Here are the items for which I happily fork over money every month in order of importance:
Monarch Money ($50/yr)
I was a longtime fan of Mint by Intuit for tracking my spending, but unfortunately, Intuit decided to shut it down in early 2024.
After plenty of trial and error, I ultimately settled on Monarch Money. It’s created by the original founders of Mint, and while it excels in some areas, it does lag behind in a few others.
The service is priced at $100 per year, but they’re running a $50/year promotion. I went through my first renewal in December, and they reduced the cost to $50 again.
Despite a few shortcomings, I really like the product and the team behind it. I’m happy to invest in its long-term success.
I’m planning to do an in-depth review of Monarch Money and the importance of budgeting soon. Once that’s ready, I’ll link it here: <future-link>.
Gym ($51/mo)
Health and wellness is an area where I refuse to compromise. Even a 20-minute daily workout significantly boosts my mental sharpness, physical well-being, and overall mood.
Thanks to Active & Fit, I can access reduced memberships at both Mountainside Fitness (for my daily workouts) and LA Fitness (for racquetball) for just $51 per month.
Mint Mobile (~$180/yr)
While I consider this expense a necessity, I still like to explore cost-effective options, which is why I choose Mint Mobile.
I go with the 12-month 15GB/month plan, which typically costs $240. However, as a long-term customer, I can usually negotiate a discount with customer service. My last renewal was reduced to $180.
The 15GB of data is usually more than enough for my needs, except when traveling. On occasions when I’ve needed more, I’ve had success requesting an extra 1GB of data for free from customer service (your mileage may vary). Otherwise, the $10/GB price for additional data is reasonable for one-off situations.
I also prefer to buy my cell phones unlocked, as I see no reason to overpay for service or get locked into expensive contracts.
Spotify (~$5/mo)
Split a Family Plan subscription with friends and totally worth it at that price. I’m not sure if I will pay $11/mo for an individual plan though.
Netflix (~$17/mo)
Primary source of entertainment and better value for money compared to all other streaming services, given a vast library of their original content. I opt for the Standard plan because there is no way I’m paying for a service and watching ads too.
For all other things (mainly sports), I depend on an over-the-air (OTA) satellite antenna and the occasional subscription to Willow TV for cricket.
Update: after writing this, Netflix bumped up the price to about $19 now which is definitely making me re-evaluate the decision. I will most likely be canceling it at the next renewal and starting to rotate services; Netflix is good but not great.