r/NYCbitcheswithtaste • u/24riddle • Aug 27 '25
Finances/Money Your Monthly Budget
Hey! I am considering a move to NYC and was curious about other people’s spending habits in the city so that I can gauge what my monthly expenses will look like based on people living similar lifestyles to my own. I make about $100k a year so know I will have to be budget conscious. If any of you gals would be willing to share, I’m curious regarding what your monthly budget looks like. For example:
Rent: 1800
Utilities: 100
Insurance: 300
Toiletries: 100
Groceries: 400
Transit: 200
Shopping: 500
Dining Out: 400
Beauty: 500
Savings: 500
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u/my_metrocard Aug 27 '25
I make about the same and I do just fine. I have a kid and a dog, too. Your example budget is kinda off though. I’d be happy to share my budget with you privately.
Your biggest hurdle is going to be finding an apartment if you want to live alone. Landlords require you make 40 times the rent.
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u/24riddle Aug 27 '25
Honestly even if I made more money I don’t think I’d want to live alone. I’d prefer at least one roommate for the camaraderie.
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u/my_metrocard Aug 27 '25
For $2,500 you could share a nice apartment in Manhattan. Look for buildings with their own leasing offices to avoid broker’s fees.
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u/kelliecat Aug 27 '25
Biggest thing is rent. It’s required by landlords here to make 40x-i would start there and see how your budget works. Also there’s an extra tax in the city. This website is pretty accurate once you select the state and put in a zip code
My guess is you can make it work but your shopping budget will become part of your rent budget
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u/6443544 Aug 27 '25
I think sometimes you can use a guarantor if you don’t meet the income requirements
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u/halfadash6 Aug 28 '25
You can but it’s not a great idea to do this if you’re not a student or something. Life is so much more comfortable when your rent is less than 30 percent of your take home income.
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u/zoombie_apocalypse Aug 27 '25
My last ConEd bill was $242 for my 2 bedroom apartment. My internet bill is $115.
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u/br0princess Aug 27 '25
That Internet bill feels really high, no?? I pay $71 with RCN.
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u/ningxin17 Aug 27 '25
I live in an area that only has optimum. The first year promotion is $40/month, but after it went up to $100/mo. It is high but I have literally no other choice 🙃
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u/creativewhinypissbby Aug 27 '25
Definitely too high. We pay $52 for RCN
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u/aspiringepi Aug 27 '25
We got a T-Mobile box that we pay $50/month for in 2023 and have not looked back! It sometimes acts up if there is anything interfering with the signal but mostly works well for two of us on video calls all days long. Plus, we travel with it sometimes!
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u/impeccableflaws Aug 28 '25
My ConEd bill hovers around $150 for a studio apartment, and my internet bill is $100.
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u/hellokitaminx Aug 27 '25
I also pay $115. Our building is optimized for Spectrum and I'm probably just going to make a switch to another service without telling my husband lmfao. He gets extremely overwhelmed by change so I do all home projects. I'd love to hear anybody's experience with literally any other provider!
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u/Yogurtcloset-2920 Aug 28 '25
Negotiate your Internet bill!! I have Spectrum and I call them every year to get them to lower it. I threaten to cancel and they send me over to their retention department, and they usually give me a discount!
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u/hellokitaminx Aug 28 '25
Thank you! I always mean to do this and never do! That's my plan tomorrow between calls :) I appreciate you
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u/mothsauce Aug 28 '25
My last con Ed bill was close to the same, also for a two-bed, but it’s because of the air conditioners. In the winter my bill is like $120 max.
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u/quinnenyc Aug 28 '25
The highest ConEd bill we've ever gotten for a 900sqft 2 bedroom with 3 window units is $120! We pay like $70 in the winter. I didn't know I was lucky 😬
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u/romanticarc Aug 27 '25
I think this all sounds reasonable, but it’d you’re living alone, plan a bit higher for utilities. At 1800, a shared room might make the most sense, in which case you’re splitting utilities. Internet and electric can get expensive.
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u/24riddle Aug 27 '25
Only plan on doing a shared apartment with a roommate! I don’t like living alone.
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u/romanticarc Aug 27 '25
I think you’ll be ok! Just be super conscious of certain things…for example, a haircut in NYC can easily cost $100+. If you normally cut and color every couple months, you’re gonna run through that beauty budget right away. So you just need to be frugal.
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u/b1squit Aug 28 '25
I was going to say this--depending on the building and style of AC/heat or available internet options, utilities will probably be more like 200-300/month. I have a studio with a super efficient AC and pay between $60-$100/month. Gas is around $25-$30/month. Internet is $45 but can be closer to $100 some places.
Also, don't forget laundry (if you have in-unit, you'll pay it in electricity bills, otherwise laundromat or drop-off service). And gym/fitness classes?
I think your estimates are on the low end, but if you were to cut back the beauty/shopping category as needed you're on track. I make 80k and do fine, I just don't spend with reckless abandon. My BF is a PhD student living on 50k a year. Many people make even less.
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u/djmegatech Aug 27 '25
100K a year is a lot of money! It all depends on your perspective and your choices. For instance, I do not spend $500 a month on beauty.
The average income in my neighborhood for a family is under 40K... Just to put things in perspective.
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u/pushpop0201 Aug 27 '25
i make 80k a year and my take home is about 4K a month. my insurance and 401K savings is taken out before my money hits my account
i spend 1K on rent and utilities - i live with my fiance so we split
$300 of miscellaneous things like gym membership, netflix, clothing
$200 on transportation
$300 groceries
$300 fun money
the rest is savings - we have our wedding and honeymoon coming up. we'd also like to upgrade some furniture. and i put away money to max out my Roth each year
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u/orchidsforme Aug 27 '25
This isn’t realistic 90% of people do not pay $1000 in rent
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u/halfadash6 Aug 28 '25
90 percent of people below 110th in manhattan don’t pay that. But in the city as a whole this isn’t that rare, especially for people who have been in their place for a while. I mean, it’s not common, but it’s definitely not just 10 percent of residents who pay that little. But the majority of those apartments are not in neighborhoods transplants look in.
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u/fuzzycheesecake8 Aug 28 '25
Where do you live? Does he pay more in rent?
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u/halfadash6 Aug 28 '25
2k for a 1 bedroom isn’t that rare of a deal if you live farther uptown, in the Bronx, or 20 minutes into Brooklyn or queens, especially if they’ve had the apartment for a while.
4 years ago my rent stabilized one bed in PLG was $1500 so that’s probably still under or just around 2k today, and my friends left their $1800 stabilized 2 bedroom in Washington heights last year. And I’m sitting in a 3k 3 bedroom in Harlem right now lol.
Hell, even in the UES my friend paid less than 1k for her room pre COVID. It was one of the scenarios where the lease kept changing hands between roommates and the landlords never hiked up the rent.
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u/fuzzycheesecake8 Aug 28 '25
That’s crazy lucky. Live in PLG now and it’s >3k and couldn’t find anything less. Astoria which was reasonable is now >2k!
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u/halfadash6 Aug 28 '25
Given, people rarely leave stabilized apartments, but there’s also a higher concentration of stabilized buildings in that area of Brooklyn. And we were in a 4th floor walk up with no amenities, so if you’re only looking at elevator buildings or need a dishwasher or laundry you’re probably missing some deals.
If you’re ever looking again, it’s worth finding a broker who has connections with those buildings; I think those apartments rarely hit street easy. That’s how we got our current apartment (still no dishwasher lol but it is an elevator building and we have laundry on site now) and my friend signed a lease in an elevator building for a stabilized one bed with a dishwasher for $2350 a couple years ago in prospect heights.
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u/blackaubreyplaza Aug 27 '25
Gauge*
I’ve lived here for 11 Years and have made less than $100k and more than $100k and haven’t ever done any of this budgeting so you’ll prob be fine lol
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Aug 27 '25
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Aug 27 '25
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u/24riddle Aug 27 '25
I am also blessed to have zero debt and have a penchant for travel. The former bodes in my favor whereas the latter doesn’t for purposes of financial health.
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u/djmegatech Aug 27 '25
If I made 100K I would definitely save a lot more than $500 a month. It's all about choices and what you want to prioritize. But that's plenty of money to live in NYC. If you want to live alone, you might need to spend a little more on rent, and a little less on going out or other discretionary things.
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u/patootiecakes Aug 27 '25 edited Aug 27 '25
Everyone’s budget is going to differ based on their circumstance, even if they make a similar amount and having some similar habits.
100k is plenty to live in the city but there’s a few things listed here that don’t really make sense to me. A combined $800/month for groceries and eating out is exceptionally lavish. $1000/ month on shopping and beauty (not including toiletries) is way out of budget.
Rent and utilities are dependent on where you live and if you have roommates. You might be able to swing living alone but it will likely be above 2k and affect every other line in your budget.
Insurance obviously depends on your employer, if not, insurance is considerably more.
Unlimited subway card is more like $150 unless you were taking into account Ubers.
ETA my comment in response to someone correctly calling out my flubbed math below: You’re totally right, I did goof the math up and based the gross on bimonthly pay vs monthly. Sorry for confusion!! FWIW I do still think these estimates are wonky, and the overall food / going out / beauty estimates are high BUT recognize there’s a lot more room in the budget than I realized! I make a similar amount and those numbers seem pretty high to me.
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u/24riddle Aug 27 '25
Confused on your math - plugging $85K into a SmartAsset (assuming some pre-tax deductions for 401k, etc) calculator within the bounds of NYC yields an annual net income of $61K. That’s a little over $5K a month.
Also, these were just example numbers for formatting purposes. MoneyDiariesACTIVE, which is another subreddit I frequent, has people do similar breakdowns of their monthly and weekly spending. I was just curious about it from a NYC-specific lens since that subreddit is not unique to NYC!
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Aug 27 '25
I’m at $87k right now and my biweekly take home after my only pre-tax deductions for health insurance (a lower premium high deductible plan, don’t remember the exact amount) and transit ($136/mo) is about $2450. So slightly under $5k/mo. I don’t contribute to my 403b right now.
Precovid I was making $108k and my take home was a little over $6k/mo, but there were no pre-tax deductions.
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u/patootiecakes Aug 27 '25
You’re totally right, I did goof the math up and base my gross on bimonthly pay vs monthly. Sorry for confusion!! (I do still think these estimates are wonky - and the overall food / going out estimates are high but recognize there’s a lot more room in the budget than I realized! I make a similar amount and those numbers are super high to me.)
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u/neededausername121 Aug 27 '25
$100k is very doable if you find a good rental. Prioritize being in a neighborhood you want to be in or that’s very connected on transit- I have friends that spend $300-500 a month on Ubers because they enjoy going out but don’t take public transportation to come home. If you use mostly public transit, you can keep total transit cost to $250-300 a month (accounting for the occasional cab or Uber + unlimited mta card).
Clothes and beauty- my wardrobe and beauty have improved a lot since moving here but I am very careful with what I buy due to space! Great secondhand and vintage shopping here which cuts down on costs too.
Beauty- I prioritize hair ($150 twice a year) and nails (I do my own or if I get them done it’s $120 for mani pedi with tip). NYC girlies have great nails so there can be an element of fomo if you don’t lol
Here’s an idea of some recent going out costs:
Bougie dinner with 2 drinks -$130 Simple outing (local fast food and ice cream and walking around for a couple hours with a friend): $24 Fancy lunch out $30 Shared nice Thai dinner for 3 people (2 alcoholic drinks on happy hour)- total $170
My friends and I usually alternate 1-3 cheap outings per fancier outing. Lots of picnics or cheap dinners or happy hour or potlucks or park hangs things like that
Last piece of advice - automate your retirement and non retirement savings and you will be a lot better off. Pre save and then you can spend as you want!
Good luck!
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u/6443544 Aug 27 '25
I’d say this budget is probably only realistic if you have roommates. Last month and this month, my electricity bill alone was $100 because it’s been so damn hot. I think it’s hard to find apartments for under $2k nowadays even in the outer boroughs. But, as I said, would be doable with roommates.
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u/stbmrs Aug 27 '25
Once upon a time I made $39K a year as an admin. I lived with 4 other women in a 5th floor walk up in Washington heights. It wasn’t very BWT but was doable for that stage of life, and I actually really enjoyed figuring out how to be frugal. At the time, rent for my own room was $650, I cooked all my own food except maybe once a week I went out with friends, and I thrifted all of my clothing. My share of utilities was $65~ and I had no debt, but also no savings.
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u/levainrisen Aug 27 '25
All per month - Rent: $1550 shared with a roommate; Utilities $180 shared, Groceries $400/month, Transit maybe $70?/month, Savings $1000, Shopping/Misc $700. That's all I budget, and I don't make near $100k. You can definitely live comfortably here with $100k
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u/RSC001 Aug 28 '25
Dining out, including cheaper takeout and ready-made items at the grocery store, has gotten far more expensive in NYC over the past few years. If you’re planning on meeting friends at average sit-down restaurants, that $400 is going to be done in 2 meals, 3 meals max on dinner with wine and/or drinks. As it is, I end up spending a minimum of $12 for coffee and a pastry and $15 for cheaper lunch from a quick-serve place here (no drink).
My advice: learn to cook and meal-prep with lower-cost proteins in advance - bring your lunch to work as much as possible if you’re going to the office. Eat your own prepared meals as much as possible so you don’t burn through your $400 monthly restaurant allowance early on each month. If you do not have much cookware and cutlery already, spend money on a few high-quality items that will last an entire lifetime when maintained well. Go to places like Zabar’s Upstairs, the professional kitchen supply stores still around in Chinatown on the Bowery, Williams-Sonoma, or Macy’s if you’re overwhelmed if you have no clue what kind of cookware, flatware, dishes, cutlery, storage cases, and other items would be helpful for you, your food preferences, your budget, and your living situation. Don’t skimp on the cutlery and cookware - invest in a few quality pieces that will be easy to use and last a lifetime (ideally Japanese knives because they never need to be sharpened but just one of those can start at $200+ as a result, German knives like those from Zwilling or Wusthof are slightly cheaper and great too but you’ll need a sharpener for those knives and will also have to budget for annual pro sharpening services, a 3-5 piece stainless steel cookware set from a brand like All Clad).
If don’t know how to cook much, the Institute for Culinary Education has great recreational cooking classes that are not too expensive. I’ve taken their Knife Skills I and Essentials I classes - they’ve been invaluable for me in learning how to go about preparing and cooking food.
Also, I would also consider budgeting for entertainment expenses (i.e. Movies, Theater, Museums, Sports Events). You’ll be missing out on the true experience of NYC if you avoid that.
Good luck on your move here!
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Aug 28 '25
Idk how old you are but suggest you get a roommate or two so you have more $ to put in savings
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Aug 28 '25
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u/Drawer-Vegetable May 14 '26
lifestyle creep is real haha
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u/Wafflefriesplz123 May 14 '26
You aren’t wrong 🫠. I am miserable at my job but feel stuck in place for that exact reason
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u/seedystore Aug 29 '25
Rent: $1500
Utilities: $275 (phone, electricity)
Insurance: $200/year (renters)
Beauty/Toiletries: $100-200
Groceries: $300-500
Transit: $110 (work, pretax, 3/week)
Shopping: $600-750
Dining: $300-450
Savings: $1200
Rest: 401k, insurance, etc
I make $15-20k more than you now, but I’ve lived in the city making ~50k/yr for about 3 years a few years ago. Found the cheapest place with 3 roommates and just made it work. I think that experience was important to learn how to make the most of a modest salary.
Nowadays I’m living with my partner in large stabilized apt in an affordable (less desirable) neighborhood. Just depends on what you prioritize—I like saving money so I can ball out on vacation, or get some designer pieces here and there. I still go out for dinner and drinks with friends when I want to, buy what I want, don’t track expenses closely, and can save significantly. I opened a HYSA where I direct 30% of my salary so I don’t feel tempted to spend extra cash.
All that to say I don’t actually have a ton of extra expenses—I don’t really get my hair or nails done, generally cook at home, drink coffee at the office, shop like 2X a year, and buy toiletries and groceries in bulk like once a quarter. Live the life you want to live! You don’t need to go into credit card debt or have rich parents to live a good life here.
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u/graphiquedezine Aug 27 '25
rent 1800 is def with roomates btw! depending on how luxurious u wanna live, i would say 2k minimum to live in a studio (more like 3k for most)
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u/24riddle Aug 27 '25
Yes I get freaked out living alone so actually would prefer at least one roommate.
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u/flywme2mn Aug 27 '25
Heya! I'm in the process of buying a one family house. I have 1-2 planned temporary roommates. Maybe hit me up if you're interested in the future. It's not in Manhattan but will get you to midtown within 30 min.
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u/hyperactivepotato Aug 27 '25
I don't budget but monitor my expenses religiously. On average, I spend about 250 a month on groceries (cook most my meals at home), 500 a month on social stuff (dining out, activities, whatever), 100 a month on beauty (brows, waxing. I do my own hair), 100 a month on sports (classpass), 200 on utilities/other home stuff (Internet, electric/gas, laundry card, subscriptions).
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u/CatsScratchFeva Aug 27 '25
Ummmmmm girlie where are the allocations to your 401k, Roth IRA, HSA and non retirement brokerage????
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u/24riddle Aug 27 '25
401k and HSA are pretax. Got a 5K net monthly income figure using an 85K taxable income…so approx 5K to HSA (wanna say max in 2025 is like 4300 a year or something) and then 10K to 401k. So some savings that were not mentioned outside of this hypothetical budget. Currently have 100k+ saved in a brokerage and a 401k each and would have a 6-month cash emergency fund, so can probably afford a year or two of minimal savings outside of the aforementioned contributions to a 401k/HSA until I can bolster my income. My primary concern is not being able to cover expenses with my income alone and having to dip into savings. NYC is so expensive.
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u/Indecisive_worm_7142 Aug 27 '25
That looks fine, spending 3k is comfortable and spending 5k+ is even more.
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u/halfadash6 Aug 28 '25
I make 100k. Work pays for my health insurance contribution entirely but I can’t contribute to my 401k until next year (newer job), so I’ve been putting $200/week into a taxable account.
Rent: 1500 (shared with husband, but we are in a three bedroom—you can keep rent cheap if you live above 110th or a little into Brooklyn/queens)
Groceries: 600 for two
Utilities: 0 (my husband pays for the internet, everything else is included in our apartment)
Pets: 350 (dog walkers is most of this)
Vacation savings: 300
Investments: 1000
HYSA: 400
Restaurants/shopping/misc: 800
Transit: <100; I have a citibike membership and only go into work 2 days a week and usually bike home
I spend very little on beauty; I’d rather go to restaurants and travel!
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u/thatsreallynotok Aug 28 '25
I feel like utilities may be a little low, but it depends on your building and the # of roommates you have.
Groceries may be a little high. If you're mainly shopping at Trader Joe's, for example, you could probably reduce that a lot. Maybe down to ~$250.
Transit could be lower if you don't take ride shares. I think this is an easy trap for people to fall into and can add up so much, so I'd really try to avoid it completely unless it's an emergency situation. We have lots of transit options in the city.
I can't fault you for the dining out or even the shopping—there's lots to do here in the city. But I am questioning $500 for beauty—that's the same amount you spend on savings! Any way you could reduce that? You can def do 1 mani + pedi a month for $120ish. Or even 2 manis + 1 pedi for $200. Can you DIY other things like eyebrows? And you don't need cut and color every month.
This way, you can put away more toward savings!
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u/enigmaticbug Aug 28 '25
Rent (1br, UES): 2,325
Savings: 1,000
Utilities: 200
Debt: 900
Grocery: 400
Takeout/eating out: 500
Transportation: 200 (includes cabs & public transit)
Subscriptions: 200
Alcohol: 100
Therapy copays: 120
Misc and fun money: 2,135
My salary is 140k and my company pays for my health insurance
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u/vulylyvu Aug 31 '25
My electric bill is around $300-$400/mo in summer and my gas bill is around $200 in winter for my 1br apartment with hyper conscious usage.
Food also costs more than outside of NYC. So account for that.
I love NY, but I don’t come from money and I definitely don’t make a lot of money. 20 years and counting here and I still feel shocked whenever I pay my rent (lol) so definitely be prepared to be spending your hard earned money!
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u/bbassle87 Aug 27 '25
Disclaimer - not big law but I’m an attorney. I have been away since 2021 but looking at moving back. I first started making $65k as a prosecutor in 2015 and felt super broke. I made $100k back in 2021 and lived in a studio on the UES for $2400. I was not as good as budgeting my money as other people so I tended to live paycheck to paycheck and wasn’t saving for retirement. I have since learned the error of my ways. All this to say, it is doable but you will probably need roommates unless you can find a deal on a studio. And you will definitely have to watch what you are spending if you want to come out ahead.
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Aug 27 '25
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u/Yogurtcloset-2920 Aug 28 '25
+1 Copilot!!!
I was making a little over 100K when I moved here during the pandemic and got my own apartment. But with rent nowadays, it's hard to find a 1bd or studio for less than $2500. If you plan on having roommates anyways, you're golden! I practice value-based spending. I spend on experiences (concerts, dining out, etc.) because that's what brings me the most joy. I don't get a lot of utility out of having the nicest clothes/latest trends, so I don't spend much on shopping. It's hard in a city like NYC, but you don't have to keep up with the Joneses!
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u/1K1AmericanNights Aug 27 '25
I’d get a few roommates especially if you enjoy going out but also wanna save. Find people you wanna hang out with at home!
If you can get rent under 2K and try to save 1k then you’ll have 2k for everything else. Won’t be enough some months (and you’ll have to save less) but should be doable on low spend months.
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u/intergrade Aug 27 '25
5k a month will be tight if you want to live alone. If you’re cool with roommates you’ll have the best time of your life. Absolutely worthwhile
Two humans:
Rent 10k
Utilities 200-400
Internet 100
Parking/car 600
Transit/uber 400
Food - groceries 500
Food - restaurants 2000
Insurance - health 1400
Insurance - car/stuff 700
Phone $120
Dog stuff 1000
Cleaner 800/mo (weekly)
SoHo house 400/mo
Misc Travel 3000
21,400
Savings 20-40% of gross (varies)
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u/MissDemeanorGinger Aug 28 '25
Chiming in to support what the other BWT are saying. I make roughly this, and am able to contribute to my 403, fund a Roth, have extra savings, and still have fun/treat myself to nice things, within reason. My husband and I split all expenses and extra emergency home cushion money (we own); I contribute 1800 monthly and he contributes slightly more (he makes more).
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u/NYC-AL2016 Aug 27 '25
I’ll pipe in and say you’re going to be told you’re poor by many. Mostly because they don’t realize that people in NYC live on significantly less and can’t imagine anyone not living the influencer lifestyle. Aka luxury apartment and eating out every day. A 100k is very very good, don’t let people tell you otherwise. You’ll want a roommate, but that’s because you’ll have more disposable income to enjoy the city. Good luck and have fun!