I’m a 30-year-old salaried woman living in the capital city of a tropical country. In the previous post, I mentioned that my income is currently around $540, and that I must spend $140 each month on rent. At this point, I don’t even know whether this budget is good. I’m not here to justify my choices, but to open a discussion: am I managing my money well, or not?
Let’s jump into the first-world problem: food. To be honest, I don’t really spend much on food; I try to make sure that I have enough nutrition each day. I actually only eat a big meal once a day, usually at lunch. I spent approximately $1.5-$3 per lunch, or around $9 for a so-called fancy meal, 1-3 times a month. I spent $35-$42 per month on groceries, including dairy, eggs, and fruit for my everyday quick breakfasts and dinners. In total, I spend around $140 per month on food at most.
Next is transportation. I don’t have a car, motorbike, or even a bicycle. I am a dedicated pedestrian, you might say, which is quite rare in my country. My rent is also about 30 minutes from work on foot, so transportation will cost $0 a day if I’m not too lazy to walk. However, I recently chose to take the bus to work because I don’t want to get to the office sweaty (remember I live in a tropical country, right?). It’s only $0.2 per trip, and it’s flat. Let’s say I go out twice a month (I’m more of an introverted indoor person). So, I will spend around $5-$10 a month on transportation.
By this far, I’ve spent approximately $290 a month. Next, I need to pay monthly bills for subscriptions, electricity, phone data, water, etc., totaling around $72. For entertainment, since I don’t drink and I don’t like social gatherings, I usually go to the theatre once or twice a month, which costs $11. Finally, to sum it up, I spend around $373 a month. The remaining ~$167 goes into savings.
I consider this a frugal life, though I’m not sure how others would define it. So, what do you think? Am I being too strict with myself, or am I missing something? And how much does it cost to live comfortably where you are?