So, I’m working on figuring out why I spend so much on clothing (about 5% of my annual spending)* and I would love to know what you spend on clothing. There’s not a lot of information out there about what’s “normal”.
I’d love to know what you spend on your wardrobe if you have the numbers. Maybe also what you do (if you think that’s a factor?) Or if you have special clothing for hobbies (dance costumes, gis for martial arts, welding aprons, etc)?
So, I spent $1,104 on clothing/costumes last year, 60% of which can be attributed to one made-in-US-custom-tailored-hot-pink-suit. The year before that I spent $1,400. The year before that I spent $0. I work in media and also buy a lot of workout clothing.
For 2017, SirB and I spent $503. 2018 was $747 for the two of us. $1022 for the two of us in 2016.
I do split professional expenses out, so that’ll contain my scrubs, sirb’s FR clothing, and his steel toe boots. All in I’d guess that’s another $500-600 over the last 3 or 4 years.
I haven’t tracked it in awhile, but I’d say I likely spend 300-500$ per year on clothes. But honestly most of that is on footwear. I chew through a pair of $100 walking shoes every 6 months or so, and because I’ve had foot issues in the past, I buy nice things for my feetsies. Also included in that is winter gear, which can be $ (though I was lucky and inherited my massive big winter coat!)
I don’t spend enough on clothes. Or rather, I don’t buy enough of them. I’m always sighing wondering why I only have (2) pairs of pants that fit and then refusing to shop. /o/
You have a super visible job! I’m not surprised that you spend $ on clothes and costumes! Not all of us need to be on camera or appear as Bowie. I’m able to wear free shirts I got from work to work.
(And then I wonder why all I own is [company] shit…)
Haven’t tracked in 3 or so years, but at that point my husband and I were averaging $200 for both of us per year. We bought almost everything at thrift stores (men’s jeans in farm country don’t live to get to thrift stores). We’re probably up a bit from that now, as we’re both wearing better boots, and I buy a pair of jeans most years so that I have a good-looking pair for work. But we just don’t need much. Neither of us spends any time on camera!
I think that I probably spend close to $1000/year on clothes. My professional wardrobe is included and needs to be practical and look good. I need outdoorsy clothes, exercise clothes, shoes… And my clothes wear out. Some people are magic and their clothes forever. Not mine! If I lived closer to good thrift stores I’m sure I could bring it down, but not to zero… mostly because I had too many zero years and so now I have just enough clothes.
Yea, I always baffled by those people and want to know their secrets. I found out at some point that wearing slippers inside increases the longevity of your socks, which really has helped. I hand-wash about 20% of my clothes and hang-dry 95% of it but I am really brutal on my clothing. Maybe it’s the biking?
I also tend to get more pricey fabrics because I bike a lot and I don’t like to smell (which acrylic fabrics and cotton tend to do) so I own a lot of (2nd hand) merino or silk, which lasts longer but costs a lot more.
I spend relatively little on clothing especially now that I’m not going to a job. My last job was pretty casual – I mostly wore turtlenecks/sweaters/casual trousers in cold seasons and polo shirts and cropped pants in the heat. Had several dressier outfits I accumulated over several years to wear to the more formal work events I had through the year.
I now mostly wear shorts/tshirts in the summer and comfy sports-type gear in the winter. Pick up the random this or that at the thrift store when I feel like browsing and can find something. I typically cycle between 3-5 favorite/most comfortable outfits, so I don’t really need a huge wardrobe. Spend the most on shoes, hiking/biking appropriate stuff, and undergarments (need to replace my bras soon – last purchased 3-4 years ago).
I don’t wash things every time they are worn (except underwear) and I air dry less durable stuff.
I used to have a lot of fun clothes and tons of costumes, but I find winter in Minnesota makes most of my wardrobe irrelevant. I decided a couple years ago to wear the same thing all week, all winter, and I’m still wearing the same thing. I also have resigned myself to wearing shorts or skirts over any pants that develop holes in the crotch from biking.
Last year my clothing spending was around $40 for new underwear and a bra, and then a pair of Shower’s Pass rain pants on clearance (I don’t remember how much but under $100).
I used to visit thrift stores a ton, and still do when I visit friends in the PNW, but biking all year here makes my overall wardrobe more utilitarian for all but summer. My clothing has gotten boring and functional, but this also means that I can replace merino base layers when needed because I know what works for me in this phase of life.
I usually spend almost nothing on clothing, between thrift stores and clothing swaps and friends pawning old clothes off on me. But last year I went HAM on fancy underthings and spent like $500 on lingerie. Plus new sneakers, and t-shirts, and a dress, and consignment store Frye boots, and work shoes, and and and.
Okay, I don’t want to know how much I spent on clothing last year…
Last year I spent about $1600 on clothes, which seems awfully high. I will say that I started a new job and spent a good deal on upgrading my work wardrobe, as well as buying a whole new set of bras/underwear all at once, just to get it done and out of the way. I also invested in some good, heavy-duty winter gear, finally upgrading from the “this will last me 2-3 seasons” to “this will last me 10 seasons” stuff, like boots and a ski jacket. It’s been a great investment, I’m so much more comfortable outside than I was before, and I’m more likely to go for a walk when it’s 25 degrees out, which is great for my mental health
I definitely go throughs spurts. I budget on average $20 a month for clothes, but hardly ever use it for most of the year. Then one month I’ll buy myself a pair of AllBirds I’ve been dying to get forever ($105) and another month I’ll buy 5 of the exact same long sleeve shirt in different colors ($39). I’d have to pull up my YNAB when I get home, but I think it’s probably safe to say I spent less than $300 on clothing last year… $400 if I’m being ultra conservative. I’ll report back
EDIT: proud to say i was pretty spot on with my estimate. In 2018 i spent a grand total of $332.84 on clothes. The breakdown is as follows:
$29 - dry cleaning two winter coats (worth it)
$22 - two pairs of what i like to call “meet day” knee socks (worth it)
$10 - shirt with a pineapple on it (100% worth it)
$27 - Stay the Course shirt (love the shirt but it is way too big - womp womp)
$22 - pink light up shoes (i haven’t worn them yet, but they’re obnoxious and i love it)
$50 - THICKER crop sweatshirt and tank top (i wear the hoodie all the mf time)
$46 - blue/mint converse (they were too big and i gave them to a friend -_-)
$47 - 5 long sleeve shirts in different colors (wear them weekly, was a good buy)
$23 - 5 or 6 pairs of underwear (meh, needed)
$8 - ugly Christmas sweater from the GW (worth it for a party contest)
$15 - Bra (also worth it)
$30 - WISH romper and knock off Uggs (Romper is so so, fUggs are legit)
According to Mint, I spent $1,620.95 on clothing in 2018. This includes $1,069.04 in the general clothing category, $344.60 in the shoes category, and $207.31 in the workout clothing category.
A lot of general clothing was refreshing my work wardrobe. Something didn’t fit and I like to be able to go 2 weeks without repeating an outfit. I also bought some interview clothes because I was job searching, but then my interview that landed me the new job ended up being a video conference interview, but now I have a nice black sheath dress that will be good for other corporate events where I need to dress up… or funerals (I have 2 grandparents that could pass at any time, so this was part of the discussion when I was shopping with my mom).
All of my exercise clothing was 4 purchases from Fabletics, which has been hit or miss for me.
My big factor in clothing spending is my mom. She’s the only person I shop well with and she’s a bit of an instigator for me, so I spend less when I don’t get to see her is often (and I enjoy shopping with her). This weekend, she helped me buy a lot of home organizational stuff lol.
I just realized I didn’t include underwear and bras, which is something that definitely needs to be refreshed on a semi regular basis. I’m now actually inspired to think about my clothing expenses on a more yearly basis since it’s a pretty irregular purchase for me and I don’t think the rollover monthly Mint budget I have setup is very helpful for seeing the big picture on this spending like it is for things like groceries and restaurants. Time to make a new tab in my money spreadsheet!
According to Mint, my spouse and I spent $577 on clothes last year. Most of that was spouse - I got a pair of pant, a travel jacket, and a couple of dresses. I also spent around $100 on cosplay materials, but in the budget that comes out of fun money rather than clothing. Ever since reading the work uniform on The Billfold (https://www.thebillfold.com/2014/11/the-uniform-ive-chosen-for-myself/), my work clothes spending has basically stopped - the only thing I would spend on is needing to replace a white shirt, colorful sweater, or dark pants.
Most of my work clothes I’ve had for 5+ years - since I’m in an office and don’t sweat much I only wash as needed.
I’m able to wear free shirts I got from work to work. 
