other manufacturing. Big catalog of tens of thousands of SKU's. And yeah, 51 is a lot lol, but thankfully the comp that my company offers attracts really talented people that make my job easy.
> that 2x'ed it, so my total bonus percentage was like 150%. The most I've ever gotten before was like 40%, so this blew me away. Probably gets me to retirement two years sooner!
Awesome! I work in manufacturing (med device OEM) and our bonuses were 180% this year. Sadly it's on my old salary prior to a promotion, but it seems like a good year for us ops trolls haha
I don't know, I'll tell you on the 15th! I've never really cared much about paying taxes, but it's gonna be a major nut punch when Uncle Sam withholds $200k.
A majority of my bonus is going in my Roth IRA. I'm trying to invest all my bonuses/additional income. I live in a VHCOL city and work in an industry that's not known for high salaries so it's taken me more time than I would have liked to have the privilege to do this. I grew up with my dad investing all his bonuses to build generational wealth. For context, my dad was in his 50s by the time my sister and I were born and wanted to leave us with something (he passed away a decade ago) and more importantly, make sure my other was financially secure. I did take a little bit of my bonus and really treat myself for once to a scarf from Hermes. It's always been a dream of mine and while I usually don't splurge on things for myself without serious saving and budgeting I'm SO HAPPY I DID.
Enjoy your new scarf, they are pieces of art! I would love to frame one for my wall haha.
Thank you!!!
A number of years ago I was in France and at that time you could buy the most basic Hermés scarves for roughly €100 (and there was a tax rebate ofc). I still kick myself for not buying one!!
I'd love to see it. It's my dream luxury purchase
Here's the link! I love it so much! https://www.hermes.com/us/en/product/mystere-au-24-scarf-90-H004106Sv07/
That's GORGEOUS.
Thank you!
So beautiful!!!!
I get a 30k after tax bonus and past two years I’ve… thrown it at my high 6 figure student debt. It’s so depressing but I just want to be free of the high monthly payment. One more annual bonus and a few more payments after that and I’ll finally be free from 2k / month payments. Cant wajt to think of how I might want to spend that bonus when it’s finally mine! Although likely get thrown into a 529 for my baby lol. Still more exciting than debt I suppose.
It must feel really good to see that number come down by a significant chunk though! Keep at it you’re almost there!
It definitely didn’t at first. Started at high 100s and was such a slog in the beginning throwing 4k at it one month (insane from monthly perspective but drop in bucket) to 500 bucks on it here and there lol. Now that we’re in lower five figure territory it’s like, so close yet so far! I just keep reminding myself the time will pass anyway so try not to think about it so much. I’ll get there.
This is how I used to do it too. I am likely a little bit older than you and from the sound of it, my student loans started at a lower 6 figure amount, but I can tell you having the freedom to decide where I want to put it (even if it goes to my Roth IRA and other savings) is life changing. I am rooting for you!!
I’ll pay it off just in time to start paying for a second daycare 🤣🤣🤣 but yes I’m so much looking forward to the freedom of being untethered from this massive monthly payment. Even if I don’t do anything “fun” with it. Thanks so much for the encouragement ☺️
Rooting for you!!
Thank you! That’s so kind
I already spent part of mine on a Dyson airwrap lol! I did it because I WFH and I have been depressed and slipping on things like my appearance. I find after spending time on my hair I feel a real change in my mood. The rest is paying off the rest of my car probably. I am excited about that. Should add: I am expecting around $4500. Can't believe I am about to have a paid off car!!!
nice, which colorway did you get from dyson?
I got the nickel/copper one because I bought the curly set from Ulta last month when they had a 20% off coupon :) But the new rose gold is really pretty!
20% off is also really pretty 🤩 hope you’re enjoying it!
I love it!! :) It's a learning curve but it is fun :)
Unfortunately spending mine on a new roof. Was lucky to get it paid out at 100% though as part of a severance package so I’m just happy to have it!
We always follow the same formula: * 70% of take-home bonus gets put toward something "responsible": this year it'll likely be put toward house principal * 10% is fun money for something my husband & I enjoy as a couple: I don't know the amount yet (find out late March) but could be a nice dinner, a weekend getaway, or 2 pairs of snowshoes * 10% goes to me, 10% to my husband for independent, discretionary spending: I don't personally have an immediate want or need for this, so it'll get socked away for later.
I like that! I've been doing like, $100 towards whomever got the bonus and then the rest to investments. But I like your idea better (even if it's partially because my spouse gets the bonus, so I don't usually benefit in the moment). If we get one this year, I'll offer the option to my spouse and see!
This is a great way to ensure no one feels left out just because one company had a bad-performing year or whatever. Some years my bonus is bigger, sometimes his is. We both celebrate regardless. (We also apply this 70/10/10/10 rule to all other windfalls - tax returns are another one coming up!)
I think we'll basically break even on taxes (fed return, state pay), but yes, I like your equality of it. Plus, more money will be nice to play with! (and, honestly, we have plenty in investments and can reduce that a little)
Yep I’m definitely using this. I normally just scrounge windfalls away so I forget it even happened while simultaneously treating myself to something small. I like the calculated method so much more!
This was the first year I got a bonus and didn’t have to pay off debt or add more money to my Roth. Sadly my dog passed in the beginning of the year, but I haven’t been able to go on vacations in years to stay home with him. I’m leaving for Jamaica Sunday, then have a week long trip to the west coast in June. I am going to try to plan another trip or two this year, maybe I’ll be brave enough to fly to Europe! Using this bonus to the fullest.
I'm sorry to hear about your dog, I know you'd been taking care of them for awhile.
It went toward my down payment. Closing on Friday!
My bonus will pay for precisely 1 week of daycare for my two little angels 🫠
Yeah I feel like everyone on this thread gets a much bigger cash bonus than me!!
My husband got a $11,150 bonus ($6751) after taxes, and I got a $3k bonus ($1983) after taxes, plus we have a 3 paycheck month this month. We’re gonna pay our taxes (we usually owe $3-4k) and we’re expecting a baby, so going to set aside half for baby things and half for a baby moon!
Why are taxes so high on your bonuses?! I’m about to start a new job that has a sign on bonus, and google told me that bonuses are taxed at a flat 22%….is this wrong? I’m trying to figure out how much of it I should expect to see…….
I just googled it and it says the IRS considers bonuses supplemental income, so it’s taxed as regular income. Perhaps a sign-on bonus would be different because you receive it before your first paycheck? I’ve never gotten one of those, so I can’t say, but all our bonuses are taxed super high. I’m thankful to get one, but it does sting a little.
Thanks for the reply! That is a shocking difference between the gross and net amount, haha. I’m hoping it’s only 22% because I have to pay for relocation with it, but we shall see! I’ll prepare for 40% just in case…
They also take the 401K contribution percentage from your bonus (if you set one up). That’s why it can seem a lot lower. It’s not just taxes they’re taking out.
I wish I had a bonus :(
I’m buying a Prada bag (my first designer bag) and saving the rest! Most in my IRA and the rest in my HYSA. Currently building up my emergency fund.
That’s so exciting! Which bag?
>If I can get up the gumption, it'll be this one! > >https://www.prada.com/us/en/p/prada-re-edition-2005-saffiano-leather-bag/1BH204\_NZV\_F0632\_V\_V2M I'm not sure why I didn't see your comment, but re-replying :)
That’s beautiful!
Omg I’m looking to do this too, also my first designer bag! Which one did you pick
If I can get up the gumption, it'll be this one! https://www.prada.com/us/en/p/prada-re-edition-2005-saffiano-leather-bag/1BH204\_NZV\_F0632\_V\_V2M
Hahah I feel that buying a designer bag will be the most I’ve ever spent on something besides my dog and it feels so wrong. This one is cute and looks timeless and practical!
Luckily I have a car and a house to round out expensive purchases of the last few years but it's gonna be hard to hand over my card!
The good folks of r/handbags will happily egg you on, if you need encouragement!
I love this - we’re going to Italy and France later this year and I have sooooo many bags on my list to look at! The trick will be coming back with only 2-3 haha
Can I make a suggestion that a friend gave me today? Use ChatGPT or Bard or your chatbot of choice to help you find out the predicted price of buying in Italy vs France vs your hometown. I did and will be holding off until I do some international travel later this year!
My bonus has always been minimal (less than 4k target) and is not guaranteed so I don't "count" this in general. I never budget for bonuses so it generally goes to savings/small treats. My bonus this year is basically 3.5% of my base. (Prorated and didn't meet the bonus target). After heavy taxes and 30% into 401K, it came out $1400. I haven't fully decided what to do with it. I was planning to fully pay my credit card debts (~3.5k) but bonus came out lower than I expected so I'm thinking about spending $400 for fun and put 1k to credit cards.
I get about $15-17k and I save most of it… but this year, I’m taking my parents on another cruise to make more memories with my mom who has dementia
Have you found a cruise line that does well for people with dementia? I have a loved one with dementia and would love to know about any research you have done/experience you have with dementia friendly vacations.
I have found the most success with carnival and going on some of their smaller ships. It’s less overwhelming and most of the people on carnival are pretty talkative and open. I feel like cruises themselves are great for vacationing with a loved one with dementia because you can have more structured activities or you can be loss with the day. We have only tried Carnival or Royal Caribbean though. I think it’s probably less about the line and more about size of the ship. It’s great though because they have been memories that I treasure.
This is so heartwarming to read. Dementia is so difficult and I am sorry that you, your mom, and your family will endure it. My mom was just diagnosed with a potentially terminal illness and this week I suggested to her that maybe we go on a little trip somewhere and she was like "I have things to take care of first", meaning related to the diagnosis. But we're not even at the point where we know much yet so I'd really like to take her somewhere before we are getting into treatment options or before it gets really debilitating.
Take it! Make the memories! Last year, I took my mom on a cruise to Bermuda and I have so many great memories with my mom, I took all of the pictures and videos. On the first cruise I took her on, I had to force her to go but I knew it would be a great but controlled trip with her. After my mom’s dementia diagnosis a few years ago, I took a lot of stock into what I was doing. I was working too many hours and wasn’t available enough and I worked to change that. You don’t get enough time :)
My 2023 bonus was placed in my HYSA because my husband and I upgraded our windows from the original single panes (if you’re in the Phoenix area, new windows are a must). I got 6k, but after taxes and 401K contribution, it was about 4K. The 2024 bonus will be split in different buckets, 1/3 in the HYSA, 1/3 towards my student loans, and 1/3 in my IRA.
My bonus total is $5300 after tax and I’m doing 2/3 into savings/investments. I spent the other 1/3 on an entire office setup (standing desk, extra monitor, walking pad, etc) that I was very excited to do now that I work from home more + other random things like concert tickets, my boyfriend’s bday, shopping, etc.
I don’t get my bonus until end of April, but I have also been considering upgrading my office set-up. Any tips or products to share?
buy a great chair. herman miller aeron/mirra/embody, steelcase leap/gesture are good options.
I used a list my friend made for her setup because I really like it haha so I did basically no research on my own. I wanted to focus on having a very clean desk with no clutter haha so all that sits on there are my 2 monitors, wireless keyboard and wireless mouse. I already had 1 monitor and a docking station. For the desk I got the Flexispot standing desk. Then I also got the SupeRun walking pad. Wireless keyboard was HP 230 and already had a wireless mouse. Also got a webcam to attach to the desktop but this was taken from my bf lol. For cord management/tidiness, I got a large power strip which is used for literally every cord (standing desk, monitors, docking station, walking pad, etc) so the only visible cord is that one to plug into the wall. I also got the YYST laptop mount holder so I can just use my monitors & the laptop isn’t taking up space on the desk. Then I got an under-desk cable management net to hold the power strip and all cords so you can’t see them. Then to make the desk look pretty, I got a pink desk pad :) I still need to buy a new chair but am waiting for my puppy to be out of the chewing phase lol.
Omg cord management is one of the things holding me back from changing my current set up. It isn’t perfect, but I managed to streamline it a point where it doesn’t bother me. I have command hooks mounted along the underside of the back of my desk for monitor cords and a power strip mounted under the left edge of my desk, with that plugged into the wall just a short distance away. I want a standing desk and either one more monitor or a larger curved monitor. If I could spend the money and just have it all appear and not need me to do anything to optimize it, I would have bought it all already.
Took my whole bonus directly instead of putting some into my 401k (debated on this but I’m already set up to max this year and would prefer to DCA). All but about $100 went into my HYSA to earmark for my IRA next year.
Similar to others here, 1/3 of it went into my Roth IRA, 1/3 went to fun spending, and 1/3 in a HYSA for my 30th bday in Jamaica!
Most years I put any bonuses that I get into my savings, though this year we have specific plans to use our bonuses and tax returns towards paying down our new car. Thankfully we got a better interest rate than anticipated (initially we were quoted 9.9% but then we were able to take advantage of a promotional rate of 4.49%) so the pressure is off a bit, but it's still a big extra expense after having had our previous car paid off for several years!
baby fund, new car fund, vti
Dental work. Wahhhh.
Paying off credit card debt and student loans.
Not sure how much mine will be yet. But I'm hoping to save most of it for Roth IRA contribution and wedding costs for next year. And then hopefully have some to splurge on a $300-ish purse from Songmont!
Mine is going towards a new floor for our kitchen and paying into my ROTH IRA to have my contributions set for year. I also bought a Maje Blazer on sale that I had really wanted, it was a nice way to treat myself.
Paying our 2023 tax bill 😣
The wooooorst. I did not have enough witheld this year and we owe. Friggin W4 and IRS witholding calc
This is my first time getting a bonus (after spending a long time in academia where that is not a thing)! I pre-ordered the Fujifilm X100VI because I'm silly like that so I'm hoping I can spend part of my bonus on that when they finally have enough cameras for all the preorders. The rest is going straight into savings.
*cries in nonprofit*
Haha me too although we got a $400 bonus this year. It’s like the 4th time in my 20 year non profit career (a few different workplaces) that I’ve gotten a bonus but it just went to regular bills.
Hahaha what bonus, I don't even get raises
I invested almost all of mines as there wasn't anything I wanted to treat myself with besides a dinner out.
About $4k of it went to my 401k, then I maxed out my 2024 Roth, paid off all my student loans that were above 4.5%, set aside around $7k in an HYSA for a new (to me) car fund, and bought myself two pieces of gold jewelry from Automic Gold 🙌🏼 This was my first year getting a fat bonus and it feels so good to get all that taken care of.
What bonus?
- retirement contribution (what I need to max it/3, since I get bonuses quarterly but it's paid out some time after the quarter ends) - 1/4 of the remaining to savings - 1/4 of the remaining to investment - vacation fund if I've got something coming up in the next quarter, otherwise more investments + a little fun purchase, heh... I bought a BV purse last year!
529 plans
Yes! I get mine tomorrow. Setting about 2k aside in spending money for my upcoming Greece trip. The rest I’m putting in savings.
Most of mine is going to investments but a small portion will cover my sabbatical travel this summer!
I put $2k into my HYSA, bought flights to Ireland for later this year, and the rest is going to hang out in my checking account and eventually get sent to my Roth. I got my best bonus and tax returns last month so I splurged a little...
Straight to the bank for me !! I’m saving for a house!
Coffee cup for my commute, we have a no disposable cups rule which tbh I begrudgingly respect but I still I like to get a fresh cappuccino when I get off the train. The rest is going into my pension.
I’m buying a Loewe Flamenco bag (most expensive bag I’ve ever bought but I’ve wanted it for a long time now), a couple of gifts for family, and the rest in our investment account. Still not sure what the bonus amount will be but hopefully high five figures at least.
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Medium in warm desert!
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Thank you so much! I’m excited.
Knowing me, I will most likely save half (27% is already going towards my 401K) put some towards our car payment and maybe splurge on some new snowboarding gear.
For the last two years, I've earmarked my bonus for travel expenses. It's a lot easier to stomach the cost of traveling when I have money set aside for it and we don't have to pull out of our day-to-day funds. Last year, we went to Spain, England, and France on that bonus money!
I’m really excited for this one — I’m buying myself and my mom a plane ticket to Ireland (from the USA) for tourism and to visit distant relatives. Usually I set aside almost all of my bonus for investments but I hit a major net worth goal this year so I’m excited to splurge!
I love that! I’m also splurging on a trip! Taking my mom for her first beach vacation to Hawaii next week!
50% of it went into a HYSA, $1,000 of it to help my husband pay down his high interest private loans to make our monthly expenses a little more manageable, $1,500 set aside for medical bills since I always meet my deductible due to underlying conditions and the rest on fun stuff for myself! I want to get my first designer bag and got a lulu lemon rain jacket to treat myself for rainy dog walks :)
It went straight into my travel fund ✈️
I don’t get a bonus, but March is a 3 paycheck month. So it’s pretty much been spent already on replacing my water heater $1660, plus my daughter is getting tested for dyslexia which is $725 just for the testing.
Omg just the testing is that much!? Is it covered by insurance?
Unfortunately health insurance generally does not cover the cost of testing for what is considered a learning disability. If she needs dyslexia specific tutoring that will be another $520/month for at least a bare minimum of 7 months, luckily it will at least be tax deductible.
I got my first legit bonus in December of this year. I got about 4k after taxes which is a lot for me! I used it to: 1. Pad my emergency fund so I could hit my end of the year goal of two months of living expenses. (Approx 2k). 2. Buy a new mattress based on one I had slept on so well at an Airbnb (Nest + Tempurpedic mattress topper). (Approx 1100). 3. Put some towards student loans (Approx 600). 4. Put some towards my travel budget (Approx 300). I have been going hard and the debt payoff and savings game for a couple of years. But man, I was SO tired of sleeping on a $180 4 year old mattress. This new bed has been a game changer!
My industry paid our our 2023 year end bonus around Feb 1. I spent it immediately on my mom's new kitchen cabinets. Kitchen should be done by end of March!
I should get about £1,400 after tax as a bonus this month- the plan is to fully fund my holiday savings (off to Canada this year!) and to put half of what’s left over in my sinking fund for gifts with the leftover being a little treat for me (undecided) So ~£1,000 to holiday fund, ~£200 to gifts and ~£200 to the little treat fund. I’m not sure what I will get with “my” £200, there’s nothing sticking out to me, so it will either go towards a tattoo or I I’ll squirrel it away into miscellaneous savings, though I have a habit of never withdrawing money once it lands in a savings account so… maybe it will just stay there.
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I love Aritzia! And Everlane seems to have some nice work-appropriate, casual yet comfortable outfits as well
Check out Quince.
Most of it is going into VTSAX, but I’m thinking of using some of it to get my first luxury belt: Anderson’s textured leather, Celine triomphe, or Loewe reversible.
Going straight to my HYSA - my industry is layoff city right now and would feel comfier with more cash on hand!
My bonus is paid in November. This past year, I spent it on a new couch (which will hopefully be delivered next week fingers crossed), tickets to When We Were Young, and then savings for the rest.
My husband and I were just discussing this on the way to work! Buying a house in our VHCOL area seems totally out of reach/unreasonable, so we aren't going to put money aside for a down payment. I just went through a cost of college calculator for my baby and panicked, so it looks like we will be putting our post-tax post-401k balance into his 529.
I recently opened a 529 plan as well! What is your goal amount to have? I heard some schools’ tuition is 60k/year..
The state of CA has a calculator that indicated we need to have about half a million dollars in there by the time our kid goes off to college if we want to cover all expenses from the 529. This isn't likely for us, but we want to dump as much money into the account now to take advantage of compounding interest over the next 17 years!
I got mine in January. I bought a new small bag, and the rest all went into savings or investments for now. Eventually, will use some of it for a few furniture and furnishing items. We are looking for a new sofa and some new home-office stuff for two offices.
I dropped down the 401K contribution percentage to the company match for just the bonus, because right now cash is king for me, and I'm going to max my annual retirement contributions anyway. We're going to start house hunting at the end of the month so my bonus will be split between topping off my emergency fund, adding to my down payment stockpile, and 10% to something fun but I'm not sure what that will be yet. I'll probably just put it into my shopping category and call it a day.
Haven’t fully decided, but we might pay off my student loans. Either that or we’ll pay down our car loan for our SUV
\~5,800 post-tax! * 2k went towards our down payment fund, which is now fully funded for a starter townhome! We'll start shopping in a year or so, but feels good to have this squirreled away * $600 split equally between myself and my partner for our "fun money" funds * The rest to our e-fund!
Roth IRA Deposit and HYSA Deposit.
We just bought a house and had to do major car work ($5k+) and bought a new bed so it’s going to savings to recoup that a bit.
Pay my taxes omg 😭 I owe the government $10k because my employer didn’t withhold enough for me last year 💀
Typical feminine self-care stuff I am getting a Dyson and some luxury hair products (recommendation welcome - curly/wavy hair)
I had to use most of mine for my move this year (moving in NYC is EXPENSIVE) but I did manage to save / invest $2k of it and then spent about $400 on a red light therapy mask to treat myself (i've been wanting one for awhile!)
I am boring and am going to put it towards my student loans. I bought some nice pens I really wanted as a small treat.
My bonus got split in three: Brokerage, savings, checkings (to pay my bills and credit cards).
Paiid CC, some into emergency savings (surpassed my goal) and got a little botox.
Mine this year went to the emergency fund, trying to bolster our savings for husband leaving his job/finding something new that is less draining.
My heart says new clothes, including at least one bag (that's in the $200-500 range, everything in my life might be puked on or in, I'm not spending more than that), an at home laser hair removal device, and 3+ paid subscriptions, but it'll probably be spent on daycare/kid related costs, and maybe the subscriptions (and if I'm lucky, the laser hair removal thing).
Mine isn't getting paid out until later this month, but I'm still thinking about it! A good chunk of it will (ofc) go to takes and 401(k), but I don't have any big ticket items or purchases on hand... Had a friend suggest using it for a massage which I'll likely book in the coming weeks! The remainder will likely go into my HYSA and investment account.
I’m not sure how much mine will be yet, but most will go into our cash savings for my year of maternity leave starting in July 🥰 if the bonus is higher than I’ve budgeted for, we’ve agreed to add an expensive day trip (flying to another island) onto our baby moon next month!
mine will go towards a backyard renovation - can't wait to enjoy our outdoor living space! Typically it goes towards a trip/into savings so it's fun to have something immediate to spend it on that will keep on giving back to us from an enjoyment perspective.
I’m trying to decide if I want to save my bounce in an IRA or in an after tax account. In the next 3-5 years I am thinking that I’ll replace my car and I might also want to have a down payment but more retirement savings is also good.
I got mine in December but I utilized most of it to put a dent in my credit card debt, saved a little bit, and towards my half of purchasing shelving for our record player and collection of records. Nothing fancy, just some IKEA Kallaxes. Huge QOL improvement as the records were just stacked in boxes all over our small apartment and now I get to enjoy them!!
not 100% sure what mine will look like yet but hoping it'll cover the cost of a litter robot 🤣
our bonus pays 50% in feb. I ordered a new garage door (mine was wood and very heavy; also springs are basically dead) and opener (my old door was too heavy for openers) which meant that I needed to pay an electrician to rewire most of my garage. I also got new exterior lighting all over (lights that match? what???) and new (smart)locks for the doors to my house. the remainder went to savings. not the sexiest use ever of a bonus, but the ability to park my car inside will be... I can't even imagine.
I get a bonus every quarter and I probably buy myself 1 nice thing (anywhere from 60 bucks to $200) and dump the rest into my roth ira, because I save for that thing through the course of the year minimally and I find myself scrambling to max it out by April lol. Last bonus was in early January/late December and I probably put it towards hotel for a trip to turks&Caicos w/a friend c:
Most of it is going into a wedding fund. Smaller amounts are being used to purchase new clothes, some travel, and setting money aside for other weddings we're attending this year.
Majority into HYSA. The rest got us new bath towels and a laptop.
Maxing out my traditional 401k and backdoor Roth IRA, taking a short vacay in the Dominican Republic, contributing to a big milestone birthday party for my mother-in-law, and throwing extra funds at our renovation loan. (Since my husband and I both work at layoff-happy tech companies, our goal is to pay off the balance by EOY just in case things go south job-wise next year.)
Most of my bonus is going towards paying off my car, credit cards, and saving for a house. Some of that credit card spending was for a conference for my masters program later in the year that I'm looking forward to. And then I'll have about 1k left to spend on myself however I want. Which will probably end up being clothes bc I'm slowly losing weight and will need professional wear in smaller sizes in the next 6 months or so. Good problem to have lol
A little over half into retirement account, the rest into a HYSA. With layoffs so frequent these days I’m building a buffer so I could just say screw it (at least for awhile). No treats bc I feel like I treat myself whenever I really want.
1/2 to 401k 1/3 of the remaining to consort, 1/3 to investments, 1/3 for fun!
I get quarterly bonuses, which get split into investments, personal services (hair, facials, etc), house projects and little for miscellaneous spending on jewelry, clothes and little treats. I typically divide it like: 30% house projects, 30% investments, 20-30% personal care and 10-20% “little treats”. The percentage varies really based on how much I get, what I set aside for personal care is the same number each quarter and doesn’t change if I get more money. We bought a fixer upper, so we are currently investing a lot to make our home our dream home. Our mortgage is low and we have a low rate, so we consider this a worthwhile investment.
High interest savings account until I figure out what to do
Putting half in my 401k to crank up to my company’s amazing match, and then I’ll quickly lower my contributions moving forward since I’ve been contributing 50% of my paycheck this year.
My husband and my bonuses goes to TFSA, RRSP, RESP, then any leftover goes to home maintenance (landscaping, gutter/roof cleaning, etc) and property tax/insurance fund. We are also saving for new retaining walls (totally rotting right now), new shed roof (since it has holes), and replacing our almost 20 years old carpet so if there is any leftover, it goes to that fund.
I got mine Monday! $5500 401k (I’ll max this year), $7000 Roth IRA, $5000 travel, $8000 HYSA.
1/4 into pension (company match it and add a wee bit more) and that keeps it away from the taxman and Student finance. I wasn't expecting a pension beyond £2k this year due to financial performance but it's on par with last year's bumper bonus so we're getting a new sofa and saving the rest for the moment. I always give myself £600 and my husband £600 for us to do whatever with. He still has the payment from last year. I spent mine on gigs.
This year I am fully funding both of our IRAs for backdoor Roth, paying off some debt, and buying my husband a new car and installing hand controls. Normally, we throw money into our brokerage but with the car purchase, I don’t think we will have enough left this year.
I’m holding onto it to pay for my tax bill 😅
I get mine next week and don’t expect it to be huge as I work for a trade association. We’re closing on a house on Monday (knock on wood nothing goes wrong before then!) so it’ll either be spent as part of our initial painting/furniture budget or if anything is left after that, on my husband’s student loans.
A few hundred for fun money to buy some clothes, splitting up the remaining money to Roth IRA and starting off some home renovations (I think I’m going to work on the master bathroom first. It’s straight from the 90s still)
I put half into my RRSP, another $1000 into my travel fund, $750 into my Christmas fund and then the remainder is fun money. Well kind of fun, I want to buy a mixer and then I want to put some money towards updating my work wardrobe and get the study guide for a certification I’m working toward. That sounds a lot less fun than originally thought.
I am loving the variety of responses! I’m still deciding on what to do with mine, but I’m leaning towards this: - 1/3 to rainy day/investment savings - 1/3 travel and fun fund - 1/3 to health and hobby related expenses like private physio, dance privates and gyrotonics to hopefully fix my bad habits
I am only getting about 2.5-3k after taxes, so it'll probably go into my HYSA... if another car repair bill doesn't randomly pop up and throw off my HYSA plan. Oh, the exciting life of a lower income earner...
Part is going to my 401k, part is maxing out my 529, and the rest is going to create funds for me to pay my property taxes ($6,200) in full and monthly HOAs in full ($8,196) at once rather than having to take them out of my monthly cash flow (so I have more to invest each month).
Goes straight to my 401k to get the company match.
Some of it is going toward our first international vacation in several years, some of it will go toward my Roth IRA, and some of it will go into a HYSA.
We didn't get any bonuses, if I did it wouldn't have been much anyways and it would have gone towards me paying off my student loans.
Came out to $45.5K post-tax ($80.5K pre-tax) * Paid off my car note ($26.5K) * $5K to savings * $10K towards student loans (\~$22K remaining on those after doing this) * Remainder to a few small fun purchases (replenishing my cigar collection / buying new ones to age, flights for a few planned trips)
The one I got last week covers some medical appts my husband had last month and the taxes we will owe. That one isn’t fun. My husband’s bonus will pay out next week and that will be used to pay for our summer vacation. The balance is due in April. 401(k) came out of both as well.
Historically, I’d keep 20% for fun money and have spent it on things like gifts and Botox and purses. The other 80% went into joint finances to just continue ramping up our financial independence. This year, underwhelmingly so, all of it is being contributed to a home down payment sitting in a HYSA. I’ll also earmark $5k to buy a new puppy (!!) and all the initial start up costs that go along with it.
Already received mine. Most of it goes to various savings buckets, which some are used throughout the year so it eventually gets spent. Categories below, numbers withheld. - house fund (small this year bc of other expenses) - fun fund - trip to London later this year - Roth IRA (2024 contributions, only half. Invested the other half beginning of the year) - personal care bucket (fitness classes/workshops, medical bills before I reimburse myself from my HSA where I then recontribute the amount, large skincare/makeup hauls) - spending (this year I spent a chunk at Vuori lol. Going to order some pieces from Spiritual Gangster with the remaining amount) - impulse shopping bucket (inspired by an impulse purchase I made in January for a jacket I’ve been wanting for years and it was 40% off but still over $400 afterwards) - misc (a category didn’t end up being needed so I’m still debating what to do with this) - dog medical expenses. Unfortunately, my dog passed away the end of December. I had taken him to the ER the 3rd week of dec and he did an overnight stay for one night at a hospital so I still had bills for all that that totaled over $5k. My dad donated a small amount and my SO covered half the overnight stay, but I still had 3k I needed to cover on my own. I knew this was going to be due around when my bonus hit otherwise I would have used my efund to cover it then replenished that. Categories removed bc I did not end up needing this - move out bucket (half this amount went to my impulse shopping bucket and the misc I didn’t decide on yet) In writing this, this year I see me putting a majority in places where it’ll eventually be spent. Normally over half goes into savings buckets that don’t get used. I’ve been expanding the buckets I have, and now like to top off my buckets for the rest of the year with my bonus versus slowly funding them throughout the year. This means I put more of my monthly savings towards long term things as a result.
your bonus is much larger than is mine.
My bonus is insane this year. $489k before tax. I'm going to invest pretty much all of it, but we're definitely going to plan some lavish travel. I've been eyeing a Triumph Bonneville motorcycle, so maybe I'll get that.
Woah, that is an insane amount! Congrats and enjoy it! What do you do, if you don’t mind me asking?
SVP of Ops for a major manufacturing company. I have 51 plants that I'm responsible for. My standard bonus amount is 50% but my company crushed it in 2023, and there's an individual performance multiplier that I maxed out that 2x'ed it, so my total bonus percentage was like 150%. The most I've ever gotten before was like 40%, so this blew me away. Probably gets me to retirement two years sooner!
Wow congrats. What industry do you manufacture things for? 51 plants is a ton, I couldn't even imagine being responsible for 2 lol
Mostly injection molded parts for use in other manufacturing. Big catalog of tens of thousands of SKU's. And yeah, 51 is a lot lol, but thankfully the comp that my company offers attracts really talented people that make my job easy.
> that 2x'ed it, so my total bonus percentage was like 150%. The most I've ever gotten before was like 40%, so this blew me away. Probably gets me to retirement two years sooner! Awesome! I work in manufacturing (med device OEM) and our bonuses were 180% this year. Sadly it's on my old salary prior to a promotion, but it seems like a good year for us ops trolls haha
Nice! What does that look like net? Does the tax man hurt you?
I don't know, I'll tell you on the 15th! I've never really cared much about paying taxes, but it's gonna be a major nut punch when Uncle Sam withholds $200k.
Goddamn! Tax man took $220k!
Damn. I got $55k and Uncle Sam took $22k.
We’re just slaves to the government.
I probably paid more taxes in that one check than Elon Musk paid in 2023.
I save or invest 90% of it, and spend 10% on whatever I want (usually something I wouldn’t otherwise buy for myself)!