As previously mentioned, Glamour got seriously savvy with its June issue and collected some hard numbers about the spending habits of most women. The one finding that came as a surprise to me is the number of women who don't talk about spending with their partner, but a couple of them actually made me feel validated in my own habits — particularly the one about eating out as the hardest spending habit to break. Do you see yourself in any of these numbers?
- Forty percent of women say they've never talked about their spending habits with their partner
- Fifteen percent of women put everyday purchases on credit
- Fifty-five percent of women younger than 30 consider themselves bargain hunters
- Thirty-six percent of women say they spend more than they can afford — at least sometimes
- Forty-one percent of women ages 17 to 26 spend more than $100 on a pair of jeans
- Forty-nine percent of women say eating out or getting takeout is the hardest spending habit to break
- $450 is the average amount that a young single woman making about $34,000 spends on alcohol each year
Catherine Malandrino
Avon
Gambini
Some of those surprise me. I'm under 30 and consider myself a bargain hunter. I also put everyday purchases on my credit card, but I pay the balance off every month.
1Haha I definatly believe that last one!!!
2I agree that eating out is definitely the toughest to break.
I think that the definition of bargain hunter just depends on the person. There are probably a lot of people out there that consider themselves one and I wouldn't.
3Some of these are soo true for me. I try not to eat out but it's hard when my friends are all eating out and then they invite me. And the last one about alcohol is very true with my and my girlfriends. Last week I spent over $60 on alcohol! Just one Grey Goose cost me about $30! I seriously need to stop with my alcohol consumption.
4Forty-one percent of women ages 17 to 26 spend more than $100 on a pair of jeans
wow. seriously?! how the heck can a 17 year old afford that?! I didn't buy my first pair of nice jeans until this year, and I'm 27. It's the first year I've had a stable job!!
5Well, I don't eat out/take out, so that doesn't hurt me...but although I make more than 34K, $450 is my alcohol expenditure for like 3 months, not even close to the whole year!!
6How can you not talk to your partner about money/spending habits? I mean, maybe if you're not married, but if you're married or engaged, I'd believe it would somehow "come up" in conversation. Wouldn't it?
7I'd say takeout the hardest one for me to break.
8I put everything on credit for the reward points and $ back.
I also pay it off almost immediately.
Eating out is one of the toughest to break. I always think about how much money I could save if I pre-made my lunch... but I never act on it.
9ok most of them sum me up lol if not more. i eat out way too much and spend way more then that on alcohol. all my jeans cost over 100 (though i haven't bought any in a while) and i use my CC for everything
10I don't think I've ever paid more than $30.00 for a pair of jeans. Most of the time I try to keep it around $20.00.
I do put everyday expenses on my CC, but like hippiecowgirl, I pay it off at the end of the month. I never have cash.
And my fiance definitely knows my spending habits. We've stopped going out to eat during the week and reserve our sushi time for Saturday nights.
11Geez, I don't remember giving an interview to Glamour magazine? LOL!
My BF and I had a little convo this weekend about my spending habits. Hello wake-up call!
I totally agree that women find it hardest to stop eating out. I've got a great group of girlfriends at work, and we love to eat out for lunch. I'm gonna have to cut down.
12I love eating out, so I'm not trying to break that habit! It just means I can't spend $ on expensive jeans or whatever
13This also really accurately reflects my spending other than putting everyday purchases on credit. Oh and the alcohol thing, I spend WAY more than that (taking into consideration I make more than that too)
Plus a good pair of jeans is a staple. The jeans that I have spent more than a $100 on are long term investments!
14Eating out is a difficult one to break... And I put most purchases on a credit card, but I pay it off every month; it eliminates the problem with change I have when paying with cash, and I see the number each month telling me how much I spent on everything, which actually works better for me than using cash, especially since I can then look to see where it went.
Some of the others don't fit me though. I've been considering paying more than $25 for jeans, and have been thinking it over for months now, even though apparently a number of women my age (at least among those who read Glamour) spend more than twice as much as what I'm thinking of spending on jeans.
15I talk about my spending habits with my boyfriend.
I rarely use my credit card. Only carry cash. No cash no purchase.
I do consider myself a bargain hunter.
Never paid more than a $100 for jeans.
Eat out once a month. I cook all meals at home.
And I don't drink.
16takeout is the hardest for me. I have been good with spending money on clothing.
17I don't drink at all, so there's $450 I save every year! But I overspend on eating in restaurants and ordering pizza and chinese food. I'll never be able to save in that area.
18I basically always use my credit card (except when places don't accept credit cards, grrr), but I have never carried over a balance. Plus, since I get dividends from using my credit card, it ends up helping me.
19I guess this confirms that my spending is more conservative than normal? I never charge anything to credit, and I certainly don't spend that much on alcohol in a year! I do, probably, spend more than I should on eating out (and coffee!), but I usually eat pretty cheap..
20$450 is a lot to spend on booze. and think of all the calories you're consuming too! more than 450.
glad I don't really fit into any of those categories of spending.
21i think that it's interesting to see the jeans comment. most women these days like to wear designer jeans and most of them cost more than $100. oh well.
i think that my habits are pretty 'normal'. i don't use credit cards...cause i hate paying the bill. i use my debit card for all my purchases which pretty much regulates what i can and cannot buy.
22-hard to believe that a married or engaged couple doesn't discuss spending habits...isn't that the main source of fights?
-i put almost everything on credit, to get points, but i always pay it off, oftentimes i do it online before i even get my statement...visa is just easier than debit
-i love a good bargain, and i love stores like TJ Maxx, but i also don't shy away from luxuries. it's even better when you can get something designer for 50 or 75% off at an outlet or something!
-i can honestly say i don't spend more than i can afford. certainly, i live well for someone in an un-stable job, but it just means i can't save as much, it doesn't mean i'm seriously in debt
-$100 for jeans isn't really that much...?? i'm more interested to know what percentage spends $200+
-i more than agree that i spend a lot of money on FOOD! lunches out cost about $50 a week for me, and another 30-50$ is spent on dinners out, i'd say
- the booze stat seems just about right! thats less than $100 a week, which makes sense, given nights out, parties, weekends away etc.
all in all, i'd say i'm fairly normal!
23to the posters above, where the hell are you getting jeans for $20 and $25????????? even when i buy cheap jeans, like at old navy or american eagle, it's still 45-85$?????????
24Never have I spent more than $80 on jeans. Never! I think my biggest spending habit that I need to break is my daily latte. Booze...I am waaaaay under that!! I don't drink. Maybe once a year I will have a glass of champagne or an amaretto sour. I just don't really like alcohol much anymore. I try not to put everyday stuff on credit...only major purchases or special occasions. We do eat breakfast out quite a bit, but dinner and lunch only 2 times a week at the most. I am a home cookin mama. Guess I am below average on a lot.
25oh my god, wait - what the hell...i totally miscalculated the booze thing!!! 450$ is NOT A LOT! i was thinking more like $4500???? which would be less than $100 a week!! that seems about right, for a normal, social 20 something!!!!! $450 is less than $10 a week, which is less than a case of beer, a box of coolers, 2 cocktails at a bar or restaurant??? how could you get away with that?
26Oh, my jeans run between $25-$60 usually. I don't buy designer jeans cuz they don't fit above a size 10! I am a size 12 sometimes 14 depending on style and brand. So, Gap, Old Navy, Victorias Secret is where I get my jeans.
27• I talk about my spending habits with my boyfriend, even if he doesn't really care too much. More so, it's proud that I was able to find some cute clothes for cheap prices or that artichokes were on sale buy one get one free or something.
• I've never had a credit card, but I'm looking into getting one so I can have a credit score. Even then, it's going to be paid off right away since I'm not going to be buying what I can't afford and it is instead of paying cash or bank atm/debit card just so I'll have a FICO score.
• I'm definitely a bargain hunter... 90% of the clothes I buy are on clearance, sale racks or at outlets. Most of the dry goods/products I buy are generic brands or when they're on sale. Fresh goods are usually on sale or in season.
• I don't spend more than I can afford or more than I feel comfortable spending. I'll save up for something big.
• Over $100 for a SINGLE pair of jeans?? The most I've ever spent on a pair of jeans is maybe $30. I recently bought a pair of Seven7 jeans for $18 (orig. $60+).
• I do get takeout, but most last me more than one meal or is less than $4. My boyfriend I occasionally eat out, but we cook or eat at home a lot.
• My boyfriend enjoys a beer now and then, so I've bought some when it's my turn to buy groceries. Other than that, I don't really buy alcohol or even consume it.
28@fasdy: if you bought a pair of Seven7 jeans for $18 instead of their retail for $100+, I can assume you bought them at a thrift store or ebay or used? How much time did you spend on the entire purchase?
29I have never spent over $100 on a pair of jeans and I'm not one for drinking alcohol, but I can identify with the other points, especially the one on eating out. I would like to cook more, but my commute is long and by the time I get home every night, I'm usually too tired to do anything.
30I never put everyday things on a credit card, I don't spend more than I have or more than I will have in the next month or so. I won't allow myself to pile up huge credit card bills and pay all of that interest.
31I am def a bargain hunter and I'll be 26.
I would never spend more than $100 on jeans, ever!
And well I don't spend that much on booze a yr, I rarely drink.
32I'm a spender, always have been...I'm trying to be better though
33re: $25 jeans -- ebay and sales at the gap. also, if you wear levi's, sometimes they cost about $65 through the levis store, but $20 at sears. weird, but hey, fine by me.
34re: whomever asked about over $200 jeans- no, i can't say i have ever done that- that is my limit! mine are mostly between 130 and 185. (all though i did get two pair that were each over 200 a piece for only 50 bucks a piece- so that was an awesome sale)
35My husband is pretty conscious about us talking and managing money.
36I have never owned a credit card and don't plan to.
I do not spend my free time shopping for clothes that I would end up not using.
Dont go out that much to bars/drink.
Do enjoy going out to eat once or twice a week.
My hubby knows my spending habits!
I have 2 emergency only credit cards! I use my debit card for everything!
I'm not really a bargin hunter - I love Nordstrom's, Anthropolgie, ShopBop.com!!
I don't buy items that I cannot afford...this is why I use my debit card for everything!
I love denim - so yes I spend $$ on my jeans - I love J Brand, Hudson Jeans, Joe's Jeans!
My Hubby and I eat out on the weekends only (that incluses Fridays)! We discovered early on that we were spending way too much on eating out!
We don't drink that much...we usually order a drink with our dinner!
37$450 - that is all?
38Did they have to mention dining out? That's my absolute WORST habit! I know that I could pay some outstanding bills instead of eating out, but of course I don't feel guilty until my belly is full, lol.
39- Husband and I talk about budgets, savings, where the money is going, etc. But we don't generally talk about purchases before making them - just more of a "this is where our money is going each month/quarter/year".
- I need to put more on credit to get the points. Generally online purchases go on credit and I pay them off with the current or next paycheck - usually before the end of the billing cycle. One thing my husband pointed out is it's easier to contest a purchase on credit than on a debit card. Credit you can talk to the credit card company, with debit you have to go back to the store that mis-charged you to work out the issue.
- Not a bargain hunter unless you consider stocking up at the end of season sales at J Crew (I love getting cashmere sweaters on sale).
- Occasionally I spend more than I can afford but generally pay it off ASAP. Of course, I have enough in savings to cover my spending, but I hate to take money out of savings.
- Just splurged on a pair of Serfontaines last night. Though many of my jeans are in the $80-90 range.
- Waxes and wanes. Sometimes we eat out a lot, sometimes I go on cooking binges and we don't eat out at all.
- Not sure how much I spend - but it's definitely more, even when I was single.
40As a 21 year old, I actually JUST got my first pair of jeans that cost over $100 (7 for all mankind) this weekend. I realize that it's just hard to find good jeans and also since I'm petite, it is even harder. I'm giving in to good jeans now so they last longer and they need to get altered anyways.
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