Our handy table can help...
Food, rent, mortgage payments and household bills are all essential spends. But there are other things that you may prioritise as essential spending for you (these could be completely different items for someone else). These ‘nonessential essentials’ can be just as important for your wellbeing and general enjoyment of day-to-day life.
A TV subscription, your daily coffee, a treat every now and then – your regular spending on these things might add up to more than you think. But as well as doing the maths and working out whether you can afford it, the amount you use these things and their value to you, should also be part of the equation. Because how you feel about them could outweigh the extra cost, so you might not necessarily have to cut back.
Once you’ve worked out the reality of your monthly spending on ‘nonessential essentials’, the final question you have to ask yourself is:
All maths considered, do I still think it’s worth it?
