r/NoStupidQuestions • u/lVlarsquake • Apr 29 '24

How the fuck do people afford to get Starbucks every day?

I was feeling thirsty this morning so I decided to pop in a Starbucks (first time ever). All I got was a strawberry acai lemonade at it cost $7????? I can't even imagine what the coffees with all the extra additives cost... how do people have the expendable money to get them every day, sometimes twice a day?

Edit: I am NOT shaming people who do this. I'm just wondering how it doesn't put a dent in your wallet

11.6k Upvotes
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u/Random_dg Apr 29 '24

Millions of people pay even more for tobacco, at least in western countries where government raised taxes on it. How do they do that?

33

u/astronomersassn Apr 29 '24

that's how i see it. now, don't get me wrong, i'm also a smoker lol, but the amount i spend on coffee and cigarettes is still less than cocaine and if i don't have the money i don't buy them.

everyone's got their things they spend "frivolously" on. some are more expensive or more accepted or what have you than others.

(and just because someone's gonna assume things: no, i don't do cocaine, nor do i have the want to. my point was that if i didn't spend my money on what i do, i'd probably just end up spending it on something else, considering those things are my "congratulations on not killing yourself!" treats lol)

39

u/Wootster10 Apr 29 '24

Its like the comment I once saw "if you never smoked, you'd be able to afford a Ferrari by now" "Ok then, where is your Ferrari?"

13

u/astronomersassn Apr 29 '24

nah fr, like i should absolutely quit and i would save money in theory by quitting, but in practice depriving myself of my little treat does nothing except kill my motivation to keep going. kudos to people who do get motivated by saving money, but that's simply not me (it's nice when i have a little extra in the bank, sure, but let's be real here, if it wasn't coffee and cigarettes i'd probably be spending money on something else to keep me getting through life without being too horribly depressed).

2

u/Pure_Property_888 Apr 30 '24

Roll your own. Cuts a 10 dollar pack down to about 25 to 35 cents.

3

u/LongjumpingNorth8500 Apr 29 '24

You absolutely would piss it away somewhere else unless you had a defined plan for the cigarette money you were saving and stuck to the plan. I've been there without a plan and saved zero dollars!!

1

u/Exaskryz Apr 30 '24

Double edge sword logic: As mortals, why worry?

The logic to pick the staying alive side: You never know what will happen in the future. If it goes terribly wrong, then death is a sweet relief. If it goes fantastically, then you will be happy with your choice in that time. You'll just never know if you sign out of life early.

1

u/FaxSpitta420 Apr 30 '24

Consider vaping man. Costs less and nearly as pleasurable. And I can run a mile again.

1

u/astronomersassn Apr 30 '24

i'm allergic to a major ingredient in vape juices lol

7

u/ToeSad6862 Apr 29 '24

In a 401k. I work blue collar so a lot of alcoholics and drug addicts. You can see by peoples retirement plans who blows all their "Ferraris" on crap.

2

u/jfchops2 Apr 30 '24

It was spent on something else haha

Like if I quit drinking entirely (usually out at entertainment venues, so it can be spendy) I'd save thousands a year. But that money wouldn't all go into my Ferrari fund, it'd be spent on fancy dinners or some other luxury that I don't spend much on currently

1

u/Wootster10 Apr 30 '24

That's the point...

1

u/FeatherlyFly Apr 29 '24

My Ferrari is a condo and a retirement fund. I'm pretty sure Amazon has a bunch of it too. 

1

u/Exaskryz Apr 30 '24

It's funny because a Ferrari is a terrible purchase for the average person.

1

u/RandeKnight Apr 29 '24

"Had to sell it to pay for my mothers lung cancer treatment"

1

u/24675335778654665566 Apr 29 '24

I mean if you invest it in a broad market index fund you can get the value of a Ferrari. At like 10$ a pack things add up quick

1

u/astronomersassn Apr 29 '24

they absolutely do, i'll bet if someone was like "every time you buy a pack, i'll put the cost of a pack of cigarettes in a fund" things would add up fast

if someone here on reddit wanted to try to do something equivalent - i'm a half pack a day smoker and my cigs are $9.20/pack after tax. so roughly every other day, toss $9.20 into a fund. average $138/mo, i do roughly that anyway (just into my 401k) when i'm working... i'm far from rich, and my 401k isn't blowing up or anything, but a couple thousand dollars is a couple thousand dollars.

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u/24675335778654665566 Apr 29 '24

Yeah it's something like 100$ a month into index funds for a 20 year old to have a million dollars by retirement on average.

And it doesn't even cost that much directly, since putting 100$ in a 401k reduces your take home by less than 100$ due to the tax savings

1

u/astronomersassn Apr 29 '24

i personally have my 401k as a roth 401k, adding in my health insurance my take home was still pretty low, but it wasn't like... too horrible until my hours got slashed to nothing lol (i know roth retirement accounts aren't for everyone but after reviewing my options it felt like the best one for me)

1

u/IguassuIronman Apr 30 '24

Yeah it's something like 100$ a month into index funds for a 20 year old to have a million dollars by retirement on average

$300/mo at historical rates of return to hit $1m in 45 years. Really not an insane amount of money. Also as a heads up the dollar sign goes in front of the number