What did you spend in 2020?

[iamblessed]

We spent about 22k for everything including income taxes. We are retired.

[stan1]

Congratulations, but how is this actionable?

[iamblessed]

We compare spending every year on the forum. It goes back many years. It's almost a tradition.

[count damoney]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

[Harry Livermore]

I won't have that information until next month or later, as we only track it forensically.
But probably similar to The Count who posted above me, although college outlays are closer to $80K with two in at the same time (only this year though!) and our mortgage, property tax, and insurance costs are all much higher. No landscaping projects for us this year!
My income went down by 2/3 because of COVID, so we are just soldiering on with my wife's income, rental property income, and 1/3 my usual income.
Here's hoping that 2021 is better!

Cheers

[jebmke]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

[smitcat]

Due to the pandemic about 20% less than budgeted expenses for 2020.
This does not include taxes or "one-off" purchases or expenses.

[core4portfolio]

Spend mostly on Grocery and online shopping.
work desk from costco for 229+ tax is one major spend besides grocery

[tiburblium]

All our expenses are funneled through a (2% cash back ) credit card so it's easy compare:

2017: 90k
2018: 100k
2019: 95k
2020: 50k

(This does not include tax payments)

[paulinkansas]

I spent around $1600 on 28 gauge shotgun shells in Argentina over a 3 day period.

[H-Town]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

I read it as 55k of savings that was put towards investment.

[count damoney]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

I read it as 55k put towards investment.

You read it correct

[TomatoTomahto]

I spent around $1600 on 28 gauge shotgun shells in Argentina over a 3 day period.

You’re not in Kansas any more?

[jebmke]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

I read it as 55k put towards investment.

You read it correct

That wouldn't not be an expense by my definition since I still had possession of the money. No different than, say, giving my spouse some money - not an expense until it get spent.

[TheCookieMonster]

This is for a married couple of 2 with no kids, focused on living expenses. I didn't include taxes, investments (neither contributions nor fees), or things like employer contributions to health insurance.

~$66k total
~37k home (rent, furniture, renter's insurance)
~9k food (mostly groceries this year, for obvious reasons)
~6k donations
~3k miscellaneous shopping (amazon etc.)
~3k bills & utilities (power, internet, streaming subscriptions)
~2k travel
~1k gym and sports
~1k medical
~1k gifts
~1k accountants
~1k entertainment
~1k transportation
~1k other

The numbers might not sum up due to my sloppy rounding, and I'm mostly leaning on Mint's default categories so some of them like "entertainment" are a bit poorly defined.

[dodecahedron]

My biggest expenses (by far) were charitable contributions, larger than normal due to all the hardship I have seen around me. I also contributed a bunch to political campaigns and Get-out-the-vote grass roots.

Also had a bunch of unplanned capital expenses (new AC, other HVAC upgrades to improve ventilation and winter humidity to mitigate potential COVID exposure from household member in high risk job) plus some other major infrastructure issues (plumbing) of the type one expects in an 82-year-old home.

But my day-to-day was very cheap. No restaurants since mid-February. Grocery shopping done very mindfully with lists (online at first but then in person but as efficiently as possible, now online curbside again) prevented impulse buys. No travel since Dec 2019. Very little gas. Electricity has been "free" since my CSA solar generates more than I use. Gas bills have been low due to mild weather.

I have been walking a lot! I did an 800 mile *virtual* hike through the Adirondacks and am currently on the third day of a 480 mile *virtual* Camino hike. On the Adirondack hike I averaged almost 8 miles a day and grew an entire shoe size, so needed new shoes. I splurged and got some really nice Goretex ones.

[Ramjet]

A lot less than in most years. My wife and I were lucky enough to keep our jobs through Covid/the poor economy. We worked from home most of the year which cut down on parking costs, gas, food expenses, etc. I guess everything comes full circle though eventually, we saved so much that my wife wants to remodel our family room

[sailaway]

A lot less than in most years. My wife and I were lucky enough to keep our jobs through Covid/the poor economy. We worked from home most of the year which cut down on parking costs, gas, food expenses, etc. I guess everything comes full circle though eventually, we saved so much that my wife wants to remodel our family room

A month ago, this might have been us. However, in the last few weeks DH decided to get invasalign a week after we put down the deposit on a new boat project

[flyingaway]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

It is interesting that some people list "investments" as spending. I guess they did not mean "investments" on someone, i.e., education, experiences, etc.

[MikeG62]

We spent about 22k for everything including income taxes. We are retired.

We spent more than that just on food (for 3 adults), which just goes to show that Bogleheads have a wide range of income amd expenses.

Same

I'll answer the OP's question this way (based upon preliminary data as all the dust has not quite settled).

25% below budget (due almost entirely to lack of T&E resulting from the pandemic)
23% below 2019 (for the same reason as the budget variance)

[SmileyFace]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

I read it as 55k put towards investment.

You read it correct

55/271 is over 20%. That isn't too shabby of an investment rate - not something to be depressed about. Especially during a year where many lost their jobs and others of us have had "COVID salary reductions".

[TierArtz]

Only listing those above $10K of $210K total:
Tax (not including sales taxes): $79K
"Sporting Goods" (A 2020 oddity; could sell for more): $23K
Food: $18K
Mortgage: $14K
Utilities: $13K
Home Maintenance: $11K

I also don't consider investing spending, and set a new personal best: $147K

[delamer]

We spent about 22k for everything including income taxes. We are retired.

We spent more than that just on food (for 3 adults), which just goes to show that Bogleheads have a wide range of income amd expenses.

Bogleheads follow the investing principles of John Bogle, whether they spend $22,000/year or $2.2 million.

[Stoic9]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

It is interesting that some people list "investments" as spending. I guess they did not mean "investments" on someone, i.e., education, experiences, etc.

In our case we purchased a new house. As I explained to spouseiod that is not spending when you buy a house. Been 5 months and increase market value is 22K. We spent a lot less this year than 2019 as most our retirement passive income goes toward travel (60-65%). That means I invested a lot more this year. this caused our NW to jump 18% this year.

[count damoney]

Ugg . .. this is depressing.
$271k broken out as follows:

$24k mortgage
$55k investments
$60k expenses (food, utilities, entertainment, car lease, cell phones etc)
$17k landscaping project
$18k kids college
$8k property taxes
$6k insurance (auto, home, umbrella, etc)
$10.5k FICA/Medicare
$10k state income tax
$62.5K federal income tax

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

I read it as 55k put towards investment.

You read it correct

That wouldn't not be an expense by my definition since I still had possession of the money. No different than, say, giving my spouse some money - not an expense until it get spent.

Guess anyone can have their own definition.
The way I look at it as I've "spent" cash on a restricted asset . .similar to a house.
Both could appreciate or depreciate in value. Both could be converted to cash, but at a cost (penalties, broker fees, etc)

[d0gerz]

I'm definitely in the 'investments are an expense' camp.

$37.5k 401k + IRA + HSA
$36.5k After-tax Savings
$27k PITI
$20k Federal Taxes
$18k Earmarked for charitable giving
$11k FICA + Medicare
$7.5k State Tax
$7k Insurance (Medical, dental, life, LTD)
$7k Groceries + Takeout
$6k Pre-school tuition + 529
$4.5k Household
$3.5k Utilities
$2k Auto (insurance + repair/maintenance etc)
$1k Taxes owed on 2019 income
$3.5k Everything else not captured above

[Vtsax100]

Just enough. Not just a little and not too much.

[iamblessed]

We spent about 22k for everything including income taxes. We are retired.

We spent more than that just on food (for 3 adults), which just goes to show that Bogleheads have a wide range of income amd expenses.

Bogleheads follow the investing principles of John Bogle, whether they spend $22,000/year or $2.2 million.

I love the wide range of answers each year. I think in past years some have gone up in the 300k-400k range.

[Harry Livermore]

I spent around $1600 on 28 gauge shotgun shells in Argentina over a 3 day period.

Although not knowing exactly what you were doing, I will make an educated guess and conclude that you had a lot of fun!
Cheers

[paulinkansas]

I spent around $1600 on 28 gauge shotgun shells in Argentina over a 3 day period.

Although not knowing exactly what you were doing, I will make an educated guess and conclude that you had a lot of fun!
Cheers

4 of us went down for a dove hunt at a resort.

[Harry Livermore]

I spent around $1600 on 28 gauge shotgun shells in Argentina over a 3 day period.

Although not knowing exactly what you were doing, I will make an educated guess and conclude that you had a lot of fun!
Cheers

4 of us went down for a dove hunt at a resort.

Nice! I bet it was a great trip. Hopefully not too troublesome in the time of COVID (other than the flight perhaps)
Cheers

[Silverado]

Congratulations, but how is this actionable?

By answering the question posed. Second tier, read the responses. Third tier, reflect on what you answered and what others answered.

We relocated this year, hard to separate some of the dollars. But somewhere around $50k.

[UpperNwGuy]

Is the winner the one who spends the most or the one who spends the least? I find this thread to be exceedingly odd.

[bonglehead]

This year I spent considerable amount of time to track my expenses since 2014 (using mint.com) and overall my spending went down a little bit in 2020, although some categories increased significantly while others were down
[

Code: Select all

select all 
Category         	2014     	2015     	2016     	2017     	2018     	2019     	2020     
Auto &Transport  	$6,707   	$5,267   	$7,670   	$6,159   	$7,789   	$5,403   	$4,644   
Bills & Utilities	$7,720   	$7,837   	$7,394   	$7,768   	$9,444   	$7,029   	$4,939   
Entertainment    	$1,372   	$895     	$1,229   	$1,655   	$1,767   	$1,658   	$622     
Fees & Charges   	$1,279   	$747     	$970     	$256     	$166     	$3,057   	$1,419   
Food & Dining    	$18,239  	$23,478  	$18,161  	$22,509  	$21,394  	$20,576  	$9,443   
Gifts & Donations	$6,624   	$2,258   	$3,714   	$3,634   	$3,757   	$3,369   	$4,615   
Health & Fitness 	$5,381   	$5,451   	$4,046   	$10,348  	$8,095   	$8,095   	$2,310   
Home             	$42,831  	$40,438  	$33,522  	$51,411  	$60,876  	$34,819  	$42,755  
Kids             	$3,297   	$1,929   	$1,783   	$3,850   	$6,108   	$5,826   	$5,899   
Personal Care    	$1,368   	$1,597   	$1,731   	$2,449   	$3,306   	$2,887   	$953     
Pets             	         	$1,554   	$244     	$1,157   	$1,387   	$628     	$549     
Shopping         	$10,479  	$15,253  	$18,606  	$28,720  	$32,232  	$29,578  	$31,446  
Travel           	$10,867  	$23,556  	$3,491   	$6,843   	$8,800   	$13,312  	$2,625   
Uncategorized    	$7,890   	$8,674   	$11,046  	$7,559   	$5,473   	$1,945   	$504     
Total            	$124,053 	$138,935 	$113,609 	$154,318 	$170,595 	$138,182 	$112,723 

[mak1277]

Is the winner the one who spends the most or the one who spends the least? I find this thread to be exceedingly odd.

Definitely the one who spends the most.

I won't do my bookkeeping for December until next week, but we'll probably be around $80-$85k. That doesn't include taxes (a number substantially higher than $85k) or charitable contributions.

[FrankLUSMC]

This year I spent considerable amount of time to track my expenses since 2014 (using mint.com) and overall my spending went down a little bit in 2020, although some categories increased significantly while others were down
[

Code: Select all

select all 
Category         	2014     	2015     	2016     	2017     	2018     	2019     	2020     
Auto &Transport  	$6,707   	$5,267   	$7,670   	$6,159   	$7,789   	$5,403   	$4,644   
Bills & Utilities	$7,720   	$7,837   	$7,394   	$7,768   	$9,444   	$7,029   	$4,939   
Entertainment    	$1,372   	$895     	$1,229   	$1,655   	$1,767   	$1,658   	$622     
Fees & Charges   	$1,279   	$747     	$970     	$256     	$166     	$3,057   	$1,419   
Food & Dining    	$18,239  	$23,478  	$18,161  	$22,509  	$21,394  	$20,576  	$9,443   
Gifts & Donations	$6,624   	$2,258   	$3,714   	$3,634   	$3,757   	$3,369   	$4,615   
Health & Fitness 	$5,381   	$5,451   	$4,046   	$10,348  	$8,095   	$8,095   	$2,310   
Home             	$42,831  	$40,438  	$33,522  	$51,411  	$60,876  	$34,819  	$42,755  
Kids             	$3,297   	$1,929   	$1,783   	$3,850   	$6,108   	$5,826   	$5,899   
Personal Care    	$1,368   	$1,597   	$1,731   	$2,449   	$3,306   	$2,887   	$953     
Pets             	         	$1,554   	$244     	$1,157   	$1,387   	$628     	$549     
Shopping         	$10,479  	$15,253  	$18,606  	$28,720  	$32,232  	$29,578  	$31,446  
Travel           	$10,867  	$23,556  	$3,491   	$6,843   	$8,800   	$13,312  	$2,625   
Uncategorized    	$7,890   	$8,674   	$11,046  	$7,559   	$5,473   	$1,945   	$504     
Total            	$124,053 	$138,935 	$113,609 	$154,318 	$170,595 	$138,182 	$112,723 

HaHA, I like that personal care figure. You pretty much have gone to pot!

[kevin99]

We spent about 71K this year not including income taxes, but this was an unusually low year because of no travel, or daycare, or eating out. It might be helpful if others post some information on their family situation, housing, and location as well (whatever info you are comfortable sharing). We are a family of four in a medium to high COL area in NY state outside of NYC, and paying a mortgage on a $450K house.

[stan1]

Just enough. Not just a little and not too much.

Seems like a good answer to me.

[jebmke]

^ same, spent just enough to pay all the bills and pay our taxes.

[placeholder]

Don't really worry about that sort of thing.

[HawkeyePierce]

Gross income: $307,915
Taxes: $81,871
Total spending: $120,071
Total savings: $105,973

[Clever_Username]

I don't have it perfectly itemized, but I didn't buy any new golf clubs this year and I spent a lot less on in-restaurant dining than I usually do.

I also bought a new car.

[Normchad]

I have never tracked my investment expense. I probably should estimated it just for kicks. My ER is very low so it wouldn't cause me to change anything but it might be an interesting exercise. Would also have to add it to income to do the accounting correctly.

I read it as 55k put towards investment.

This is interesting. It’
You read it correct

That wouldn't not be an expense by my definition since I still had possession of the money. No different than, say, giving my spouse some money - not an expense until it get spent.

Guess anyone can have their own definition.
The way I look at it as I've "spent" cash on a restricted asset . .similar to a house.
Both could appreciate or depreciate in value. Both could be converted to cash, but at a cost (penalties, broker fees, etc)

This is interesting, it’s not how I instinctively think of it. Upon further reflection though, I do see the sense of it.

If my employer pays me $5K into my checking account, and I just leave it there, it’s not an expense. Savings is just everything I don’t spend, right?

If I invest it in VTSAX, nothing has really changed. But I understand some can say “actually, I did spend it. I used that $5K to buy 123 shares of.VTSAX”. So in that way, they did spend it. It just wasn’t intuitive to me when I first read it.

[tennisplyr]

Don't really worry about that sort of thing.

+1

[flyingaway]

We don't track our spending. But I know we maxed out all our retirement accounts and put some in our taxable accounts. The remaining money was wasted on eating, drinking, and gambling.

[UpperNwGuy]

Very few people seem to be listing taxes as part of their spending. Does that mean they don't pay taxes?

[Godot]

Is the winner the one who spends the most or the one who spends the least? I find this thread to be exceedingly odd.

Indeed. Primarily humble bragging and less humble bragging. Oh, it's a "tradition."

[treadingwater]

47k for 2020. This includes the cost to move halfway across the country, a 2 week vacation, and our taxes also.

[ohboy!]

Paid off mortgage but will not include. Not including investments or income tax. Not including points earned and burned (probably $4k worth). Rounded figures

$6k prop tax
$5k food
$2k travel
$2k utilities
$4k health insurance
$500 house insurance
$2k car insurance, gas and maintenance
$2k frivolous

[jhawktx]

We compare spending every year on the forum. It goes back many years. It's almost a tradition.

Why?