Is 35k a Year a Good Salary?

In January 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released their Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers Fourth Quarter report. This data showed that the average weekly income for a full-time wage or salary worker was $936. That means if you’re working a 40-hour workweek, you’d be making approximately $48,672 or less.

However, even with the stimulus checks of 2020, you could be earning less. A $35,000 salary doesn’t sound like much, but there are savvy ways to live on a 35k a year salary and pocket side cash. 

What Should I Put Towards Bills

Sometimes, affording all of your bills like groceries and transportation costs while stashing away some cash seems impossible–if you don’t budget. That’s why it’s important to allocate every dollar on a $35K a year income. Use our budgeting tips and you’ll be surprised at how far you can stretch your dollar. 

Housing

Landing a job making the big bucks takes time, especially if you’re fresh out of college. If you can delay living on your own for a while you can save thousands by continuing to live at home with your parents.

Staying at home, not an option? If you can afford it, settle for renting an apartment with a roommate. You’ll have your own room ( maybe bathroom too!) and you’ll get a small taste of living on your own without the price.

Monthly Expenses

Cutting down those monthly bills can be hard, but it’s not impossible. Ask a family member or a friend if you can hop on their family cellphone plan. Another option is prepaid plans or pay-as-you-go phones. T-Mobile offers prepaid plans starting as low as $15 a month!

Another tip for cutting down monthly expenses is by canceling unnecessary subscriptions like streaming services and gym membership. Now, before you throw a fit over your beloved gym membership–hear us out. 

2020 forced every business to pivot and adapt to a new normal–including exercise platforms. This means there are plenty of affordable equipment-free workout apps like the free Nike Training Club app. Mix those in with the millions of free youtube videos and you’ll be wondering why you didn’t try this sooner! 

Essentials

Essentials for the month should be fairly easy to calculate and budget for. Use your last 3 months of bank statements to find out how much is spent on each non-negotiable category. These are expenses and items like food, bills, insurance, rent, and personal hygiene items. 

After you’ve done this, subtract that amount from your monthly income, and the rest you can put towards having a little fun, paying off debt, saving, and investing in your future. 

Need to find more savings? Use these budget hacking tips to reduce your car insurance, cable, and grocery bill.

Savings

Don’t forget about your emergency savings account! You don’t want to be scrambling for money when the uh-oh moments happen. 

Budgeting with MoneyLion

MoneyLion makes it easy to get an overview of your spending with a spend report tracker that organizes your spending into categories. When you use the Financial Heartbeat tool, you’ll track your progress and earn badges as your crush your goals

7 Jobs That Average $35k A Year

Average salary figure provided by Indeed.com

Get A Side Hustle

Ready to hustle and put more money in your pocket? Explore these flexible and easy ways to put more benjamins in your pockets!

• Sell Goods – Take your hand at reselling clothes or fix up and flip old furniture for a profit.

• Food Delivery – Instacart, UberEats, DoorDash, and GrubHub offer flexible schedules and solid pay!

• Online Work – Virtual work is the new normal and demand to fill these positions is skyrocketing new careers. Start your search on platforms like Indeed.com, Fiverr, and Upwork.

• Cashback – When you shop with your MoneyLion Debit Mastercard of RoarMoney virtual card you can earn cashback on everyday shopping. In February get 2% cashback at local restaurants, bars, and fast-food restaurants.

• Sell Printables on Etsy – Design a calendar, planner pages, or art print and allow your one-time creation to build a stream of passive income. 

• Online Tutor -This can be for music lessons, school subjects, and languages as well!

• Taskrabbit – Are you a jack of all trades? The perfect side job that lets you pick up random tasks that people have listed for a fee. 

Looking for a career change? Find out how you can get free job training in your area.

Make, Save and Invest with RoarMoney

RoarMoney members benefit from having their financial needs meet all in one place. Using the MoneyLion app you can cash back rewards on everyday purchases, reinvest savings into a fully managed investment account, and get paid up to two days early!