Anonymous wrote:Bringing lunch from home is MUCH less caloric than the majority of takeout downtown.

Yes, but when are you lying on your death bed are you going to say "Ah, I really enjoyed that salad I brought in for lunch every day"

Life is short. Live it.

Anonymous wrote:I am afraid to guess but I would say easily 12-15k.

This is about our estimate. We budget about $15,000 for eating out but I don't know if we hit that mark.

Family of 3
HHI of 250K

I did a quick calculation and I'd guess 10-12K per year, lunch included. A lot more than I would have guessed.

Family of 3.

Bringing lunch from home is MUCH less caloric than the majority of takeout downtown.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you claiming 1-3k. Have you actually sat down and calculated lunches, coffees, take out, etc.

I always thought that we spent somewhere in the 5k range annually until one year I decided to save ALL of my receipts.

Yes, we use Quicken to track expenses. We cook and eat at home and bring in lunches from home, DH drinks tea that we brew at home too. I brew my coffee at home.

I always feel sorry for people bringing lunches from home every single day. And not because they are poor, it's because I perceive them as being cheap, boring and inflexible.

How do you feel about people living way beyond their means? Not cheap, boring or inflexible, just foolish. And I NEVER bring my lunch from home.

I am afraid to guess but I would say easily 12-15k.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you claiming 1-3k. Have you actually sat down and calculated lunches, coffees, take out, etc.

I always thought that we spent somewhere in the 5k range annually until one year I decided to save ALL of my receipts.

Yes, we use Quicken to track expenses. We cook and eat at home and bring in lunches from home, DH drinks tea that we brew at home too. I brew my coffee at home.

I always feel sorry for people bringing lunches from home every single day. And not because they are poor, it's because I perceive them as being cheap, boring and inflexible.

Anonymous wrote:For those of you claiming 1-3k. Have you actually sat down and calculated lunches, coffees, take out, etc.

I always thought that we spent somewhere in the 5k range annually until one year I decided to save ALL of my receipts.

Yes, we use Quicken to track expenses. We cook and eat at home and bring in lunches from home, DH drinks tea that we brew at home too. I brew my coffee at home.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you claiming 1-3k. Have you actually sat down and calculated lunches, coffees, take out, etc.

I always thought that we spent somewhere in the 5k range annually until one year I decided to save ALL of my receipts.

12:52 poster here. Yes. We don't buy coffee/tea outside, we bring our own lunches to work and even on weekend event/trips we bring our own food if allowed. Most of our dining expenses are actually take outs.....as the logistics just work out much better with two small ones.

$3000 poster here. Same as 12:52 here about lunches, coffee, tea, water, etc. Socialize with friends more often than heading out to a restaurant with the kids (sometimes out for breakfast, which isn't expensive) and the two of us go out for nice dinner every other month. Little take-out other than pizza a few times a month.

$30k for a family of three, HHI $400k.

Why does it matter if you can cover your expenses and you enjoy it? We only have one car and no mortgage.

Anonymous wrote:For those of you claiming 1-3k. Have you actually sat down and calculated lunches, coffees, take out, etc.

I always thought that we spent somewhere in the 5k range annually until one year I decided to save ALL of my receipts.

12:52 poster here. Yes. We don't buy coffee/tea outside, we bring our own lunches to work and even on weekend event/trips we bring our own food if allowed. Most of our dining expenses are actually take outs.....as the logistics just work out much better with two small ones.

Zero in 2 years this November. Not in the budget.

For those of you claiming 1-3k. Have you actually sat down and calculated lunches, coffees, take out, etc.

I always thought that we spent somewhere in the 5k range annually until one year I decided to save ALL of my receipts.

$2000k, family of 4, HHI 170k

Anonymous wrote:Too much. I'm scared to even try to figure it out.

+1