# What’s your utility curve? How much money would change your life? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 13, 2026, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432 "2026-03-13T17:53:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2026, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/61 "2026-03-14T19:29:00Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I go online and clip coupons for the grocery not because paying more would break me but because getting maximum savings is kind of a game. Nothing wrong with this approach, but I’m the opposite. I’m happy to spring for better seats on a plane or at a game. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2026, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/62 "2026-03-14T20:24:37Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > You pay for security, and for staff/a board to review incoming requests and recommend/make disbursements. Having to HAVE security and paid staff is what I object to 🙂. Especially security. If I need security, I consider my happily anonymous lifestyle compromised. Ironically it would make me feel less secure. Horses for courses, of course. Tens if not hundreds of thousands of people deal with private security/bodyguards worldwide ever day without issue. Maybe even millions. But it doesn’t feel worth it to me. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2026, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/63 "2026-03-14T22:32:19Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > Would a thousand dollars meaningfully change your life? Would a million? Would your assessment vary if it taking away money that you already have vs giving you more? A thousand wouldn’t make much difference in my life. A million would allow me to retire early. Losing my life savings would be far more painful than gaining a million dollars would be enjoyable. People miss losing things more than they enjoy gaining things. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2026, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/64 "2026-03-14T23:02:10Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Our financial planner tells us we should spend more, Ours said that as well. And I acted on it. I’m tall with long legs (6’3") and last time we flew I splurged on the extra leg room seats. Never buying airline tickets, unless I have no option, without additional leg room. Ah, such luxury! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/65 "2026-03-15T01:38:15Z")
“Life changing” for me would be being able to quit working now or very early. I don’t think another million is going to do that for me. Not having thought much about FIRE (e.g., I don’t even remember what it stands for), I’m not sure where that threshold is for me. $10M invested would more than replace our income while accounting for losing access to additional savings in some tax advantaged accounts that require earned income. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/66 "2026-03-15T15:58:00Z")
When my mom died in late 2015, my brother and I each inherited $160,000: that was a life-changing amount at the time, because it got me out of debt and allowed me to pay cash for a new car when I needed one a few years later. It served as the catalyst for financial stability, and – combined with being single with no kids and hitting a “tipping point” with my salary (which has increased 58% in the years since) – has allowed me to remain debt-free while indulging in a couple of hobbies, traveling modestly from time to time, paying someone else to take care of my yard and clean my house, etc. These days, though, $1M would be the absolute minimum required to be life-changing. I’m 54 and a lifelong renter, and I would use that amount to buy a small-ish townhouse (TH) in this area. At least, I think I would: I’d have to wind up with no mortgage, and I’m assuming that insurance, property taxes, maintenance/repairs, etc., will average less than I’m currently paying in rent. Really, though, $5M would be the truly life-changing amount, because then I could buy a single-family home (SFH) that would be more likely to work for the rest of my life _and_ I could also have money put aside for the related expenses. > [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > I live in a high COLA and the median home here is $350,000 The median cost of a home here is $800,000…hence my $1M minimum. 🙂 > [@GuanoLad](#): > > I do not own a house, I rent, so I would need more than $1m to be properly comfortable, and not be on the knife edge. I know there are many places where $1M isn’t enough to buy even a condo or co-op/apartment outright: is that the case for you? Or would it just not be enough to buy a place that you’d want? (I could definitely get a nice condo around here for less than $1M, but I will never again live anywhere with a shared ceiling/floor or more than two shared walls. There are also a few small/old SFHs for less than $1M [like the one I’m renting now], but nothing I’d want to buy as they’d require significant remodeling – which would push the total price over that amount. So, my “cheapest” option is a TH.) ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/67 "2026-03-15T16:37:17Z")
The median home here is nearly $2M if you want to talk about HCOL. Fortunately I bought my home in 1993. I was a very broke student for a long time and it’s hard to get out of that mindset. I probably never will. I was fortunate to get a graduate degree in a job that gave me a good living, I didn’t have kids by choice, maxed out my 401k for thirty years and did my own investing and lived fairly frugally. I had a few things break my way and didn’t have much bad luck. I spend my money mainly on experiences rather than things and was able to retire at 56. It wasn’t until I was around 50 or 51 that my net worth was such that I knew I was going to make it. A million would increase my net worth by a reasonable percentage but it wouldn’t change much. I already do whatever I want and I don’t want more stuff. I’d just give more to charity. I am well aware of and thankful for my privilege every day. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/68 "2026-03-15T16:53:39Z")
Gaining a million wouldn’t impact my life at all. I have a good retirement income, which I live well within. Neither would losing a million, except for the psychological damage. I have about two thirds of my assets in cash and US treasuries, so anything that took a million out of my holdings would probably involve hacking, theft, or investment houses going belly up. Or the government defaulting on its debt. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/69 "2026-03-15T17:08:31Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Yeah, and I think that counts as life-changing. If you go from having to worry about money to never having to worry about it again, life-changing. I agree with that. Unless I get a stupid amount of money (like $100 million) I don’t see our lifestyle changing. Getting enough that we can live like we do but with enough cushion to not be worried about emergencies would change my life for the better. We don’t need to move to another house. $500,000 would let us pay off the mortgage or pay it down significantly while having a large amount of cash for a cushion. The retirement fund I’m trying to pretend doesn’t exist can be left alone for quite awhile. $100,000 would be great to add to our cushion and allow us to do a few more things that we want to do but it wouldn’t significantly change our lives. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/70 "2026-03-15T17:30:56Z")
About fifteen years ago the company I worked for was bought by another company. I had been working there many years, so I had a lot of stock options accumulated. The new company paid off all of our stock in cash. It was, to me, a huge amount of money. Enough to pay off our mortgage and then some. I don’t think I’ve had to worry about money at all since then. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/71 "2026-03-15T17:59:47Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Nothing wrong with this approach, but I’m the opposite. I’m happy to spring for better seats on a plane or at a game. The difference is that the discount food is exactly the same as the full priced food. Back before Southwest became like an other airline, we always paid for early boarding, both to get better seats and to avoid having to hover over the site 24 hours in advance to get a good number. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/72 "2026-03-15T18:04:41Z")
That’s a great example. At this point I will always pay for convenience. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2026, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/73 "2026-03-15T19:41:28Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > I know there are many places where $1M isn’t enough to buy even a condo or co-op/apartment outright: is that the case for you? Or would it just not be enough to buy a place that you’d want? I’m in Australia, so $1m AUD is different to whatever $1m is in your country. If I chose carefully I could find something decent anywhere from $600k - $1m (and maybe lower but then it would be a major fixer-upper or in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere. Which might be an option too). But that’s why I mean $1m is not life-changing if I am struggling to buy a house even with that much money, or if I’m shifting from rent to a mortgage. In that way nothing would have changed at all, really. ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2026, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432/74 "2026-04-08T20:56:15Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > I was fortunate to get a graduate degree in a job that gave me a good living, I didn’t have kids by choice, maxed out my 401k for thirty years and did my own investing and lived fairly frugally. I’m in more or less the same position. I also work a job that, quite frankly, I enjoy. I’m in a position within a Fortune 100 company where I can actually move things I care about forward. And people still listen to me on important decisions! $1M wouldn’t materially affect my life, just make me feel a tiny bit more secure. But that caused me to think what would be “life changing”. $10m would give me more luxury, but I already “pay for convenience” when I feel like it and I’m not a splurger, definitely not my definition of life changing. I finally settled on $50M. Some of this would allow me to up my luxury, but more importantly, the bulk of the money would go to a tech startup that is free from vulture capitalists owning the fruits. I’ve never done a startup, but I’ve worked with a lot of them over the years, from flash in the pans to eventual multi-billion dollar unicorns. I have a lot of contacts in a variety of emerging technology areas and could afford the best employees. It would be a whole lot more fun than receding into my sunset years and that would definitely be a life change from my current trajectory. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-your-utility-curve-how-much-money-would-change-your-life/1028432.md?page=3)