Welcome to Money Diaries, where we're tackling what might be the last taboo facing modern working women: money. We're asking a cross-section of women how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period – and we're tracking every last penny.
This week we're with a 27-year-old who works in banking in London. She earns well but says she has now sort of lost the ability not to waste money, as she doesn't see the consequences of running out. She is hoping that keeping this record will shame her as she thinks she should be saving much more than she currently is...
Industry: Finance/ Banking
Age: 27
Location: London
Salary: £75k
Paycheque amount per month: Varies by month (depends on bonus), but usually £3.6k (I think?!)
Number of housemates: 3
Monthly Expenses
Housing costs: £720
Loan payments: £0 – paid off my student loan last month!
Utilities: Around £110 – including £25 a month for a weekly cleaner for the communal bits of the house.
Transportation: Usually I buy a monthly zone 1-2 travelcard for £130, but this month I’m doing without.
Phone bill: £45
Health insurance: £0
Savings? I have set payments into a help-to-buy and a savings ISA each month where the maximum I can put in is £700. The idea is then to transfer anything else remaining at the end of the month into another savings account but due to lots of upfront costs for holidays, festivals, hen parties, etc earlier this year (plus an ability to leak money constantly!), I haven’t done this for a while.
Other: Insurance £6 monthly, Gym membership (with a hefty corporate discount through my company) £50, Times subscription + other magazine subscriptions – around £40 month, discounted ClassPass subscription £19.
Day One
8.30am: Grab my usual (free-ish) Waitrose coffee on my way into work. I pay 50p for an extra shot of coffee. A double shot is especially needed today as it is my first day back at work after holiday. Full of good intentions, I have brought in some food from home – yoghurt and some cashew butter. My boss arrives just as I’ve finished my food, with lots of pastries for the team – which I can now resist.
11.30am: Morning dragging, grab another coffee and a bottle of water from work café between meetings as a reason to have a break from my desk. £3.15
2pm: Go for a quick lunchtime run and decide lunch made up of salad leftovers brought in from home is too measly. Buy a protein smoothie and raw avocado cheesecake to top up. Sort of healthy, even if annoyingly millennial. When I get back to my desk realise I was charged £2 too much. £8
4.15pm: Another random trip to escape the desk. Large overpriced tea from the work café. £1.80
6.20pm: Buy some stuff from Waitrose on way home including tonic water, fruit salad packs, yoghurt... I've got to do some interview prep when I get home tonight and a few G&Ts will make it less of a mindless way to spend the evening. £7.19
6.40pm: I put off going home by wandering into a few shops. Pick up some Nike leggings in the sale. Too lazy to try them on, I’ll return them later in the week if they’re no good. £25
6.40pm: Oyster top-up, usually I always just buy a monthly travelcard, however as I’ve only just got back from holiday and am out of London lots in the next month, better to just eke along on top-ups and weeklies. £38
Total: £83.64
Day Two
7.20am: Out of the house early for my interview. It’s before work, but luckily not too far to travel to. Pick up a Nero coffee en route, and eat with the fruit salad pack I picked up last night. £2.10
9.45am: Grab my Waitrose coffee on my way into the office. I snack on free fruit provided by work when I’m at my desk (interview adrenaline has made me hungry). 50p
11.30am: Grab some bottled water and chewing gum from work café. £1.99
1pm: I go to a free lunchtime talk in my building and pick at some of the free crisps and flapjacks on the side. I don’t fancy the free sandwiches so instead grab a smoked salmon and grilled veg salad on my way back to my desk. I buy it from the place I got overcharged for my smoothie yesterday and explain (with a bit of a flirt) to the male cashier, and get the salad for a discounted price. £3
3.30pm: Fill up on free fruit and chocolates from colleagues' holidays. Remember I brought in a weird homemade oaty smoothie yesterday that I forgot to drink. Tastes rank, but finish it anyway. Pop out to buy bottle of sparkling water as something to do/ break from desk. 56p
5.30pm: Leave work on the dot and fit in a barre class. Grab a bottle of water and sushi pack en route. £2.10
7pm: Buy a protein smoothie post-class, and two granola yoghurt pots. Eat one, save one for tomorrow's breakfast. £11.50
8pm: Pub quiz with old housemates. £2 entry. We don’t do rounds as not everyone’s drinking, but I get two glasses of wine for me and my housemate as I end up eating half her squid when it arrives. £20.45
Total: £42.20
Day Three
8.40am: Waitrose coffee en route to work. Eat yesterday’s granola pot at desk. 50p
10.45am: Run out for 15 minutes to return Nike leggings to assuage some money guilt (+23.95!). Already keeping this money diary has shown me how much money I leak – and so far I’m having a far cheaper week than usual. Grab bottle of sparkling water and some gum on the way back – know I buy lots of water, but cool with it as it's meant I’ve kicked my Diet Coke habit.
2pm: Weather is amazing!! Go for a run at lunchtime along the river, and I grab food afterwards en route back to my desk. I overspend on a mixed pay-by-weight salad bowl, and piece of homemade carrot cake. Clearly there is nothing subsidised about our work canteen. £11.85
3pm: Buy a candle and perfume from the White Co using an old gift card. Gift card covers everything except basically the P&P. Smug. £4
3.30pm: Iced frappe. £3.15
6.30pm: Diet Coke and some sweets for cinema with friends. £1.82
7pm: I bought tickets for the cinema ages ago because it’s a premiere screening. I buy a large glass of house red from the bar, and get given free ice cream. £7.25
9.45pm: Run into Whole Foods and grab a (very) modest serving of pulled pork and chipotle sweet potato. Eat it on the bus home, and feel guilty for being that person on public transport who stinks the bus out. Whoops. £5.18
Total: £9.80
Day Four
8.15am: Working from home today as I’ve got a doctor’s appointment, but annoyingly wake up at my normal alarm time (after a night of insomnia) and can’t go back to sleep. Get up and cycle to the shops to pick up some snacks for the day, including chocolate and fruit. £3.47
12.30pm: Cycle to shops at lunch. Buy toiletries, coconut frappe, a Curly Wurly, and a chicken salad meal deal. £14.03
7pm: Not a week I should be diarising if I want to look good! Swerved out of a Bumble date (sorry!) earlier in the day as I’m so tired and would have zero chat. Do drinks with friends and sink two wines on a happy hour very quickly. £6
8.30pm: I can hardly keep my eyes open and head home early even though it's broad daylight and haven’t had a wild week. God knows how I’m going to deal with summer. I do a comfort shop including chocolate, shitty magazine, sweets, and smoked trout. I have a loyalty voucher to use so only costs 31p actual cash. I go home and eat it all alongside wine from the fridge leftover from my housemate’s dinner party last week. 31p
Total: £23.81
Day Five
8.45am: I pick up coffee, and almond sea salt bar from Waitrose on way into office. £3
1pm: Sweet chilli halloumi strips, caesar side salad, fruit smoothie. Yummy, although I thought the strips were chicken and therefore (relatively) healthy. One bite in I discover they’re fried halloumi. £7.25
4pm: Chewing gum and caramel latte from work café. Barista upgrades me to a massive bucket-size coffee for no reason. Sort of embarrassed bringing this size coffee back to my desk. £2.95
6.30pm: Get some mixers to bring to a friend’s office rooftop in central. His boss left us a couple of bottles of Belvedere vodka for us to do after-work drinks (job envy much?). £1.10
8pm: Buy a bottle of white wine at bar at a gig with friends, we take it in turns to buy rounds. Tickets were pre-bought. £14
11.30pm: We don’t want to head out out but too early to call it a night so we head to Wagamama. I don’t want to eat so just drink wine and chip a tenner in at the end. £10
Total: £38.30
Day Six
11.20am: (Free) Waitrose coffee and some fruit before I jump on the Tube and head to meet a friend in the park because it's such good weather. 61p
2.10pm: Don’t feel hungry yet, and just grab a water, frappe and big bag of spicy nuts when I get to the shops. £5.61
2.30pm: Pick up some shoes in the sale. They're cheap so it doesn’t matter that I’ll probably only wear them a few times. £18
3.20pm: Free John Lewis voucher for cappuccino and millionaire's shortbread.
4pm: Go to a wine car boot sale with friends. Spend £10 but get free tote, and lots of free samples! £10
5.35pm: Mango frappe and pot of mango plus some mixer for drinks with housemates back at the house. Finish the rest of the nuts. £5.75
8.30pm: At the pub for my housemate's birthday. Take it in turns to buy bottles of house white with friends, and head home at midnight in cab with housemate (she pays). £14.60
Total: £54.57
Day Seven
10.45am: (Free) Waitrose coffee and some fruit. 61p
12.50pm: After two back-to-back studio classes – a spin and a cardio – pick up a protein smoothie which I pretty much down. £4.50
1.30pm: Buy some fake tan from Boots, and buy my usual foundation to stock up as it's 20% off due to a promotional offer in store. £26.40
2pm: Buy loads of bits too boring to list for Glasto and vitamins from Holland & Barrett. £13.87
2.30pm: Hungry again, so I grab snacks to go from Whole Foods (plus loads of free samples while I'm there), and a frappucino from Starbucks. This is what I meant by leaking money at weekends! £10.97
3pm: Buy two much-reduced skirts in the sale from Urban Outfitters. Love them both! Know what I’ll be wearing to work tomorrow. £50
4pm: I go to an afternoon talk promoting a book release. It's supposed to be £6 but due to problems with their card reader they let me sneak in for free. I also get a free piece of ridiculously yummy banana bread from the author.
5.45pm: I meet my brother in central. We grab a char siu bun from Chinatown, plus wine and water in a bar afterwards. He pays for all as he owes me for some theatre tickets I booked for us recently.
9.05pm: Hungry (again) as we make a move to head home. Pick up a 7up, vegetable samosa and popcorn from the gross newsagents inside the Tube as nothing's open in central. Forget to eat the popcorn, and drink some leftover rosé from the fridge when I get back home with my housemate. £5.46
Total: £111.81
The Breakdown
Food & Drink: £200.20
Entertainment: £0
Clothes/Beauty: £109.32
Travel: £38
Other: £16
Weekly Total: £363.52
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