Budget versus Time

What does your coffee REALLY cost you? Is it a money or time question? See how you can save $1,500 each year and get a free consultation!

How much does that cup of coffee cost? How about the ballet shoes or cleats your kid needs? Everything you have and do costs something. We often think of those costs in monetary forms. Coffee: $5 per day. Cleats: $100 each season. Car needs new tires: $500 (hopefully only every few years). If you know how to budget, you're probably figuring out that cost and how it fits into your budget. At $5/day for 30 days, that's $150/month. Cleats, broken down by 12 months, is about $8.33 per month. All of it starts adding up really quick and before you know it, you budgeted everything you're bringing in and you still have bills left to pay.

If this scenario feels all too familiar, I have a suggestion for you: think of your budget in terms of time. How much time did it take for you to pay for that coffee? It's about more than just the $5 you spend. If you're making $20 per hour, it took you 15 minutes to pay for that coffee. (Quick note, $20 felt like a good average. I recognize that many of you earn less than that. While this calculation is similar, just keep in mind that if you make less than $20/hr, that costs more time to pay for the same amount of money. If you want to do calculations, schedule your free consultation with me to chat!) That comes out to 7.5 hours every month that you have to work simply to pay for the coffee. This hourly cost does not include the time it takes to drive to the coffee house, time spent in line, etc.

Now, in contrast, if you were to just buy ground coffee from Walmart, one 40.3 oz canister of ground coffee costs $22.13 (plus tax, depending on your state). That canister can make up to 380 cups of coffee which, at one per day, is enough to last you the entire year! Let's round up to $23 for those that do pay sales tax. Breaking down $23 out of the year, you're looking at 5-6 cents per cup - that's less than $2 per month! That would mean that instead of having to work 15 minutes to pay for a cup of coffee, it would take you less than a minute. (While true that there are electricity or water costs, these costs are negligible compared to the $150 it costs to buy from a coffee shop. Also, even if you have to buy a coffee machine for the home, coffee makers start at $13 at Walmart. This is also a one-time expense, not a recurring $5 a day expense. It would take you three days of coffee runs to pay for a coffee maker.)

I know, I know... It may not be the great tasting coffee that you get from Starbucks or wherever. You may not have as many options of what to get. While true, hopefully this gives you something to think about. We're talking a difference of more than $125 every month, over $1,500 every year! Think of what you could do with an extra $1,500 in a year? Maybe pay down some debt or save for that vacation you've been dreaming of. Suddenly, financial goals become more attainable.

In addition to the financial savings and benefits, you will save time. Instead of spending over 8 hours every month (including the drive time), you can make the coffee at home while you're getting ready for the day. No gas cost, no time wasted changing your traffic pattern so you hit the coffee stand. Eight hours of time that could be spent on anything from more dates with your significant other, time with your kids or family, to more sleep, a side-gig to earn more money or help build that career you want, or anything else under the sun!

Sometimes the coffee run has other purposes. Those could be a mental break or maybe you like to converse with the person serving the coffee; maybe meeting a friend or business colleague. These reasons are completely valid and can benefit you in non-monetary ways. Sometimes connecting in person is exactly what you or your friend needs to keep going. That is valuable, even if there is a larger monetary cost! Maybe ask yourself if you can meet up at a park, or in your house or theirs to have that homemade cup of coffee? That way, you can accomplish both the connection AND the monetary savings!

Expense	Coffee Shop	Home Brew	Annual Savings
Daily Cost	$5.00	$0.06
Monthly Cost	$150.00	~$2.00	~$1,500
Time Invested	7.5 hrs/month	<1 hr/month	~7 hrs/month

So what does all this mean for you? Maybe for one month - just one month - try avoiding the coffee runs and make your coffee at home. Invite that friend to your house and plan a game night. Good habits take time to form and experimentation helps you know both what you are capable of and where you'll see the most benefit for your situation.

If you are a budgeting beginner, just want to chat about finances, or want to improve your financial habits, schedule your free consultation with me! I love talking finances and helping you work through your unique financial position. You have the power to improve your situation. I want to help you unlock that power!

What's one money habit that you've changed that saved you money? Share your story!

*Note: This article only discusses one aspect: once-a-day coffee runs. By applying this ideology and framework to other areas of your life, you can magnify the savings to make even more headway on your financial situation!