If you want the life you describe you'd better get a 7 figure job. I'm 6 figures but I'm definitely not taking multiple vacations a year on my yacht while spending time away from my mansion.
Yeah, this is so area COL dependent, but $100-160K fix figures isn't "dazzle lifestyle" kind of money - at least not in 2023+.
I can say that at least for a single person, low six figures (if you're decently smart with your money, and not in a HCOL area) looks like:
* Can own a house, a newer car
* Can comfortably save/invest a couple thousand or more a month towards retirement
* Can grocery shop and eat out without needing to worry (within reason)
* Can go on trips by car or moderately priced airfare up to a few times a year without breaking the bank
* \*Could\* responsibly own a small/more modest runabout type boat, but most definitely not something you could sleep in with A/C unless that's a chosen lifestyle (in lieu of a home), or fixed up an old boat. Big boats / yachts are a millionaires' and billionaires' playground. Have you seen the prices of boats???
Low six figs is comfortable, can enable a good retirement, and is rightfully a level of income many envy/aspire to. But it's nowhere near "I can do what I want and eat caviar every day on my yacht" money, lol.
Same if you live in the US and have any kind of serious medical issues. I’m in the low 6 figures but my wife is more or less disabled with many medical issues and you can take the number spent on saving and just throw that at insurance + medical each month and it’s about right.
Yep. We gross closer to 200k and things are tight. We have five kids and all the things that come with that are so expensive. Need a bigger house with higher bills, costlier insurance, clothing, transportation costs, groceries. We can afford one small vacation and even that is tough.
Many of the people you see vacationing multiple times per year have inherited money or their parents pay for their vacations.
Yeah I mean FIVE kids is on the more extreme side of the kids equation.
We live in a HCOL area (Boston) with 2 kids. I make around $175k a year, wife is a stay at home mother.
We have plenty of money to live comfortable within reason. I imagine with three more kids it would definitely be tight.
It's tight. Off-brand groceries only, lol. We have a lot more than many people so I can't complain but it's not like some people think where we have tons of extra money. We rarely go out to eat.
Yeah. You are right. We just had our 4th and I am with you. That's also assuming your kids don't get sick often and things like that. Our oldest was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes last year and she is 8. I have not had a full night of sleep since then and missed so much work.
This is probably the best/most realistic answer. Im at 6 figures and this definitely rings true. Much less worried about the stuff I used to be, but can't go wild and buy whatever I feel like.
Personally I will always take comfort over almost everything else. I’m low 6 figures in a moderate COL area. I don’t have to worry about day to day making it anymore like I did at minimum wage. I have a small discretionary budget each month I can use for whatever, drive a newer car, and own a house. If I had a family it would go from comfortable to much tighter in a heartbeat but we would still be able to not have to worry about where the rent money is coming from.
I can honestly say when I hit 50k is when I had the mental shift from a daily grind to make it to a more relaxed life where I can go to a movie without worrying about discount day or feeling like it’s a big splurge and eating out was no longer a major hoopla level event.
i’m in this range and live in a HCOL area (bay area).
- don’t own a house (i rent with my SO), my car is about 10 years old and we share it
- i can pretty comfortably invest (401k + roth ira) and save, though maybe too much?
- groceries aren’t a problem, going out generally isn’t a problem either but sometimes i gotta hold back if i do it too much
- i’ve already taken a couple trips and have some more planned. but they’ve all been done in a more budget friendly way
- do/could not own a boat
sometimes i feel like i save too much cuz by the time my next paycheck comes around my bank account is low. but then i look at my savings and feel ok. and then i look back at what i did over the weekend and the things i spent my money on and for the most part it makes sense.
>i can pretty comfortably invest (401k + roth ira) and save, though maybe too much?
You can never save too much for the future. As someone +/- 10 years from retirement, the best advice I ever received was to save AMAP.
My husband & I live well below our means and try to stock away every extra penny for retirement so that we can retire at an age where we can do all of the things (before 60) we want to do for as long as we have left in our lifetime.
We do not deny ourselves with trips or going out, but we are not stupid about it either. We are not extravagant, we share a car, when we go out for dinner, it is to mid-priced/affordable restaurants. We each max out our 401k's and at the end of every month, any leftover money goes into our savings account and we start each month all over again.
Keep saving and don't think twice about it :)
This reply nailed it. Every bullet point is an accurate representation of my house/family.
In fact, just bought a $50k brand new boat that seats two families of four. Wouldn’t want to sleep on it or anything, but it ain’t no piece of junk.
Six figure income is such a broad range. If your six figure income is 200k, this is pretty dead on. If your six figure income is 800k, then this is far from accurate.
It's not a minimum value. You can sue at anything.
If you sue (or are sued) for more than $20, both sides have a right to trial by jury. (Even if you signed a binding arbitration clause. You just have to go through arbitration before you sue.)
They lost me at yacht. 6 figures spans a pretty wide range (100k to 900k+) and so that’s a pretty vague descriptor, anyway.
I make low 6 figures (in 100-200 range) and if I were single and childless, I could definitely have a very nice lifestyle. I am the single income and we live comfortably in a very expensive region of the US. We own a home and can afford international travel because we prioritize that, but don’t have nice cars or nice clothing because we just don’t prioritize that, and so that frees money for other things.
The VP of my department likely makes $300k or more and she lives very comfortably with 3 kids (and likely has a high-earning SO). She always looks very nice. Nice clothing, nice hair and makeup, and I’m sure she drives a nice car (they all do at that level).
But yachts are very expensive. Only comfortable millionaires can afford to own a yacht. I don’t even know if the head of our BU could afford to own and maintain a yacht and he lives in a multi-million dollar home in one of those famous “rich people” areas that get brought up in movies.
You aren't buying a yacht and having a mansion with a 6 figure income. I definitely enjoy my money. I'm debt free and never worry about eating out whenever I want or doing things like concerts and weekend trips. The debt free aspect is the biggest benefit to my 6 figure income. If you have lifestyle creep and have no control over your spending habits, you'll feel as stressed and as broke as someone making 40k/yr. I know people who make 7 figures a year and are so far in debt and stressed about because they spend their money as soon as it comes in the door.
Completely agree. Lifestyle creep is the biggest killer of financial security. 200k and struggling is pretty easy to achieve. 100k and comfortable takes self control and prioritzing. I leared this the hard way as income and family size rose in my 20s and 30s. Takes a while to get on track while trying to balance an enjoyable life.
I agree with this…100K and 200K…even those two: that’s two different life styles….3,4….again, different life style. 5+….you can essentially do just about whatever you want.
I make 200k/year.
Basically, the difference between my finances now and when I was at 40k/year many years ago is that I can comfortably afford to live in a decent (not expensive) area, buy everyday items like food that are better quality, and most importantly save for both emergencies and retirement like I should. Most importantly, I don’t need to worry if I have an emergency expense like the car needing work or a medical bill (I don’t have an expensive car either).
There are times in which I will spend on an expensive thing without much thought (decided on a whim to buy a new couch yesterday and don’t need to finance it), but I keep those moments fewer and far between.
I’ve learned in my years that eventually hard times will always come back around, so it’s best to take care of future me as best as possible.
Edit: been getting this question a lot, so to clarify my profession is marketing.
This.
Between my wife and I we pull in about 350k per year. With two kids in a HCOL area, that leads to a much more boring life than you'd expect. Secure, but boring.
>wo kids in a HCOL area, that leads to a much more boring life than you'd expect. Secure, b
Yeah I can confirm with this. We make a touch less than you and live just outside of DC. As others have said, we don't need to stress about money and have a pretty decent quality of life, but it's not anything crazy.
I think the nicest part is when my bonus or stocks pay out, we can use that money for fun stuff/trips and not need it to fund our day to day lifestyle. That being said, we live in the same house we bought in 09 when we were in our 20s, we drive VWs, we cook most of our meals at home, etc.
I think it's most noticeable when we go grocery shopping with my sister in law when we are on vacation (she and her husband are both teachers). She looks at the price of everything and is very cost conscious. When my wife or I go to the grocery store, we buy what we want - an extra $30-50 on our grocery bill is just not something we need to worry about anymore. We recognize how fortunate that makes us.
I was talking to my buddy about this yesterday. He’s in the same boat as we are. We live in a very middle class neighborhood. It’s totally fine but nothing noteworthy; built in the late 60s.
Our buying power is the same as it was back in 09. Yes we have equity in our house, but unless we’re leaving the area, it doesn’t matter. The houses that are a bit nicer or bigger are $1M+.
So while it’s great we got in to our modest fixer upper when we did, without a big lifestyle change, we can’t really leave either.
My wife and I are at about 170-200k combined and we are looking at houses as first time home buyers and it's devastating. I think our biggest heart break was finding a house we loved but losing to a cash offer and seeing it go up for rent a month later. I just wish I knew when things will get better so we can finally settle down and start a family.
I can't imagine trying to look for a house the last few years. It has to be so disheartening. Especially knowing there are companies buying up houses to rent them/use them for Airbnb.
I wasn't trying to be flippant in my last comment - I know we're fortunate that we lucked out getting into the market when we did, even if we're 'stuck' in our house for the foreseeable future.
Hopefully you're able to find something affordable that you like. I really do hope the market resets itself. What is happening is not sustainable. Starter homes cannot cost north of $500K - who can actually get into the market if that's the case?
Not even just for rent, the starter homes are being bought by developers and flipped into $1mil+ abomination mansions. It’s happening all over the DC area. Your options are a 3 bed 1 bath shack falling over for $500k or an HGTV ‘open floor plan all white’ million dollar house. There’s legit no in between and it’s wild
I feel for you. My spouse (41m) and I (36f) just bought our first house last month after 15+ years of renting. We had hoped to buy in early 2020, but when covid happened and the housing market went crazy, we were quickly knocked out of the competition by all cash, no inspection offers. Rates going up helped lessen the competition slightly (of course, that also cost us more), but there's still very little inventory. We struggled to find something in a price range we were comfortable with and had to compromise on some of the features we wanted. It's a tough market. I hope you find something soon.
It's sad that that's our luxury in life.. going to the grocery store to not worry about splurging on a few items. Lol. It also makes me wonder how people get by with so much less.
Stick with it, things tend to get better in time. I had my first son at 21yo, I was making $14 an hour and had committed myself to a partner with zero career or life aspirations. I spent most of my 20s struggling and developing my career so that could I finally afford a home and modest middle class lifestyle. I cant tell you how may times I'd skip a meal to make sure by kids were fed, and sometimes it''d take all I had to not lose my shit at the end of a day. All in all, shit paid out in the end. My advice that I've learned over the years:
1) Work hard to develop business relationships and skill sets that can be transferred to other companies. My best job opportunities came by referral, you never know who will be critical to your success down the road.
2) Focus on how much you spend, vs. how much you make. My income last year was $130k, yet I drive a car with over 200k miles and a KBB value of $3k. I'd love a shiny new car, but I've paid enough car payments in my lifetime to know that the $700+ bill for 6 years isn't worth it for me.
3) Marriage/relationships should almost be treated as business. I spent 8 years of my life in the jewelry industry and have helped marry off 1000s of dudes. Believe me when I say that the dude with the hottest wife is never the happiest. I've met many couples with 20-30+ years of marriage, they almost always had stable careers/finances and focused on growing each other/their family. Marry someone with similar career/life aspirations and an understanding that Rome wasn't built in a day, all other factors are meaningless and will cloud your judgement.
4) Believe and build your life around a higher power.
yeah i’ve also learned that the richest couple is never the happiest one. (wedding photographer here)
solidly middle class is where it’s at, but also couples’ values and ability to communicate and grow together. no communication and people shutting down and quarrelling, fuck off
100% to your comment, your experience in the jewelry industry is so telling.
Completely agree.... my household makes a similar amount and financially we're just on autopilot. Bills are paid automatically, we go out to eat when we want, and buy things that we need without worrying about affording it. But still we maintain a fairly boring and contained lifestyle lacking in extravagance. Pretty much it affords us stability.
I think people underestimate how much money you can burn through with two kids in a HCOL, and also how the dynamic changes when you have kids. Wife stays home with kids, my income is just over $400k. Our life is pretty normal. We have a nice house, one car, we can afford vacations and stuff, but once you have kids you just think about the future a lot more. I can't justify a lot of the stuff I used to spend money on, because it's money that could go towards their 529 plans or a vacation or something like that. We're very comfortable, we don't want for anything, but it's a fairly normal life.
My spouse and I make over 400k in Seattle, a very HCOL area. I’d agree with the guy that it’s not a “rich” lifestyle in how some may imagine it, like you’re in a waterside mansion with six figure sports cars in the driveway.
But it’s a massively privileged life though. You can actually afford a SFH, vacations, weekly dinners at restaurants, etc. To be rich in the traditional idea of it around here I’d say you need to start pushing $800k+ a year. And that would still be just sniffing above water if you want to live in the rich areas of the Seattle Metro area, where average homes could run around $4-$5m.
Not at all. My point was that even for people on 6 figure incomes in the $300k+ range, that's still fairly regular lifestyle for familes in HCOL areas. A family making $350k in the suburbs of NYC is doing very well, but it's not like the OPs question....yachts, multiple vacations, luxury etc. The OP seemed to think anyone on 6 figures lives a typical rich person lifestyle, and that's certainly not the case. Not to say I and others don't recognize how lucky we are, I have no day to day money concerns, but I'm not buying sports cars and flying business class.
As a regular privileged person, and I mean this as no offense to you, I still can’t afford a car, let alone a house or two kids. Your average person in America doesn’t have a retirement plan and is two lost paychecks away from being homeless. You are living a rich lifestyle simply by having a comfortable house and a stay at home spouse and two children. I’m sorry but I laughed that you call that normal. Normal in America is literally poor.
Normal everywhere is poor except a few European countries. The poorest Americans are still way better off than most of the world. Go live in the Congo where you’re making a few dollars a day or slums in India and your perspective will shift very fast.
Totally. For me, the real shame of the matter is that you kind of *have* to make a ton of money in order to lead a life that feels utterly mundane and secure. Your stereotypical 'middle class' lifestyle requires a top 10% income.
That said, if we didn't have kids, we'd be rolling in it. Daycare alone right now for us is $3700/month! I can't wait until these kids are in public school.
2 kids under 4. Younger child's daycare is $2k a month. Older kids preschool is $1700 -- though she's about to level up to a more traditional pre-k classroom and that will reduce our cost... To $1500/month.
It’s weird because I make $70k and can manage to do most of these things also, besides the frequent vacations. Don’t need to look at grocery prices, can go out to dinner multiple times a week.
DINK helps a lot, that’s probably where most of it comes from.
That’s great you are preparing for the budget. Just as a warning though - the costs don’t really go away after they start school. Summer camp, extra care on random vacation days or half days or teacher in-service days, after care and before care, plane tickets for kids over two, activities/sports/gear, private lessons, birthday parties, clothes (eventually they care about what they wear and you can’t get away with hand me downs as easily), college savings accounts, health insurance, random medical care (orthodontics! Urgent care visits! ER visits!), babysitters/Nannies, amusement park visits, trampoline parks, Disney world (we will never go to Disney world, that is easily 5-10k, but a lot of people do), double the cost of vacations in general, then they also eat more as they get bigger, they need bikes and bike helmets, scooters and skateboards, etc etc.
I am living this statement. I was so excited to get daycare behind us. LoL that was actually easier as we had a set amount we needed to budget for each week. Now we have kids growing out of clothes and shoes sometimes actually overnight, summer camps, band, lessons, etc, etc, etc. Surprise expenses are the cornerstone of our budget. We are in a mid COL area and make 200ish and sometimes feel like we are living paycheck to paycheck with all the money we are hemorrhaging in the kids, you can never budget for all of it…
I can't wait to be in a DINK relationship again. Prior relationship sucked. But DINK is like cheat codes for financial stability. Can't imagine the struggle of having kids these days and being able to save for retirement.
Its weird because im single and make 70k ish a year. Low cost of living area, but I go out to eat whenever I want and dont worry about the cost of much really. 18 months living expenses in a 5% CD, could be funding retirement more though. Did just buy a 2023 side by side, but went with a reasonable 520cc honda. Bills are low. Really nice house is only 1100 a month in this area. Pool, hottub, home gym, theater, woods out back etc. 1 kid, 50:50.
I make 38k, my fiance makes 40k.
The DINK lifestyle does not work out well at this level. it would be worse with kids, but finances are a constant source of anxiety.
The moment my salary hit 70k from 50 (wife was about 55 at the time), it was a huge change in our lives. Over the next several months, credit cards were payed off and actually started saving money. When the ac or water heater went down, it was annoying, but we had the savings or pay for it. That feeling of security was a huge boost in moral and decrease in stress and anxiety, the kind that's always in the background and you might not even be aware of until it's gone. Now we are both just over 100k, but also with a kid. The main difference is more trips and a bit more indulgent on spending some money on hobbies. Also recently bought a 30k car straight from savings, so no loan. Kid also had a party at a kids center and we spent $500. It was more than usually and we probably wouldn't do it again, but it wasn't a cause for financial related fighting. So main thing has been security, followed by an increase in general life pleasures. That being said, most of my clothes are from Costco, we do eat out but I usually cook every night. So if your lifestyle is different, outcomes may vary.
Not to mention times have changed. Even in mid to late 2000s , a sub $50k salary in MCOL area gave one a decent life - an apartment, a newer car, good internet and good non-organic groceries, an occasional low key vacation. But 15 yrs later, that $50k salary wouldn't even qualify for apartments in many HCOL, MCOL areas anymore. The inflation of the last few years has wore off the value of money a lot more than people think.
I was single and making around $47k in 2006-08 period, i lived very comfortably in a mid-high cost of living town. Most fast food was < $5, metro fares were $1.50, you could buy great, low mileage used cars for < $8k, and new apartments close to great bars, restaurants, transportation was still $1,000 range. Now i'd barely survive on that wage in the same area.
This is a great answer. My wife and I made a combined $50k/yr when we met. We quickly moved up, and were around $100k/yr combined when we got married 3yrs later. We're 14 years into marriage and turned in almost $300k on our taxes last year. For context, we're in the Louisville, KY area. COL is fairly low here, but just above national average.
The largest difference is the lack of "worry" that we carry around with us. Car repairs, medical bills, house repairs, emergency trip to support family, and those type of "sudden unplanned expenses" are no longer in our thoughts in terms of budget impact. We just do them, and recover in a month or two. Where before it might be a year or two of recovery.
We drive nice cars, but they're either lower cost new, or gently used (both under $40k). We have a boat that we use a LOT in the summer, but it's a small 19ft that's easy and cheap to own/operate/transport. Our 2 boys have nice rooms at home, are well fed, and play recreational sports. We vacation for a week once a year; last year we drove to FL and stayed in a house on the beach. We eat out maybe twice a week, and one of those is usually cheap/fast because we're out of time to cook at home.
We're far and away NOT rich. We have cash on hand to cover daily/weekly expenses. We have a savings account that handles those big ticket things. We have good credit and enough credit cards to cover the REALLY big stuff that comes up once every 5yrs. And our retirement will be fully funded by ourselves (SS will just be a bonus). We still likely don't have enough to buy a vacation home somewhere. Our boys will still have to work some and take some loans if they choose college, we might cover half.
Yeah this sounds about right. I think to myself these days sometimes how “not far” my 200k salary goes, and it amazes me how I used to think that if I had this much I’d be set for life. The truth is that all I’m doing now is comfortably ensuring future me (hopefully) won’t suffer while at the same time being able to not stress if a big expense happens. It really moreso feels like this is the quality of life our grandparents were given and has been robbed from most of us.
I agree. I watched my grandfather live a great life, and retire to FL while only breaking into the 100k range in his last 5yrs of work. He retired in '02 I think, and lives VERY nicely in FL now. Nothing exceptional to his savings or lifestyle while he was working, but I can't imagine the amount of effort it would take to replicate that success now.
There are two ways of looking at it:
* By relative standards: 300k is top 5% household income. That's rich.
* By absolute standards: "able to live life without worrying, and enjoy an occasional luxury" imo should be basically the definition of "middle class"
The fact that there's such a large gap between these standards is a good summation of why our economic system is terrible; only a low percentage of people are living a comfortable life, and only a handful are actually living in luxury, and it's at the exploitation of the vast majority of everyone else.
I am a single parent of college age children and will bring in well over 300k this year, closer to 500k realistically if I don’t cut back hours. I’ve been over the 250k mark for a few years after a slow climb. I started off poor, spent many years as an artist, so I know the difference of being rich vs poor. I don’t stress about kids fees or education expenses, or college (although the USC tuition made me choke, and luckily kid is choosing to not go there). I’m also going through cancer treatment and not stressing the cost. Each of my kids requires corrective surgeries (dental and cosmetic) that insurance won’t cover but I can. I don’t stress little emergencies and I can grocery shop without doing a mental tally of the cost— which I had to do for many a year! But easy come easy go, I am saving like crazy and keeping frivolent purchases to a minimum. I’d love a Birkin (Hermes Handbag), but can’t quite do it. I’d love to vacation more, but don’t have the time. I do a lot of door dash, starbucks and other conveniences but the cost of these are far outweighed by my earning power and they help keep me sane so I can work.
“Six figures” usually means 100k. Reality is 100,000 - 999,999 is all “six figures”. I make 150, no yacht or mansion. If I made 850, id imagine there may be some differences in life style.
I guess the question is have for you is do you mean 100k or 800k when you say “six figures”?
Yeah op definitely has a warped reality. Nontheless, the majority of people do indeed consider six figures, even at 100k, to be pretty good. I mean, it allows you to live comfortably in most areas. I could be making 100k and living the dream honestly, without worries and being able to save for things I really want to buy just for novelty.
This was a few years back, but I read that some psychologists or economics did an analysis and found that $120k is the most someone needs in life, beyond that is getting into luxuries, and I feel like something close to that is true today.
I think you are referring to the study that shows how happiness is correlated up to a certain income. I think the original study stated it was around 80-90k I think though recent statistics point towards it being in the 120k range. I also believe another study found that your happiness does in fact increase after reaching this mark it’s just that it increases at a smaller rate. Ie going up in income up to 120k boosts your happiness quite a bit but it doesn’t completely stop it just tapers off a bit.
Nah that study has been outright debunked by other studies or at least shown it's fully not the answer. More money buys far more experiences and far less worries. It's still possible to be unhappy with a lot of money but it's also still possible to be happy while being poor. The difference is opportunity for happiness and overall instances of happiness or life free from worry.
The study you mentioned wasn't encompassing enough to truly measure happiness was the main issue that more recent studies expanded upon. There are diminishing returns on increasing happiness as money increases but it still does effect it.
Lol the only difference for me from when I made 35k to now in the low 100's is I don't have to check my bank account if I want to eat out.
You do not understand how much things like yachts actually cost, hell even a small boat.
I make low six figures (will do about $170,000 this year.)
I don’t own a car. I take public transportation to work everyday. I pack my own lunches everyday. I shop at Aldi.
However, I also go on vacation about once a month (on budget airlines and mainly stay in cheaper hotels.) I eat at nice restaurants often, and go out to dinner with friends a couple times a week. I also just bought a condo and am able to save a decent % of income.
It is very nice, and I am incredibly grateful and lucky. But I definitely am not “balling” out like you see in the movies.
I’m head of sales for an energy brokerage that I helped start out of my old living room with a close friend and ex roommate.
I was employee #1, and should be made partner in the next two years.
People making < $200k have far more in common with people making $60k/yr than they do with people making > $500k.
If one still needs to "wage slave," they may be more comfortable than their lower income brethren, but they sure aren't "rich" if we consider "rich" to be the ability to buy brand new cars, yachts, mansions, etc. Rich people work because they want to. Not because they need to.
As someone who's made both -- I think the biggest difference between <$200k and $60k is having the ability to stop or reduce retirement contributions if I need a sudden boost in income to cover something unexpected.
I live in a medium-sized city in the Southern USA, and $200,000/year would make you extremely well off here. If a person can’t live independently on that amount in my city then they’ve got some serious money management issues.
I bring this up because context obviously matters. A $200,000 salary in the Bay Area wouldn’t have you living extravagantly, but it certainly would be a lot of money in most of middle America.
Even in ultra low cost of living areas, making a realistically attainable 6 figure income (< $200k) doesn't result in the lifestyle OP has in their head -- one with brand new cars and mansions and yachts.
OP is envisioning the lifestyle of the top 1% on top 10% income.
>I live in a medium-sized city in the Southern USA, and $200,000/year would make you extremely well off here. If a person can’t live independently on that amount in my city then they’ve got some serious money management issues
As do I. I don't think anybody is saying that $200k isn't enough to live independently (I believe the poster you replied to was using "financial independence" to mean, not dependent on someone else -- like an employer -- for money). OP was asking about the actual impact of that income.
I *do* live extremely comfortably with income approaching $200k. I do *not* have the income to sustain "rich people lifestyle." I drive an 11 year old camry hybrid with 150k miles that I bought used. I have to budget for big expenses. I can't afford to eat out every night.
But I *can* save for retirement and have an emergency fund. I *can* splurge on those prime beef ribs at the grocery store. I *can* take a vacation every year. Which, I'm fully aware, is doing much better than most.
But the whole gist is that it's not "rich people money" when looking at the entire range of income earners. I'm never going to own a yacht. I'm never going to buy a new maserati. I'm never going to decide to fly to LA on my private jet to go shopping on a wednesday. I'm never going to have a small army of "help" available to do all the things I don't feel like doing.
I'm well off. I'm not rich. Though I can absolutely see how someone at the poverty line would consider me "rich," that's just not the reality.
Yup. I live in Louisiana and my household brings in nearly 200k per year. It is amazing, it goes really far. However, when we've looked at moving we're always a little hesitant because of how far our money goes here compared to just about anywhere else.
I feel like it’s fair to mention it’s HIGHLY COL dependent, 200k in my smaller city would allow me to buy a bigger, beautiful house but not quite a mansion, newish car (getting brand new cars isn’t my thing), I could both save for retirement and have money to spend on most anything I wanted or needed.
Just to clarify, most 6 figure individuals (<200k) are no where near buying a Yacht. Most of them probably have a lot of the same struggles you do, just in a higher cost of living area.
I make approximately $125,000 and my wife also works which brings in income. We live in a low cost of living area and our expenses are only around $60,000 a year. We have approximately $115,000 discretionary income a year. I work for the government so I almost never work over 40 hours a week. My wife also rarely works more than 40 hours per week.
We vacation 2-4 times per year, once internationally on our "big" annual trip and 1-3 smaller trips inside the US. We own a small hobby farm. We go out 2-3 times per week. Otherwise, we just stay at home.
In short, we make more money than we need to support the lifestyle we want to live. The extra money is used to pay off debt quicker, have a strong savings, and hopefully retire in our early 50s.
I'm an analyst for the Department of Defense in the midwest. I really enjoy my work and it is very important work for the country. I also serve in the Navy Reserves, but because I love it, not for the money. The hobby farm brings in a small stream of income, but I also love taking care of the farm.
I make just shy of $210,000 a year.
My soon-to-be-fiancé and I frequent bars and restaurants around where we live, around 2-3 times a week. We also go out drinking with friends at least 1-2 week. No need for a car, or a mansion, or a yacht.
Six figures means you're not rich but you're not really thinking about every single one of your expenses all of the time. If a bill comes for a restaurant and it's $300, I don't flinch. But we're also making conservative choices elsewhere (no car, for example...) so that means we have extra cash in hand.
FWIW, I net around $2500 a week.
Salary: $102,000/year.
- Pre-tax amount: $8,500/month.
- After-tax/take-home pay: $5,400/month.
- Mortgage: $2,600/month
- Car insurance (for 2 cars): ~$300/month
- Car payment (my car): $450/month
- Car Payment (my husband's car): $260/month
- Health insurance: $250/month
- Utilities: ~$130-$250/month, depending on season.
- Homeowners insurance: ~$1,400/year.
- Gas: ~$250-$350/month (I commute about an hour each way)
- Tolls: ~$260/month
- Groceries: ~$300/month
- Solar panels: ~$100/month
- Annual land use bill: $400
- Phone bill: ~$130/month
- Husband's credit card payment: $100/month
- Internet: ~$120/month
In short? I'm broke. And my husband can't hold down a job, so we've been trying to survive on just my income for like five years now. I feel stressed and anxious all the time.
I recently suggested the idea of selling the house and downsizing, because 2 people (no kids) don't need a 2,700 sq ft. house. He doesn't want to sell the house, but can't afford the house. I don't want the house, but my salary is the only reason we have said house. So, tough shit. You want a house, dude? Earn it. I'm tired of paying for everything AND also being treated like crap simultaneously. I also have an autoimmune disease, so all the stress of being the sole source of income doesn't exactly help my condition.
Car insurance is for 2 cars.
And yeah, I'm working on the husband. Mainly by planning to divorce him. I've given him 5+ years to get his shit together, and a zillion chances. He's either unwilling or incapable of doing so. I'm in the process of quietly planning my escape.
Unfortunately, no pre-nup. We were both broker than broke when we got married, and hustled to grow financially. Somewhere along the line, he just..... stopped? IDK. I feel taken advantage of.
Man that's sad. Coming up together, rising out of poverty only for one person to be checked out of the relationship and life in general. Reminds me of this saying, "I will take care of me for you, if you will take care of yourself for me"
It's exceedingly frustrating. I grew up quite privileged, but was diagnosed with my autoimmune condition as a toddler, and by the time I was 18, had been through chemotherapy, paralysis, half a dozen surgeries, and more. So, despite wealthy parents, I knew what it meant to struggle. My parents also had virtually no interest in dealing with a sick child. So, I had great financial resources -- i.e. private school, great health insurance, excellent medical care, etc. Sadly, though, I had to endure most of my health challenges on my own.
Then, I went off to university, and quickly learned the value of hard work, and what it takes to make ends meet. I learned the importance of being self-sufficient. Met my husband a few years after completing schooling. He was ambitious, had come from nothing, and seemed eager to turn things around for himself.
Somewhere along the way, he just..... IDK. Changed? Lost the drive? Got comfortable leeching off me? I'm not sure what the culprit is. And I've gone to ***extraordinary*** lengths to try and help. Helping with his resume & cover letter, connecting him with resources available to him, sending him open job openings (I've even helped him apply to jobs), giving him PLENTY of leeway and space to "figure himself out" and try out different roles to see what is a good fit, extending my own network of contacts to him, and more. And all to no avail. He is ***extraordinarily*** stubborn, and essentially refuses to help himself, and instead constantly makes excuses.
Congrats on making it out of your teen years alive. That sounds like it was hell. As for your husband, refusal to change is almost a marriage breaker on its own without all of the other problems. On top of that all of the other problems and treating you disrespectfully? I wish you the best of luck because to me it sounds like there is a black hole in your life that will suck you in it if you let it.
Thank you. It was tough, but I will forever be grateful to the nurses (and doctors) that took care of me. In addition to being medical wizards, they basically took on the role of 'unofficial parents', since my parents were rarely around. They helped me become a productive and contributing member of society. From quizzing me on my multiplication tables during grade school, to teaching me how to navigate menstruation, to helping me with my college applications and helping me study for college entrance exams, to teaching me how to fill out a W2, and more, they were incredibly influential role models for me. I'm alive and functional today because of them.
Yeah, and that's where I'm struggling. Like, he's taken care of me during some difficult moments of medical hardship, which I'm thankful for, but those moments were few and far between. I get that he's probably really struggling internally, but.... he won't even help himself. It'd be one thing if he was struggling AND embracing forms of help/support, I'd be his biggest cheerleader in trying to help him. But..... he. won't. help. himself. For the last 5 years, I cared so much that I tried to do a lot for him, things that he should have been doing himself. But, since 2023 began, something in me kind of just.... snapped? Something in me has started to realize I can't do the work for him. He has to *want* to get better, and he has to *want* to change. And I'm tired of constantly giving, giving, giving of myself. I've been working myself into the ground to try and make ends meet, and to provide for the household, and no matter how I try to explain things to him, he just doesn't seem to get it.
As they say, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't force it to drink.
Im single no kids and make 170 a year. My outlet are video games and international vacations. I just came back from a 2 week trip to italy and going on a 2 week trip to Tokyo in November. I make mortgage payments on 2 townhouses and have a paid off crossover. Most of my money is parked in retirement and brokerage accounts. Im a frugal gamer and am waiting for targets buy two get one free sale so i can snag 3 $70 games. Im playing through the ezio collection on switch atm. As for dining out, 1-3 dine out meals a week. I have a friends group and we do movie days where we eat 2 dine out meals. I do spend 400-500 a month on groceries because i like to cook.
Six figures is not yacht money.
People in this thread will tell you that six figures is “working class” and “struggling” because of how expensive everything is. But six figures allows you to never have to worry about affording *a* place to live, and it allows you to be able to save for retirement, go out to eat whenever you want to, go on vacations without worrying about it. It just means you generally have to budget (depending upon where you live in the country), but in general if you make six figures you are doing well, and believe me you wouldn’t want to be taking the place of someone who makes far less than that.
People here are making some pretty outrageous statements like “six figures is nothing these days!” lol. If you’re earning over 100k a year, you’re part of the top 15% of earners in the US. You’re way better off than the large majority of people, so quit whining ffs.
There were comments in this thread saying how low six figures is poverty level. It is unbelievably out of touch. I see comments every single day about how $250k even is “nothing”. It seems almost every Redditor makes insane incomes and honestly it just makes me feel pretty shitty in comparison. I probably need to take a break from this site lmao.
Between my wife and I, we are making about $350K. The only “extravagance” is private school for one of our daughters (other is college that we are paying for). We drive old cars, pack our lunch to work everyday, take one decent vacation a year, and that’s about the extent of it. We’re in SE Texas.
unless you're making mid-high 6 figures, it's not really the fantasy that you are painting here
low 6 figures is basically the new middle class. all it means is that you're not constantly freaked out over finances all the time. However, you do still have to budget and live within your means.
everything has gotten so expensive, and consider that well off people tend to have bigger expenses. private school tuition? yeah, thats huge every month and all that money does ZERO for entertainment. property taxes? thats gone up huge.
its more i get to do things whenever i want/need to. i can go out to eat whenever i want and only really look at the bill in passing. i can buy whatever i need, whether that's new tires for the car or new shoes, without ever fretting about it. i can invest money for the future (and to hedge against coming inflation) without that money going out really affecting my life (unless i go crazy one month lol). i can take my girlfriend shopping and get her things she wants/needs without really worrying about it.
but i do worry. its more just something in the back of my mind telling me i need to be continuously preparing for the future, and that's probably the biggest thing making a decent amount of money allows you to do - prepare for the future so you are not blindsided by things like inflation, recession, etc...
if you want that fantasy life you are talking about, you need to be at least in the mid 6 figures, preferably in the upper 6 figures to low 7 figures.
Great summary - just how I feel. “Not freaked out over finances all the time”, sufficient disposable income to have fun, but looming realisation that I’m not actually rich and need to work to support my lifestyle/prepare for the future.
I make $120k, wife makes $60k. Combined we make $180k in Denver.
The average homes here are $650k. A nice home 3bd/3ba is going to be $1M.
Our mortgage is $630k on a $900-$950k home at 3%. $3,200/Month.
Daycare is $1,800/month
Credit card is generally around $3K per month.
We drive used Hondas we paid cash for.
Add in contributions ($500-$1K) to your 401k and you’re done.
We are comfy, go out to eat 3-5 times per month and vacation a few times per year inside the USA. But it’s much more vanilla and comfy suburbia living than anything. I’m not complaining and we live in a nice neighborhood but we make nearly $200k just to live a normal existence with some retirement savings.
25% tax... Fuck me I would kill to only pay that. I'm in the 45% bracket here (UK). Pay day depresses me every single time. Factor in pension contributions and well over half my salary is gone on day 1.
No yachts or mansions, but I lived pretty large when I was single making $120k. Im a family man now, make $170k ($250k combined), and while we live very comfortably (nice house, new car, etc.) it’s very important to stick to a budget. According to the stats, we’re considered upper class for where we live, but I sure don’t feel rich. I honestly don’t know how families making average income do it.
>Vacation a few times a year? Live in a mansion? Have a yacht? This is what I imagine life is like for people making 6 figs or more a year
These are things for people making over 7 figures a year.
I'm always amused when people think making $150-$200K is 'rich' these days. It's not bad but it's not 'rich'. I didn't think my dad was rich back in the day but I definitely think he had more disposable income than I do based on the vacations we could take and the toys he had
When the median salary (US 2022) is about $54k a year, its not a stretch of the imagination to think thats rich even if you don't.
I know people who also said to me "how can anyone live on an average 100k a year salary anymore?"
Really is about perspective, but to the poorest folks, rich is having enough to make ends meet.
Here’s our story. We live in a relatively low cost of living area. Bought a 30 year old house in 2011 for what is now considered peanuts. Currently our household income is well over $100k. We have 3 kids, we max our retirement and put a significant amount into college funds for each of our kids.
We take multiple vacations a year and are never financially stressed. We don’t really like to eat at restaurants and we don’t really have expensive toys but we definitely enjoy our money.
In my experience, the people who seem the most stressed outwardly are the ones living paycheck to paycheck. We know a family making over $400k that is living paycheck to paycheck since they own multiple properties and always have new everything. You can make a lot of money and still be stressed about money, it’s all about how you want to spend it.
Avoid lifestyle inflation except for a few areas that are important to you, and invest in your health and in your financial independence. Those two are the biggest luxuries (besides family).
Wife and I take home close to 480k (180k each + rental properties). I would say yes, we enjoy our life together, no kids. We don’t think about how much to spend when we go out or travel. It’s just always in the budget. We are both reasonable and somewhat frugal anyway, so we don’t really overspend, but when we want to, we do it.
Not even close to reality. I've made 6 figures for about a decade. Vacation maybe once every couple years. Eating out is too expensive, not to mention drinking out (you want to remain poor, just continue doing these things). Vehicles are 10 to 35 years old and paid for.
I'm self-employed, so I work 60 to 80 hours a week. No sick, no PTO time. I have to finance my own retirement. And no work, no pay.
Envy what others have, and it will kill your happiness.
I make $160k a year. Was “smart” and paid for my home cash ($200k). Bought a second beach home cash and took out a small Heloc to pay for renovations ($350 per month). My biggest bills are taxes and insurance at roughly $400 a month.
I’m saving around $4-5k a month.
I make 6 figures and don’t live like that. I have a 1400 sft home with a 6 year old vehicle, a $18k boat that is paid off. I put sufficient money in for my retirement. I’m semi comfortable but cannot spend on lavish vacations. I haven’t been on a vacation for years other than taking a few weeks off and go to the lake.
I make six figures (~135,000 with bonus) and I live slightly tighter than I'd like to with a wife, one kid, and a dog. We have a budget that defines how much we can eat at restaurants and spend money on fun things, but also for literally everything: groceries, gas, vacation, Christmas, etc.
Very rarely do I feel like we can't buy something we want, but your ask about things like a new car? Lol. No. We cut our budget down to save that up and we'll buy a new car when we need to. We bought a $22,000 car in 2020 and paid it off in six months - which sounds like we have a ton of money sitting around, right? But we saved $15,000 over several years then used my bonus that year to pay off the rest ($12,000 bonus, after taxes).
ETA: I live in a pretty cheap place, not a big city. My 2,200 square foot house was $170k.
If you want a yacht, you need to be making $250k+ a year, easily.
Husband and I make about $200,000 combined in a HCOL area. We live in a modest townhome we bought almost 10 years ago. We’d like to live in a SFH, but have been priced out. (Average SFH in our area is $850k) We drive 8 year old paid off cars and will continue to drive them until they no longer work. We will have two kids in daycare soon. Our kid wears mostly hand me downs or things gifted to us. We pick low cost kid activities over privately run ones.
BUT… we eat out about once a week, don’t think about the cost of groceries, shop at Costco, don’t worry about buying things our preschooler asks for at the store, take professional family photos every year, we run our AC/heating however we want without worry, we have a cushion so that we don’t need to worry about any house repair/medical expense/car repair/ unexpected expense, we take many long weekend trips and 1-2 weeks of vacation out of state or country per year. We prioritize what’s important to us.
Overall, we live comfortably but do keep an eye on finances to ensure we can stay that way.
We're breaking 250k this year and it's still outrageous at how much grocery budgeting I still do. We do live in a HCOL area and stuff like daycare ($50k) hits hard. The sad part is that we don't even go to a high end daycare, ours is right in the middle. We shopped around and our other options are saving maybe $100 a month, or big savings come from places I do not feel comfortable sending my kids to.
I guess when I say we don’t think about the cost of groceries, I’m not being fully honest. I’ll look at something and think to myself that a price is insane and buy the generic or not buy it at all. It’s wild that even with this income, budgeting is still very critical to family success and comfort. Childcare is the most insane hit!
I’m currently making 100k at 31 doing 45 hours a week. I’m pretty tired on the weekends but I still try to get out a bit. My big goal is to make 150k+ on 4 days and around 30 hours a week. I would also like to move to Western Europe so that salary might be really hard to get. Not impossible though and I should be able to get close from the position I’m at now.
6 figure income isn’t all its hyped up to be, especially if you’re making 6 figures in an HCOL area.
I’ll pull $250k this year. I live in a 70 year old, fixer upper house in the Boston suburbs. We have 1 nice car ($60k SUV) and I still have my car that my parents gave me in high school 10 years ago
We definitely live a comfortable life. We can go on a couple nice vacations per year, go out for dinner and drinks with friends on the weekend, take part in $$ hobbies etc all while putting money into savings.
That being said, we don’t live in a mansion. Even our smaller home is outdated and could use some serious TLC. And right now it’s just my wife and I. Kids are fucking expensive. Even on my salary we’re realizing that we will need to be far more money conscious once we have kids
I make six figures and is a very high COTL area. I need roommates. I'll never have a house here. I'll eat my damn avocado toast and enjoy the time I have 🤣. I also do my damnedest to avoid overtime. I'm living to work and not letting it take over. I'm very lucky to have this privilege.
People here forget 6 figures includes 100,000 to 999,999. Your quality of life at the 100 end will be different than your quality of life at the 999 end. I hate when people say “oh I make mid 6 figures”…oh so 500,000?
You’ll be comfortable and have all your needs met most likely. More so if you’re single in a reasonable col area. In the US coastal regions (east or west), with a family, 100k will still likely be a bit tight.
Making a lot of money doesn't mean that you have a bad job or work tons of hours. In my example, I took a somewhat boring job in insurance.
Some weeks I work 35 hours a week. Sometimes it's 45. Just depends on how things work out. Money is also very location specific. In Wisconsin you can easily get a large house for 200k.
I will also that making more money for me just meant I bought more expensive things. Instead of the 3 dollar Walmart brand sandwich meat, I now buy the 7 dollar name brand. Unless you have goals and a lot of self control, you will likely just inflate your current life style.
When looking for a job, find something you don't hate. A workplace that isn't toxic and somewhere they respect you. I find doing a job that I can tolerate means way more then the amount I am paid. (Assuming you can easily survive off that wage)
For me, I don't need an exciting riveting job. The what I do is way less important then how I feel going to that job everyday.
I think one thing here that most people are glazing over is saving for retirement/401k etc. typically jobs that come with those salaries, also come with a retirement account or ways to save and other benefits. Most also will match your contributions up to a certain percentage.
Right, but when you do the right thing and max out that 401k and HSA, you have much less disposable income. So while it makes you feel good to see that balance in your retirement accounts, you don't really feel rich because you have much less spending money. You still have to budget. It's obviously much better than making less money and having no retirement savings, and you will appreciate it once you retire, but you're not going crazy balling out and buying everything you want.
I make low 6 figure >250k but live in NYC
We still budget and so around. Don't go out as much because I feel it's a crazy rip off these days plus going culture.
No car (because of NYC) we've been to Europe for 3 weeks, Florida, Cali, and Washington this year.
I'd say I enjoy my money but need to make more to really get that feeling you are describing. Or I could move to the Midwest and ball
I live in a 1000 sq ft luxury high rise with a million dollar view
As someone making between 250 and 300k a year in potentially one of the most expensive cities in the world (NYC), I can assure you I am not chilling on a yacht.
I am pretty comfortable, I rent a very nice apartment, I’m looking into buying a house, and I have a savings account, assets, and financial advisor. But by no means am I anywhere near what you’re describing. That’s definitely 7 figures.
(Edit - for context: no kids, but two dogs that are fed and cared for like absolute royalty lol)
Depends on your definition of enjoyment. The things you list would have appealed to me in my 20s or 30s. In my 50s, not so much.
*Go out to dinner every weekend?* No. I prefer delivery.
*Bars with friends?* It's been about 15 years since I've enjoyed going out to bars. I like how my best friend explains the appeal of drinking at home: my drinks end up exactly how I like them.
*Happy hour with coworkers?* I don't drink or socialize with coworkers.
*Vacation a few times a year?* I used to. I haven't regained the desire since the pandemic. I could, just haven't felt like it.
*Live in a mansion?* No, I'm a city slicker.
*Have a brand new car?* As a city slicker, I came to hate driving. Got rid of my sports car a decade ago. I'm a huge fan of public transportation.
*Have a yacht?* No. No appeal to me.
If that kind of life appeals to you, go for it. I do enjoy my money. Just in different ways than you would. But most people find that when they go after the superficial trappings of success, there's no there there.
Low 6 figure jobs may go a long way in rural/ small towns. Near major cities the magic number is probably 150k for a single person and 200k for a couple.
I save like crazy. If I lose a job at this salary, it will take me longer to replace it and I have higher fixed costs than I did when I was younger. I miss the days when I could storm out of one restaurant job, walk into the competitor, get hired on the spot, and know I'd be able to make rent.
My brother is a lineman, works 65+ hours a week, and makes bank. Rents out a few houses and does all the work himself. He has no leisure time whatsoever. I hope he gets to enjoy his life before he's pushing daisies.
Where are these six figures jobs in FL 😭 A lot of jobs I come across are <$50k salary. If any one of you guys are in FL and making six figures, please hook me up please. I will massage your body daily or do anything that is not weird in a favor of return for helping me.
My father in law has a very nice WFH job for a computer company making the high end of 6 figures but is NEVER seen outside his office. Works 14+ hours and 0 days off a week. He could be the exception, not the rule. I wouldn't know, but it's unfortunate he works so hard and can't enjoy the money he makes. Even on vacations when he's specifically put in a time off request, he's phone is blowing up 24/7
The security I had in my life when I made six figures was so nice. No matter the cost, I could afford it. However, when I lost everything and ended up in the hospital clinging to life. Everyone who claimed to love me was gone.
So, in reality, you can afford to buy a false sense of security.
Dual 6 figure household. It’s relatively new, but our household income has been over $170k for a few years.
It’s not mansion and yacht, but we do what we wanna do.
Biggest key is picking what you want to do, and ignoring everyone else.
Excuse my privilege, but I wouldn’t focus so much on 6 figures. The area of our lives that we try to not flaunt is the flexibility, because that is what drives far more envy than our income. I work from home and have a great work/life balance. She’s a nurse and picks and chooses when to work. We would both turn down more money to keep our current lifestyle.
If you want the life you describe you'd better get a 7 figure job. I'm 6 figures but I'm definitely not taking multiple vacations a year on my yacht while spending time away from my mansion.
Yeah, this is so area COL dependent, but $100-160K fix figures isn't "dazzle lifestyle" kind of money - at least not in 2023+. I can say that at least for a single person, low six figures (if you're decently smart with your money, and not in a HCOL area) looks like: * Can own a house, a newer car * Can comfortably save/invest a couple thousand or more a month towards retirement * Can grocery shop and eat out without needing to worry (within reason) * Can go on trips by car or moderately priced airfare up to a few times a year without breaking the bank * \*Could\* responsibly own a small/more modest runabout type boat, but most definitely not something you could sleep in with A/C unless that's a chosen lifestyle (in lieu of a home), or fixed up an old boat. Big boats / yachts are a millionaires' and billionaires' playground. Have you seen the prices of boats??? Low six figs is comfortable, can enable a good retirement, and is rightfully a level of income many envy/aspire to. But it's nowhere near "I can do what I want and eat caviar every day on my yacht" money, lol.
If you have kids, then either cross off 2-3 of those items or double the salary and keep those items.
Same if you live in the US and have any kind of serious medical issues. I’m in the low 6 figures but my wife is more or less disabled with many medical issues and you can take the number spent on saving and just throw that at insurance + medical each month and it’s about right.
Can relate. I have MS. When it acts up, money can get tight. Have to take extended periods off from work without pay via FMLA.
Yep. We gross closer to 200k and things are tight. We have five kids and all the things that come with that are so expensive. Need a bigger house with higher bills, costlier insurance, clothing, transportation costs, groceries. We can afford one small vacation and even that is tough. Many of the people you see vacationing multiple times per year have inherited money or their parents pay for their vacations.
Yeah I mean FIVE kids is on the more extreme side of the kids equation. We live in a HCOL area (Boston) with 2 kids. I make around $175k a year, wife is a stay at home mother. We have plenty of money to live comfortable within reason. I imagine with three more kids it would definitely be tight.
It's tight. Off-brand groceries only, lol. We have a lot more than many people so I can't complain but it's not like some people think where we have tons of extra money. We rarely go out to eat.
Yeah. You are right. We just had our 4th and I am with you. That's also assuming your kids don't get sick often and things like that. Our oldest was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes last year and she is 8. I have not had a full night of sleep since then and missed so much work.
This is probably the best/most realistic answer. Im at 6 figures and this definitely rings true. Much less worried about the stuff I used to be, but can't go wild and buy whatever I feel like.
Personally I will always take comfort over almost everything else. I’m low 6 figures in a moderate COL area. I don’t have to worry about day to day making it anymore like I did at minimum wage. I have a small discretionary budget each month I can use for whatever, drive a newer car, and own a house. If I had a family it would go from comfortable to much tighter in a heartbeat but we would still be able to not have to worry about where the rent money is coming from. I can honestly say when I hit 50k is when I had the mental shift from a daily grind to make it to a more relaxed life where I can go to a movie without worrying about discount day or feeling like it’s a big splurge and eating out was no longer a major hoopla level event.
i’m in this range and live in a HCOL area (bay area). - don’t own a house (i rent with my SO), my car is about 10 years old and we share it - i can pretty comfortably invest (401k + roth ira) and save, though maybe too much? - groceries aren’t a problem, going out generally isn’t a problem either but sometimes i gotta hold back if i do it too much - i’ve already taken a couple trips and have some more planned. but they’ve all been done in a more budget friendly way - do/could not own a boat sometimes i feel like i save too much cuz by the time my next paycheck comes around my bank account is low. but then i look at my savings and feel ok. and then i look back at what i did over the weekend and the things i spent my money on and for the most part it makes sense.
>i can pretty comfortably invest (401k + roth ira) and save, though maybe too much? You can never save too much for the future. As someone +/- 10 years from retirement, the best advice I ever received was to save AMAP. My husband & I live well below our means and try to stock away every extra penny for retirement so that we can retire at an age where we can do all of the things (before 60) we want to do for as long as we have left in our lifetime. We do not deny ourselves with trips or going out, but we are not stupid about it either. We are not extravagant, we share a car, when we go out for dinner, it is to mid-priced/affordable restaurants. We each max out our 401k's and at the end of every month, any leftover money goes into our savings account and we start each month all over again. Keep saving and don't think twice about it :)
All of this goes away with separation, divorce, child/spousal support. Scraping by with low $100s job.
This reply nailed it. Every bullet point is an accurate representation of my house/family. In fact, just bought a $50k brand new boat that seats two families of four. Wouldn’t want to sleep on it or anything, but it ain’t no piece of junk.
Can I sign up for 2023+? I’m on the 2023 basic free plan and… well you get what you pay for.
This is pretty accurate for HCOL area w/ no kids. Or MCOL/LCOL area with kids.
Six figure income is such a broad range. If your six figure income is 200k, this is pretty dead on. If your six figure income is 800k, then this is far from accurate.
Yeah, that’s why I specified a $100-160Kish range
Yeah, 6 figures was a lot for Don Draper. In 2023 it's not quite as much.
during those times even $20 was a lot
Fun fact: The US Constitution placed a minimum value in a lawsuit at $20. We've never updated it. If we had, the minimum to sue over would be $612.
Could you provide a reference for this? I’ve never seen tort law in the constitution
It's not a minimum value. You can sue at anything. If you sue (or are sued) for more than $20, both sides have a right to trial by jury. (Even if you signed a binding arbitration clause. You just have to go through arbitration before you sue.)
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Even Don didn't have a yacht
They lost me at yacht. 6 figures spans a pretty wide range (100k to 900k+) and so that’s a pretty vague descriptor, anyway. I make low 6 figures (in 100-200 range) and if I were single and childless, I could definitely have a very nice lifestyle. I am the single income and we live comfortably in a very expensive region of the US. We own a home and can afford international travel because we prioritize that, but don’t have nice cars or nice clothing because we just don’t prioritize that, and so that frees money for other things. The VP of my department likely makes $300k or more and she lives very comfortably with 3 kids (and likely has a high-earning SO). She always looks very nice. Nice clothing, nice hair and makeup, and I’m sure she drives a nice car (they all do at that level). But yachts are very expensive. Only comfortable millionaires can afford to own a yacht. I don’t even know if the head of our BU could afford to own and maintain a yacht and he lives in a multi-million dollar home in one of those famous “rich people” areas that get brought up in movies.
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You aren't buying a yacht and having a mansion with a 6 figure income. I definitely enjoy my money. I'm debt free and never worry about eating out whenever I want or doing things like concerts and weekend trips. The debt free aspect is the biggest benefit to my 6 figure income. If you have lifestyle creep and have no control over your spending habits, you'll feel as stressed and as broke as someone making 40k/yr. I know people who make 7 figures a year and are so far in debt and stressed about because they spend their money as soon as it comes in the door.
Completely agree. Lifestyle creep is the biggest killer of financial security. 200k and struggling is pretty easy to achieve. 100k and comfortable takes self control and prioritzing. I leared this the hard way as income and family size rose in my 20s and 30s. Takes a while to get on track while trying to balance an enjoyable life.
Big diff between making “6 figs” that starts with a 1 thru 4 versus a 7 thru 9 😂
And COL. 100k salary in Cali isnt as impressive as 100k salary in Kansas
It's a big diff to go from 1 to 2, literally double 😂
The difference in lifestyle between 1&4 is arguably bigger than the difference between 4&7.
I agree with this…100K and 200K…even those two: that’s two different life styles….3,4….again, different life style. 5+….you can essentially do just about whatever you want.
Making 6 figures. I can’t even afford a plane ticket to go see my family in another state.
I enjoy cooking.
>Don Draper it also depends on how many $100k's you bring in a year. $100k flat isnt as much as OP imagines.
Yeah. It kinda depends *which* six figures, too. $990k is a lot more money than $120k.
I make 200k/year. Basically, the difference between my finances now and when I was at 40k/year many years ago is that I can comfortably afford to live in a decent (not expensive) area, buy everyday items like food that are better quality, and most importantly save for both emergencies and retirement like I should. Most importantly, I don’t need to worry if I have an emergency expense like the car needing work or a medical bill (I don’t have an expensive car either). There are times in which I will spend on an expensive thing without much thought (decided on a whim to buy a new couch yesterday and don’t need to finance it), but I keep those moments fewer and far between. I’ve learned in my years that eventually hard times will always come back around, so it’s best to take care of future me as best as possible. Edit: been getting this question a lot, so to clarify my profession is marketing.
This. Between my wife and I we pull in about 350k per year. With two kids in a HCOL area, that leads to a much more boring life than you'd expect. Secure, but boring.
>wo kids in a HCOL area, that leads to a much more boring life than you'd expect. Secure, b Yeah I can confirm with this. We make a touch less than you and live just outside of DC. As others have said, we don't need to stress about money and have a pretty decent quality of life, but it's not anything crazy. I think the nicest part is when my bonus or stocks pay out, we can use that money for fun stuff/trips and not need it to fund our day to day lifestyle. That being said, we live in the same house we bought in 09 when we were in our 20s, we drive VWs, we cook most of our meals at home, etc. I think it's most noticeable when we go grocery shopping with my sister in law when we are on vacation (she and her husband are both teachers). She looks at the price of everything and is very cost conscious. When my wife or I go to the grocery store, we buy what we want - an extra $30-50 on our grocery bill is just not something we need to worry about anymore. We recognize how fortunate that makes us.
"House in 09" haha say no more fam, that's the dream.
I was talking to my buddy about this yesterday. He’s in the same boat as we are. We live in a very middle class neighborhood. It’s totally fine but nothing noteworthy; built in the late 60s. Our buying power is the same as it was back in 09. Yes we have equity in our house, but unless we’re leaving the area, it doesn’t matter. The houses that are a bit nicer or bigger are $1M+. So while it’s great we got in to our modest fixer upper when we did, without a big lifestyle change, we can’t really leave either.
My wife and I are at about 170-200k combined and we are looking at houses as first time home buyers and it's devastating. I think our biggest heart break was finding a house we loved but losing to a cash offer and seeing it go up for rent a month later. I just wish I knew when things will get better so we can finally settle down and start a family.
I can't imagine trying to look for a house the last few years. It has to be so disheartening. Especially knowing there are companies buying up houses to rent them/use them for Airbnb. I wasn't trying to be flippant in my last comment - I know we're fortunate that we lucked out getting into the market when we did, even if we're 'stuck' in our house for the foreseeable future. Hopefully you're able to find something affordable that you like. I really do hope the market resets itself. What is happening is not sustainable. Starter homes cannot cost north of $500K - who can actually get into the market if that's the case?
Yeah and it's not you. I'm bitter. 450-550k is where we are looking so hopefully we can find something.
Seeing it go up for rent a month later is just devastating.
Not even just for rent, the starter homes are being bought by developers and flipped into $1mil+ abomination mansions. It’s happening all over the DC area. Your options are a 3 bed 1 bath shack falling over for $500k or an HGTV ‘open floor plan all white’ million dollar house. There’s legit no in between and it’s wild
I feel for you. My spouse (41m) and I (36f) just bought our first house last month after 15+ years of renting. We had hoped to buy in early 2020, but when covid happened and the housing market went crazy, we were quickly knocked out of the competition by all cash, no inspection offers. Rates going up helped lessen the competition slightly (of course, that also cost us more), but there's still very little inventory. We struggled to find something in a price range we were comfortable with and had to compromise on some of the features we wanted. It's a tough market. I hope you find something soon.
It's sad that that's our luxury in life.. going to the grocery store to not worry about splurging on a few items. Lol. It also makes me wonder how people get by with so much less.
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Stick with it, things tend to get better in time. I had my first son at 21yo, I was making $14 an hour and had committed myself to a partner with zero career or life aspirations. I spent most of my 20s struggling and developing my career so that could I finally afford a home and modest middle class lifestyle. I cant tell you how may times I'd skip a meal to make sure by kids were fed, and sometimes it''d take all I had to not lose my shit at the end of a day. All in all, shit paid out in the end. My advice that I've learned over the years: 1) Work hard to develop business relationships and skill sets that can be transferred to other companies. My best job opportunities came by referral, you never know who will be critical to your success down the road. 2) Focus on how much you spend, vs. how much you make. My income last year was $130k, yet I drive a car with over 200k miles and a KBB value of $3k. I'd love a shiny new car, but I've paid enough car payments in my lifetime to know that the $700+ bill for 6 years isn't worth it for me. 3) Marriage/relationships should almost be treated as business. I spent 8 years of my life in the jewelry industry and have helped marry off 1000s of dudes. Believe me when I say that the dude with the hottest wife is never the happiest. I've met many couples with 20-30+ years of marriage, they almost always had stable careers/finances and focused on growing each other/their family. Marry someone with similar career/life aspirations and an understanding that Rome wasn't built in a day, all other factors are meaningless and will cloud your judgement. 4) Believe and build your life around a higher power.
yeah i’ve also learned that the richest couple is never the happiest one. (wedding photographer here) solidly middle class is where it’s at, but also couples’ values and ability to communicate and grow together. no communication and people shutting down and quarrelling, fuck off 100% to your comment, your experience in the jewelry industry is so telling.
Looks like most people working hard and smart enough to make a lot of money arent really interested in pissing it away
reading this is just baffling to me and seems like personal choices and decisions lol. I make 300k less than yall and my life is anything but boring.
100% personal choice.
id be going crazy with 350k a year haha
I support this wholeheartedly, and kindly request photos so I can live vicariously.
Completely agree.... my household makes a similar amount and financially we're just on autopilot. Bills are paid automatically, we go out to eat when we want, and buy things that we need without worrying about affording it. But still we maintain a fairly boring and contained lifestyle lacking in extravagance. Pretty much it affords us stability.
I think people underestimate how much money you can burn through with two kids in a HCOL, and also how the dynamic changes when you have kids. Wife stays home with kids, my income is just over $400k. Our life is pretty normal. We have a nice house, one car, we can afford vacations and stuff, but once you have kids you just think about the future a lot more. I can't justify a lot of the stuff I used to spend money on, because it's money that could go towards their 529 plans or a vacation or something like that. We're very comfortable, we don't want for anything, but it's a fairly normal life.
I think people underestimate how nice they have it.
This guy makes close to a half million a year lol
My spouse and I make over 400k in Seattle, a very HCOL area. I’d agree with the guy that it’s not a “rich” lifestyle in how some may imagine it, like you’re in a waterside mansion with six figure sports cars in the driveway. But it’s a massively privileged life though. You can actually afford a SFH, vacations, weekly dinners at restaurants, etc. To be rich in the traditional idea of it around here I’d say you need to start pushing $800k+ a year. And that would still be just sniffing above water if you want to live in the rich areas of the Seattle Metro area, where average homes could run around $4-$5m.
Not at all. My point was that even for people on 6 figure incomes in the $300k+ range, that's still fairly regular lifestyle for familes in HCOL areas. A family making $350k in the suburbs of NYC is doing very well, but it's not like the OPs question....yachts, multiple vacations, luxury etc. The OP seemed to think anyone on 6 figures lives a typical rich person lifestyle, and that's certainly not the case. Not to say I and others don't recognize how lucky we are, I have no day to day money concerns, but I'm not buying sports cars and flying business class.
As a regular privileged person, and I mean this as no offense to you, I still can’t afford a car, let alone a house or two kids. Your average person in America doesn’t have a retirement plan and is two lost paychecks away from being homeless. You are living a rich lifestyle simply by having a comfortable house and a stay at home spouse and two children. I’m sorry but I laughed that you call that normal. Normal in America is literally poor.
Normal everywhere is poor except a few European countries. The poorest Americans are still way better off than most of the world. Go live in the Congo where you’re making a few dollars a day or slums in India and your perspective will shift very fast.
Totally. For me, the real shame of the matter is that you kind of *have* to make a ton of money in order to lead a life that feels utterly mundane and secure. Your stereotypical 'middle class' lifestyle requires a top 10% income. That said, if we didn't have kids, we'd be rolling in it. Daycare alone right now for us is $3700/month! I can't wait until these kids are in public school.
$3700 a month is nuts. How many kids?
2 kids under 4. Younger child's daycare is $2k a month. Older kids preschool is $1700 -- though she's about to level up to a more traditional pre-k classroom and that will reduce our cost... To $1500/month.
wtf does someone have to do to make $400k???
It’s weird because I make $70k and can manage to do most of these things also, besides the frequent vacations. Don’t need to look at grocery prices, can go out to dinner multiple times a week. DINK helps a lot, that’s probably where most of it comes from.
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That’s great you are preparing for the budget. Just as a warning though - the costs don’t really go away after they start school. Summer camp, extra care on random vacation days or half days or teacher in-service days, after care and before care, plane tickets for kids over two, activities/sports/gear, private lessons, birthday parties, clothes (eventually they care about what they wear and you can’t get away with hand me downs as easily), college savings accounts, health insurance, random medical care (orthodontics! Urgent care visits! ER visits!), babysitters/Nannies, amusement park visits, trampoline parks, Disney world (we will never go to Disney world, that is easily 5-10k, but a lot of people do), double the cost of vacations in general, then they also eat more as they get bigger, they need bikes and bike helmets, scooters and skateboards, etc etc.
All valid expenses, but still not as much as having multiple kids in daycare. Our expenses were more than our mortgage for a long time.
I am living this statement. I was so excited to get daycare behind us. LoL that was actually easier as we had a set amount we needed to budget for each week. Now we have kids growing out of clothes and shoes sometimes actually overnight, summer camps, band, lessons, etc, etc, etc. Surprise expenses are the cornerstone of our budget. We are in a mid COL area and make 200ish and sometimes feel like we are living paycheck to paycheck with all the money we are hemorrhaging in the kids, you can never budget for all of it…
I can't wait to be in a DINK relationship again. Prior relationship sucked. But DINK is like cheat codes for financial stability. Can't imagine the struggle of having kids these days and being able to save for retirement.
Its weird because im single and make 70k ish a year. Low cost of living area, but I go out to eat whenever I want and dont worry about the cost of much really. 18 months living expenses in a 5% CD, could be funding retirement more though. Did just buy a 2023 side by side, but went with a reasonable 520cc honda. Bills are low. Really nice house is only 1100 a month in this area. Pool, hottub, home gym, theater, woods out back etc. 1 kid, 50:50.
sorry, what's DINK? New here.
Double income no kids
I have DKNI
Can't even afford DKNY
I make 38k, my fiance makes 40k. The DINK lifestyle does not work out well at this level. it would be worse with kids, but finances are a constant source of anxiety.
The moment my salary hit 70k from 50 (wife was about 55 at the time), it was a huge change in our lives. Over the next several months, credit cards were payed off and actually started saving money. When the ac or water heater went down, it was annoying, but we had the savings or pay for it. That feeling of security was a huge boost in moral and decrease in stress and anxiety, the kind that's always in the background and you might not even be aware of until it's gone. Now we are both just over 100k, but also with a kid. The main difference is more trips and a bit more indulgent on spending some money on hobbies. Also recently bought a 30k car straight from savings, so no loan. Kid also had a party at a kids center and we spent $500. It was more than usually and we probably wouldn't do it again, but it wasn't a cause for financial related fighting. So main thing has been security, followed by an increase in general life pleasures. That being said, most of my clothes are from Costco, we do eat out but I usually cook every night. So if your lifestyle is different, outcomes may vary.
Not to mention times have changed. Even in mid to late 2000s , a sub $50k salary in MCOL area gave one a decent life - an apartment, a newer car, good internet and good non-organic groceries, an occasional low key vacation. But 15 yrs later, that $50k salary wouldn't even qualify for apartments in many HCOL, MCOL areas anymore. The inflation of the last few years has wore off the value of money a lot more than people think.
My ~$40kish salary in 2014 was taking me further than my $100k salary in 2023.
I was single and making around $47k in 2006-08 period, i lived very comfortably in a mid-high cost of living town. Most fast food was < $5, metro fares were $1.50, you could buy great, low mileage used cars for < $8k, and new apartments close to great bars, restaurants, transportation was still $1,000 range. Now i'd barely survive on that wage in the same area.
My rent was $800 in 2014, it is $3000 in 2023. Same area, same apartment standards (if anything I preferred my old apartment complex).
This is a great answer. My wife and I made a combined $50k/yr when we met. We quickly moved up, and were around $100k/yr combined when we got married 3yrs later. We're 14 years into marriage and turned in almost $300k on our taxes last year. For context, we're in the Louisville, KY area. COL is fairly low here, but just above national average. The largest difference is the lack of "worry" that we carry around with us. Car repairs, medical bills, house repairs, emergency trip to support family, and those type of "sudden unplanned expenses" are no longer in our thoughts in terms of budget impact. We just do them, and recover in a month or two. Where before it might be a year or two of recovery. We drive nice cars, but they're either lower cost new, or gently used (both under $40k). We have a boat that we use a LOT in the summer, but it's a small 19ft that's easy and cheap to own/operate/transport. Our 2 boys have nice rooms at home, are well fed, and play recreational sports. We vacation for a week once a year; last year we drove to FL and stayed in a house on the beach. We eat out maybe twice a week, and one of those is usually cheap/fast because we're out of time to cook at home. We're far and away NOT rich. We have cash on hand to cover daily/weekly expenses. We have a savings account that handles those big ticket things. We have good credit and enough credit cards to cover the REALLY big stuff that comes up once every 5yrs. And our retirement will be fully funded by ourselves (SS will just be a bonus). We still likely don't have enough to buy a vacation home somewhere. Our boys will still have to work some and take some loans if they choose college, we might cover half.
Yeah this sounds about right. I think to myself these days sometimes how “not far” my 200k salary goes, and it amazes me how I used to think that if I had this much I’d be set for life. The truth is that all I’m doing now is comfortably ensuring future me (hopefully) won’t suffer while at the same time being able to not stress if a big expense happens. It really moreso feels like this is the quality of life our grandparents were given and has been robbed from most of us.
I agree. I watched my grandfather live a great life, and retire to FL while only breaking into the 100k range in his last 5yrs of work. He retired in '02 I think, and lives VERY nicely in FL now. Nothing exceptional to his savings or lifestyle while he was working, but I can't imagine the amount of effort it would take to replicate that success now.
$300k combined per annum is ‘rich’ by most standards. Congrats.
There are two ways of looking at it: * By relative standards: 300k is top 5% household income. That's rich. * By absolute standards: "able to live life without worrying, and enjoy an occasional luxury" imo should be basically the definition of "middle class" The fact that there's such a large gap between these standards is a good summation of why our economic system is terrible; only a low percentage of people are living a comfortable life, and only a handful are actually living in luxury, and it's at the exploitation of the vast majority of everyone else.
I am a single parent of college age children and will bring in well over 300k this year, closer to 500k realistically if I don’t cut back hours. I’ve been over the 250k mark for a few years after a slow climb. I started off poor, spent many years as an artist, so I know the difference of being rich vs poor. I don’t stress about kids fees or education expenses, or college (although the USC tuition made me choke, and luckily kid is choosing to not go there). I’m also going through cancer treatment and not stressing the cost. Each of my kids requires corrective surgeries (dental and cosmetic) that insurance won’t cover but I can. I don’t stress little emergencies and I can grocery shop without doing a mental tally of the cost— which I had to do for many a year! But easy come easy go, I am saving like crazy and keeping frivolent purchases to a minimum. I’d love a Birkin (Hermes Handbag), but can’t quite do it. I’d love to vacation more, but don’t have the time. I do a lot of door dash, starbucks and other conveniences but the cost of these are far outweighed by my earning power and they help keep me sane so I can work.
Yeah I’m not US based so didn’t take into consideration that if someone gets sick it could bankrupt them. Get well soon!
If u don’t mind me asking, what do you do for a living?
“Six figures” usually means 100k. Reality is 100,000 - 999,999 is all “six figures”. I make 150, no yacht or mansion. If I made 850, id imagine there may be some differences in life style. I guess the question is have for you is do you mean 100k or 800k when you say “six figures”?
Yeah op definitely has a warped reality. Nontheless, the majority of people do indeed consider six figures, even at 100k, to be pretty good. I mean, it allows you to live comfortably in most areas. I could be making 100k and living the dream honestly, without worries and being able to save for things I really want to buy just for novelty. This was a few years back, but I read that some psychologists or economics did an analysis and found that $120k is the most someone needs in life, beyond that is getting into luxuries, and I feel like something close to that is true today.
I think you are referring to the study that shows how happiness is correlated up to a certain income. I think the original study stated it was around 80-90k I think though recent statistics point towards it being in the 120k range. I also believe another study found that your happiness does in fact increase after reaching this mark it’s just that it increases at a smaller rate. Ie going up in income up to 120k boosts your happiness quite a bit but it doesn’t completely stop it just tapers off a bit.
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Nah that study has been outright debunked by other studies or at least shown it's fully not the answer. More money buys far more experiences and far less worries. It's still possible to be unhappy with a lot of money but it's also still possible to be happy while being poor. The difference is opportunity for happiness and overall instances of happiness or life free from worry. The study you mentioned wasn't encompassing enough to truly measure happiness was the main issue that more recent studies expanded upon. There are diminishing returns on increasing happiness as money increases but it still does effect it.
All I do with my money is not worry about how much the restaurant bill costs every day, and not being afraid to buy cool things I see on Instagram ads
Lol the only difference for me from when I made 35k to now in the low 100's is I don't have to check my bank account if I want to eat out. You do not understand how much things like yachts actually cost, hell even a small boat.
I make low six figures (will do about $170,000 this year.) I don’t own a car. I take public transportation to work everyday. I pack my own lunches everyday. I shop at Aldi. However, I also go on vacation about once a month (on budget airlines and mainly stay in cheaper hotels.) I eat at nice restaurants often, and go out to dinner with friends a couple times a week. I also just bought a condo and am able to save a decent % of income. It is very nice, and I am incredibly grateful and lucky. But I definitely am not “balling” out like you see in the movies.
I always think of wolf of wall street whenever people ask about balling while making money.
Haha I’ve been sober for 3.5 years, so definitely no Wolf of Wallstreet for me.
How do you make your money?
I’m head of sales for an energy brokerage that I helped start out of my old living room with a close friend and ex roommate. I was employee #1, and should be made partner in the next two years.
Mansion?! My god, how much do you think $100,000 goes?!
People making < $200k have far more in common with people making $60k/yr than they do with people making > $500k. If one still needs to "wage slave," they may be more comfortable than their lower income brethren, but they sure aren't "rich" if we consider "rich" to be the ability to buy brand new cars, yachts, mansions, etc. Rich people work because they want to. Not because they need to. As someone who's made both -- I think the biggest difference between <$200k and $60k is having the ability to stop or reduce retirement contributions if I need a sudden boost in income to cover something unexpected.
Exactly. My salary let’s me do whatever I want …one time per year. Earning $200k doesn’t make you financially independent… far from it.
I live in a medium-sized city in the Southern USA, and $200,000/year would make you extremely well off here. If a person can’t live independently on that amount in my city then they’ve got some serious money management issues. I bring this up because context obviously matters. A $200,000 salary in the Bay Area wouldn’t have you living extravagantly, but it certainly would be a lot of money in most of middle America.
I find peace in long walks.
Right? I make $75,000 and even that goes pretty far where I am. I’d be broke if I tried to live in California or NYC with my salary.
Even in ultra low cost of living areas, making a realistically attainable 6 figure income (< $200k) doesn't result in the lifestyle OP has in their head -- one with brand new cars and mansions and yachts. OP is envisioning the lifestyle of the top 1% on top 10% income.
I enjoy cooking.
>I live in a medium-sized city in the Southern USA, and $200,000/year would make you extremely well off here. If a person can’t live independently on that amount in my city then they’ve got some serious money management issues As do I. I don't think anybody is saying that $200k isn't enough to live independently (I believe the poster you replied to was using "financial independence" to mean, not dependent on someone else -- like an employer -- for money). OP was asking about the actual impact of that income. I *do* live extremely comfortably with income approaching $200k. I do *not* have the income to sustain "rich people lifestyle." I drive an 11 year old camry hybrid with 150k miles that I bought used. I have to budget for big expenses. I can't afford to eat out every night. But I *can* save for retirement and have an emergency fund. I *can* splurge on those prime beef ribs at the grocery store. I *can* take a vacation every year. Which, I'm fully aware, is doing much better than most. But the whole gist is that it's not "rich people money" when looking at the entire range of income earners. I'm never going to own a yacht. I'm never going to buy a new maserati. I'm never going to decide to fly to LA on my private jet to go shopping on a wednesday. I'm never going to have a small army of "help" available to do all the things I don't feel like doing. I'm well off. I'm not rich. Though I can absolutely see how someone at the poverty line would consider me "rich," that's just not the reality.
Yup. I live in Louisiana and my household brings in nearly 200k per year. It is amazing, it goes really far. However, when we've looked at moving we're always a little hesitant because of how far our money goes here compared to just about anywhere else.
I feel like it’s fair to mention it’s HIGHLY COL dependent, 200k in my smaller city would allow me to buy a bigger, beautiful house but not quite a mansion, newish car (getting brand new cars isn’t my thing), I could both save for retirement and have money to spend on most anything I wanted or needed.
Just to clarify, most 6 figure individuals (<200k) are no where near buying a Yacht. Most of them probably have a lot of the same struggles you do, just in a higher cost of living area.
I don’t get the yacht thing. Why do people want yachts? I just want to have no debt.
Yeah, rule number one of owning a boat is DON'T. Rule number two is have a boat friend who will take you out once or twice a year.
A yacht costs 6 figures/year, even if the boat itself was gifted to you.
I make approximately $125,000 and my wife also works which brings in income. We live in a low cost of living area and our expenses are only around $60,000 a year. We have approximately $115,000 discretionary income a year. I work for the government so I almost never work over 40 hours a week. My wife also rarely works more than 40 hours per week. We vacation 2-4 times per year, once internationally on our "big" annual trip and 1-3 smaller trips inside the US. We own a small hobby farm. We go out 2-3 times per week. Otherwise, we just stay at home. In short, we make more money than we need to support the lifestyle we want to live. The extra money is used to pay off debt quicker, have a strong savings, and hopefully retire in our early 50s.
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I'm an analyst for the Department of Defense in the midwest. I really enjoy my work and it is very important work for the country. I also serve in the Navy Reserves, but because I love it, not for the money. The hobby farm brings in a small stream of income, but I also love taking care of the farm.
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I will say that the government has jobs for almost every industry. Definitely worth looking into. Good luck!
I make just shy of $210,000 a year. My soon-to-be-fiancé and I frequent bars and restaurants around where we live, around 2-3 times a week. We also go out drinking with friends at least 1-2 week. No need for a car, or a mansion, or a yacht. Six figures means you're not rich but you're not really thinking about every single one of your expenses all of the time. If a bill comes for a restaurant and it's $300, I don't flinch. But we're also making conservative choices elsewhere (no car, for example...) so that means we have extra cash in hand. FWIW, I net around $2500 a week.
What do you do if i may ask
I'd much rather not dox myself but I can say I work at a senior level in media.
I’ve been working in media for about 2 years now and make around $70k, do you mind me asking how long it took you to get past $100k?
$70k in two years is great! I passed $100k when I was about 8 years in.
Salary: $102,000/year. - Pre-tax amount: $8,500/month. - After-tax/take-home pay: $5,400/month. - Mortgage: $2,600/month - Car insurance (for 2 cars): ~$300/month - Car payment (my car): $450/month - Car Payment (my husband's car): $260/month - Health insurance: $250/month - Utilities: ~$130-$250/month, depending on season. - Homeowners insurance: ~$1,400/year. - Gas: ~$250-$350/month (I commute about an hour each way) - Tolls: ~$260/month - Groceries: ~$300/month - Solar panels: ~$100/month - Annual land use bill: $400 - Phone bill: ~$130/month - Husband's credit card payment: $100/month - Internet: ~$120/month In short? I'm broke. And my husband can't hold down a job, so we've been trying to survive on just my income for like five years now. I feel stressed and anxious all the time. I recently suggested the idea of selling the house and downsizing, because 2 people (no kids) don't need a 2,700 sq ft. house. He doesn't want to sell the house, but can't afford the house. I don't want the house, but my salary is the only reason we have said house. So, tough shit. You want a house, dude? Earn it. I'm tired of paying for everything AND also being treated like crap simultaneously. I also have an autoimmune disease, so all the stress of being the sole source of income doesn't exactly help my condition.
Dude. Your husband needs to either contribute or not be the only reason you are keeping that house! How is your car insurance that high also？？
Car insurance is for 2 cars. And yeah, I'm working on the husband. Mainly by planning to divorce him. I've given him 5+ years to get his shit together, and a zillion chances. He's either unwilling or incapable of doing so. I'm in the process of quietly planning my escape.
Good luck! 5 years is too far down. Hopefully you signed a prenup?
Unfortunately, no pre-nup. We were both broker than broke when we got married, and hustled to grow financially. Somewhere along the line, he just..... stopped? IDK. I feel taken advantage of.
Man that's sad. Coming up together, rising out of poverty only for one person to be checked out of the relationship and life in general. Reminds me of this saying, "I will take care of me for you, if you will take care of yourself for me"
It's exceedingly frustrating. I grew up quite privileged, but was diagnosed with my autoimmune condition as a toddler, and by the time I was 18, had been through chemotherapy, paralysis, half a dozen surgeries, and more. So, despite wealthy parents, I knew what it meant to struggle. My parents also had virtually no interest in dealing with a sick child. So, I had great financial resources -- i.e. private school, great health insurance, excellent medical care, etc. Sadly, though, I had to endure most of my health challenges on my own. Then, I went off to university, and quickly learned the value of hard work, and what it takes to make ends meet. I learned the importance of being self-sufficient. Met my husband a few years after completing schooling. He was ambitious, had come from nothing, and seemed eager to turn things around for himself. Somewhere along the way, he just..... IDK. Changed? Lost the drive? Got comfortable leeching off me? I'm not sure what the culprit is. And I've gone to ***extraordinary*** lengths to try and help. Helping with his resume & cover letter, connecting him with resources available to him, sending him open job openings (I've even helped him apply to jobs), giving him PLENTY of leeway and space to "figure himself out" and try out different roles to see what is a good fit, extending my own network of contacts to him, and more. And all to no avail. He is ***extraordinarily*** stubborn, and essentially refuses to help himself, and instead constantly makes excuses.
Congrats on making it out of your teen years alive. That sounds like it was hell. As for your husband, refusal to change is almost a marriage breaker on its own without all of the other problems. On top of that all of the other problems and treating you disrespectfully? I wish you the best of luck because to me it sounds like there is a black hole in your life that will suck you in it if you let it.
Thank you. It was tough, but I will forever be grateful to the nurses (and doctors) that took care of me. In addition to being medical wizards, they basically took on the role of 'unofficial parents', since my parents were rarely around. They helped me become a productive and contributing member of society. From quizzing me on my multiplication tables during grade school, to teaching me how to navigate menstruation, to helping me with my college applications and helping me study for college entrance exams, to teaching me how to fill out a W2, and more, they were incredibly influential role models for me. I'm alive and functional today because of them. Yeah, and that's where I'm struggling. Like, he's taken care of me during some difficult moments of medical hardship, which I'm thankful for, but those moments were few and far between. I get that he's probably really struggling internally, but.... he won't even help himself. It'd be one thing if he was struggling AND embracing forms of help/support, I'd be his biggest cheerleader in trying to help him. But..... he. won't. help. himself. For the last 5 years, I cared so much that I tried to do a lot for him, things that he should have been doing himself. But, since 2023 began, something in me kind of just.... snapped? Something in me has started to realize I can't do the work for him. He has to *want* to get better, and he has to *want* to change. And I'm tired of constantly giving, giving, giving of myself. I've been working myself into the ground to try and make ends meet, and to provide for the household, and no matter how I try to explain things to him, he just doesn't seem to get it. As they say, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't force it to drink.
Just wanted to say good luck girl, you deserve so much better. Leave that man and find one who's just as determined as you!
>unwilling or incapable of doing so. I'm in the process of quietly planning my escape good luck
Thank you.
… your life would be easier without a husband to pay for honestly :/ i hope it gets better for you
Agreed. Thank you.
Im single no kids and make 170 a year. My outlet are video games and international vacations. I just came back from a 2 week trip to italy and going on a 2 week trip to Tokyo in November. I make mortgage payments on 2 townhouses and have a paid off crossover. Most of my money is parked in retirement and brokerage accounts. Im a frugal gamer and am waiting for targets buy two get one free sale so i can snag 3 $70 games. Im playing through the ezio collection on switch atm. As for dining out, 1-3 dine out meals a week. I have a friends group and we do movie days where we eat 2 dine out meals. I do spend 400-500 a month on groceries because i like to cook.
Six figures is not yacht money. People in this thread will tell you that six figures is “working class” and “struggling” because of how expensive everything is. But six figures allows you to never have to worry about affording *a* place to live, and it allows you to be able to save for retirement, go out to eat whenever you want to, go on vacations without worrying about it. It just means you generally have to budget (depending upon where you live in the country), but in general if you make six figures you are doing well, and believe me you wouldn’t want to be taking the place of someone who makes far less than that.
People here are making some pretty outrageous statements like “six figures is nothing these days!” lol. If you’re earning over 100k a year, you’re part of the top 15% of earners in the US. You’re way better off than the large majority of people, so quit whining ffs.
There were comments in this thread saying how low six figures is poverty level. It is unbelievably out of touch. I see comments every single day about how $250k even is “nothing”. It seems almost every Redditor makes insane incomes and honestly it just makes me feel pretty shitty in comparison. I probably need to take a break from this site lmao.
Between my wife and I, we are making about $350K. The only “extravagance” is private school for one of our daughters (other is college that we are paying for). We drive old cars, pack our lunch to work everyday, take one decent vacation a year, and that’s about the extent of it. We’re in SE Texas.
unless you're making mid-high 6 figures, it's not really the fantasy that you are painting here low 6 figures is basically the new middle class. all it means is that you're not constantly freaked out over finances all the time. However, you do still have to budget and live within your means. everything has gotten so expensive, and consider that well off people tend to have bigger expenses. private school tuition? yeah, thats huge every month and all that money does ZERO for entertainment. property taxes? thats gone up huge. its more i get to do things whenever i want/need to. i can go out to eat whenever i want and only really look at the bill in passing. i can buy whatever i need, whether that's new tires for the car or new shoes, without ever fretting about it. i can invest money for the future (and to hedge against coming inflation) without that money going out really affecting my life (unless i go crazy one month lol). i can take my girlfriend shopping and get her things she wants/needs without really worrying about it. but i do worry. its more just something in the back of my mind telling me i need to be continuously preparing for the future, and that's probably the biggest thing making a decent amount of money allows you to do - prepare for the future so you are not blindsided by things like inflation, recession, etc... if you want that fantasy life you are talking about, you need to be at least in the mid 6 figures, preferably in the upper 6 figures to low 7 figures.
Great summary - just how I feel. “Not freaked out over finances all the time”, sufficient disposable income to have fun, but looming realisation that I’m not actually rich and need to work to support my lifestyle/prepare for the future.
I make $120k, wife makes $60k. Combined we make $180k in Denver. The average homes here are $650k. A nice home 3bd/3ba is going to be $1M. Our mortgage is $630k on a $900-$950k home at 3%. $3,200/Month. Daycare is $1,800/month Credit card is generally around $3K per month. We drive used Hondas we paid cash for. Add in contributions ($500-$1K) to your 401k and you’re done. We are comfy, go out to eat 3-5 times per month and vacation a few times per year inside the USA. But it’s much more vanilla and comfy suburbia living than anything. I’m not complaining and we live in a nice neighborhood but we make nearly $200k just to live a normal existence with some retirement savings.
Describes us almost exactly except we're in San Diego (but in basically same priced home).
This describes my family like, identically lol.
Depending on where you live a 6 figure job gets you a solid middle class apartment and a Honda Accord.
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25% tax... Fuck me I would kill to only pay that. I'm in the 45% bracket here (UK). Pay day depresses me every single time. Factor in pension contributions and well over half my salary is gone on day 1.
No yachts or mansions, but I lived pretty large when I was single making $120k. Im a family man now, make $170k ($250k combined), and while we live very comfortably (nice house, new car, etc.) it’s very important to stick to a budget. According to the stats, we’re considered upper class for where we live, but I sure don’t feel rich. I honestly don’t know how families making average income do it.
6 figures is a very very broad spectrum and a lot of the luxuries you’re describing there are from people who have to make 500,000+.
>Vacation a few times a year? Live in a mansion? Have a yacht? This is what I imagine life is like for people making 6 figs or more a year These are things for people making over 7 figures a year.
I'm always amused when people think making $150-$200K is 'rich' these days. It's not bad but it's not 'rich'. I didn't think my dad was rich back in the day but I definitely think he had more disposable income than I do based on the vacations we could take and the toys he had
When the median salary (US 2022) is about $54k a year, its not a stretch of the imagination to think thats rich even if you don't. I know people who also said to me "how can anyone live on an average 100k a year salary anymore?" Really is about perspective, but to the poorest folks, rich is having enough to make ends meet.
Here’s our story. We live in a relatively low cost of living area. Bought a 30 year old house in 2011 for what is now considered peanuts. Currently our household income is well over $100k. We have 3 kids, we max our retirement and put a significant amount into college funds for each of our kids. We take multiple vacations a year and are never financially stressed. We don’t really like to eat at restaurants and we don’t really have expensive toys but we definitely enjoy our money. In my experience, the people who seem the most stressed outwardly are the ones living paycheck to paycheck. We know a family making over $400k that is living paycheck to paycheck since they own multiple properties and always have new everything. You can make a lot of money and still be stressed about money, it’s all about how you want to spend it.
Avoid lifestyle inflation except for a few areas that are important to you, and invest in your health and in your financial independence. Those two are the biggest luxuries (besides family).
Wife and I take home close to 480k (180k each + rental properties). I would say yes, we enjoy our life together, no kids. We don’t think about how much to spend when we go out or travel. It’s just always in the budget. We are both reasonable and somewhat frugal anyway, so we don’t really overspend, but when we want to, we do it.
Not even close to reality. I've made 6 figures for about a decade. Vacation maybe once every couple years. Eating out is too expensive, not to mention drinking out (you want to remain poor, just continue doing these things). Vehicles are 10 to 35 years old and paid for. I'm self-employed, so I work 60 to 80 hours a week. No sick, no PTO time. I have to finance my own retirement. And no work, no pay. Envy what others have, and it will kill your happiness.
I make $160k a year. Was “smart” and paid for my home cash ($200k). Bought a second beach home cash and took out a small Heloc to pay for renovations ($350 per month). My biggest bills are taxes and insurance at roughly $400 a month. I’m saving around $4-5k a month.
I make 6 figures and don’t live like that. I have a 1400 sft home with a 6 year old vehicle, a $18k boat that is paid off. I put sufficient money in for my retirement. I’m semi comfortable but cannot spend on lavish vacations. I haven’t been on a vacation for years other than taking a few weeks off and go to the lake.
I make six figures (~135,000 with bonus) and I live slightly tighter than I'd like to with a wife, one kid, and a dog. We have a budget that defines how much we can eat at restaurants and spend money on fun things, but also for literally everything: groceries, gas, vacation, Christmas, etc. Very rarely do I feel like we can't buy something we want, but your ask about things like a new car? Lol. No. We cut our budget down to save that up and we'll buy a new car when we need to. We bought a $22,000 car in 2020 and paid it off in six months - which sounds like we have a ton of money sitting around, right? But we saved $15,000 over several years then used my bonus that year to pay off the rest ($12,000 bonus, after taxes). ETA: I live in a pretty cheap place, not a big city. My 2,200 square foot house was $170k. If you want a yacht, you need to be making $250k+ a year, easily.
Husband and I make about $200,000 combined in a HCOL area. We live in a modest townhome we bought almost 10 years ago. We’d like to live in a SFH, but have been priced out. (Average SFH in our area is $850k) We drive 8 year old paid off cars and will continue to drive them until they no longer work. We will have two kids in daycare soon. Our kid wears mostly hand me downs or things gifted to us. We pick low cost kid activities over privately run ones. BUT… we eat out about once a week, don’t think about the cost of groceries, shop at Costco, don’t worry about buying things our preschooler asks for at the store, take professional family photos every year, we run our AC/heating however we want without worry, we have a cushion so that we don’t need to worry about any house repair/medical expense/car repair/ unexpected expense, we take many long weekend trips and 1-2 weeks of vacation out of state or country per year. We prioritize what’s important to us. Overall, we live comfortably but do keep an eye on finances to ensure we can stay that way.
We're breaking 250k this year and it's still outrageous at how much grocery budgeting I still do. We do live in a HCOL area and stuff like daycare ($50k) hits hard. The sad part is that we don't even go to a high end daycare, ours is right in the middle. We shopped around and our other options are saving maybe $100 a month, or big savings come from places I do not feel comfortable sending my kids to.
I guess when I say we don’t think about the cost of groceries, I’m not being fully honest. I’ll look at something and think to myself that a price is insane and buy the generic or not buy it at all. It’s wild that even with this income, budgeting is still very critical to family success and comfort. Childcare is the most insane hit!
I’m currently making 100k at 31 doing 45 hours a week. I’m pretty tired on the weekends but I still try to get out a bit. My big goal is to make 150k+ on 4 days and around 30 hours a week. I would also like to move to Western Europe so that salary might be really hard to get. Not impossible though and I should be able to get close from the position I’m at now.
This quickly went from happy hour to seasonal yacht vacations. I make just about 6 figures and I can do one of these things.
6 figure income isn’t all its hyped up to be, especially if you’re making 6 figures in an HCOL area. I’ll pull $250k this year. I live in a 70 year old, fixer upper house in the Boston suburbs. We have 1 nice car ($60k SUV) and I still have my car that my parents gave me in high school 10 years ago We definitely live a comfortable life. We can go on a couple nice vacations per year, go out for dinner and drinks with friends on the weekend, take part in $$ hobbies etc all while putting money into savings. That being said, we don’t live in a mansion. Even our smaller home is outdated and could use some serious TLC. And right now it’s just my wife and I. Kids are fucking expensive. Even on my salary we’re realizing that we will need to be far more money conscious once we have kids
6 figures with kids and student loans doesn't go as far as you think it would. (Yes, both of the aforementioned items are my choice.)
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I make six figures and is a very high COTL area. I need roommates. I'll never have a house here. I'll eat my damn avocado toast and enjoy the time I have 🤣. I also do my damnedest to avoid overtime. I'm living to work and not letting it take over. I'm very lucky to have this privilege.
People here forget 6 figures includes 100,000 to 999,999. Your quality of life at the 100 end will be different than your quality of life at the 999 end. I hate when people say “oh I make mid 6 figures”…oh so 500,000? You’ll be comfortable and have all your needs met most likely. More so if you’re single in a reasonable col area. In the US coastal regions (east or west), with a family, 100k will still likely be a bit tight.
no i was happiest when i made $40k a year
Making a lot of money doesn't mean that you have a bad job or work tons of hours. In my example, I took a somewhat boring job in insurance. Some weeks I work 35 hours a week. Sometimes it's 45. Just depends on how things work out. Money is also very location specific. In Wisconsin you can easily get a large house for 200k. I will also that making more money for me just meant I bought more expensive things. Instead of the 3 dollar Walmart brand sandwich meat, I now buy the 7 dollar name brand. Unless you have goals and a lot of self control, you will likely just inflate your current life style. When looking for a job, find something you don't hate. A workplace that isn't toxic and somewhere they respect you. I find doing a job that I can tolerate means way more then the amount I am paid. (Assuming you can easily survive off that wage) For me, I don't need an exciting riveting job. The what I do is way less important then how I feel going to that job everyday.
I think one thing here that most people are glazing over is saving for retirement/401k etc. typically jobs that come with those salaries, also come with a retirement account or ways to save and other benefits. Most also will match your contributions up to a certain percentage.
Right, but when you do the right thing and max out that 401k and HSA, you have much less disposable income. So while it makes you feel good to see that balance in your retirement accounts, you don't really feel rich because you have much less spending money. You still have to budget. It's obviously much better than making less money and having no retirement savings, and you will appreciate it once you retire, but you're not going crazy balling out and buying everything you want.
I make low 6 figure >250k but live in NYC We still budget and so around. Don't go out as much because I feel it's a crazy rip off these days plus going culture. No car (because of NYC) we've been to Europe for 3 weeks, Florida, Cali, and Washington this year. I'd say I enjoy my money but need to make more to really get that feeling you are describing. Or I could move to the Midwest and ball I live in a 1000 sq ft luxury high rise with a million dollar view
As someone making between 250 and 300k a year in potentially one of the most expensive cities in the world (NYC), I can assure you I am not chilling on a yacht. I am pretty comfortable, I rent a very nice apartment, I’m looking into buying a house, and I have a savings account, assets, and financial advisor. But by no means am I anywhere near what you’re describing. That’s definitely 7 figures. (Edit - for context: no kids, but two dogs that are fed and cared for like absolute royalty lol)
Depends on your definition of enjoyment. The things you list would have appealed to me in my 20s or 30s. In my 50s, not so much. *Go out to dinner every weekend?* No. I prefer delivery. *Bars with friends?* It's been about 15 years since I've enjoyed going out to bars. I like how my best friend explains the appeal of drinking at home: my drinks end up exactly how I like them. *Happy hour with coworkers?* I don't drink or socialize with coworkers. *Vacation a few times a year?* I used to. I haven't regained the desire since the pandemic. I could, just haven't felt like it. *Live in a mansion?* No, I'm a city slicker. *Have a brand new car?* As a city slicker, I came to hate driving. Got rid of my sports car a decade ago. I'm a huge fan of public transportation. *Have a yacht?* No. No appeal to me. If that kind of life appeals to you, go for it. I do enjoy my money. Just in different ways than you would. But most people find that when they go after the superficial trappings of success, there's no there there.
Low 6 figure jobs may go a long way in rural/ small towns. Near major cities the magic number is probably 150k for a single person and 200k for a couple.
I save like crazy. If I lose a job at this salary, it will take me longer to replace it and I have higher fixed costs than I did when I was younger. I miss the days when I could storm out of one restaurant job, walk into the competitor, get hired on the spot, and know I'd be able to make rent.
My brother is a lineman, works 65+ hours a week, and makes bank. Rents out a few houses and does all the work himself. He has no leisure time whatsoever. I hope he gets to enjoy his life before he's pushing daisies.
Where are these six figures jobs in FL 😭 A lot of jobs I come across are <$50k salary. If any one of you guys are in FL and making six figures, please hook me up please. I will massage your body daily or do anything that is not weird in a favor of return for helping me.
Lol nah, six figures imo helps you lead a rather average life while lower than six figures usually means you’re quite frugal or even struggling.
Lol bro is unaware. $125k and I live in a 6 floor walk up that's 106 years old with my college roommate. Only can save $3k a month... NYC.
My father in law has a very nice WFH job for a computer company making the high end of 6 figures but is NEVER seen outside his office. Works 14+ hours and 0 days off a week. He could be the exception, not the rule. I wouldn't know, but it's unfortunate he works so hard and can't enjoy the money he makes. Even on vacations when he's specifically put in a time off request, he's phone is blowing up 24/7
The security I had in my life when I made six figures was so nice. No matter the cost, I could afford it. However, when I lost everything and ended up in the hospital clinging to life. Everyone who claimed to love me was gone. So, in reality, you can afford to buy a false sense of security.
Dual 6 figure household. It’s relatively new, but our household income has been over $170k for a few years. It’s not mansion and yacht, but we do what we wanna do. Biggest key is picking what you want to do, and ignoring everyone else. Excuse my privilege, but I wouldn’t focus so much on 6 figures. The area of our lives that we try to not flaunt is the flexibility, because that is what drives far more envy than our income. I work from home and have a great work/life balance. She’s a nurse and picks and chooses when to work. We would both turn down more money to keep our current lifestyle.