Recently, I did a post about one topic that we can all agree on: how everything is getting too expensive. And in the post, I shared a viral Reddit thread where people discussed the things that have gotten so expensive they don't think they're worth spending money on anymore.
Well, the post got A LOT of comments from BuzzFeed readers. So I decided to round up some of the comments our readers left about the things they feel are not worth the money anymore.
Below are some of the top comments, as well as some new comments from the original Reddit thread:
1. "Sadly, my daily can of soda. They used to be three 12-packs for $11. Then they went up to $13. Then $15. Last time I checked, they were 3/$18. F*** that noise. I liked having that one little bit of consistent joy in my life, but I'm not paying $18, $20 a week for soda (I was only having one a day, but so was everyone else in the house)."
2. "The nail salon. Pre-pandemic I could get eyebrows waxed, pedicure, acrylic refill (not gel) for $40 every month. Now I get a plain simple manicure, eyebrows waxed, pedicure for $60 every six to eight weeks in the summer when the toe polish is too chipped! Needless to say, I pluck my eyebrows, use the rasp on the bottom of my feet, and file and push back my cuticles on my nails, and my feet are covered in socks. Won’t be back to the salon until my birthday in December when I turn 76. 🎉🥳🎊 The struggle is real across the board for working families and retirees!!!"
3. "'Premium' ice cream. A single bucket over here costs €8.90 nowadays compared to three years ago when it cost €4.50."
4. "Video games costing fucking $70 plus tax, and then you have to go scream on f'ing Twitter at the developers to fix the f'ing game so it's playable. This is why I spend less time on my PS5 and more on my NES Classic these days."
5. "Thrift stores have definitely just gotten greedier, not smarter. I wanted to buy some old towels for when my dog gets muddy outside... Thrift stores were charging $10 each for the rattiest, most frayed towels. Ones I wouldn't have even donated to a thrift store because I would assume they were garbage. I went to Ikea and got nice new ones for $11."
6. "I refrain from going grocery shopping as much as possible; it makes me so angry. Just two years ago, I would get: frozen pizza for $3.50, now it costs $5.25; milk $2 gallon, now $3.95; eggs $1.69 dozen, now $3.45. IT REALLY SUCKS! 😡"
7. "Ordering stuff from the US to the UK, I saw a shirt the other day that I really liked, but it was £48 for basic shipping! For a shirt, not a fragile object or heavy treasure, a shirt! I send big ass, heavy boxes of British sweets to my American friends, and it costs way less; it's ridiculous."
8. "I swapped to Toddy cold brew system years ago and haven't looked back. Tastes smoother, and it is cheaper in the long run. I keep a French press for guests who want hot coffee, but buying a daily brew, or two, or three, just got to be too much. You do need a grinder, and the filters aren't cheap, but it works out well, and you can go as expensive or cheap as you want on the beans."
9. "Making your own clothes. On the one hand, fast fashion sucks. On the other hand, I can buy a whole ass garment for cheaper than the material needed to make my own equivalent. Not to mention getting quality fabric these days is a proper nightmare on top of it being expensive AF."
10. "Clothes. I honestly can't remember the last time I went shopping for clothes. Maybe 2021?"
11. "Roadtrips. Like, driving to a vacation destination. I used to drive for 14 hours (ish) to my favorite city a few times a year, but last time I went, it was over $500 in gas. I'd rather just stay home at that price."
12. "Chicken wings used to be cheap as hell. Because they were mostly bone and skin, but they were fantastic to cook up with sauces. Now places sell them for, like, $8 for four wings. I don't care how good your sauce is; no sauce is worth that. Even the supermarkets are charging more for what was a pretty scrappy cut off meat, but now it's seen as popular cuisine."
13. "Fast food for lunch — it’s shocking how much the price has increased over the last two years. Now I buy some deli meats at the grocery store and make a sandwich at home, plus a side pasta salad for 40% less. I rarely ever do fast food anymore."
14. "Footlong sandwich and normal drink was $14 dollars at a sandwich chain yesterday here in Miami. I'm done with them forever."
15. "Farmer's markets. Everything was, like, 1/4 what it'd cost at the store, grown closer, and by smaller local farms. Then everything changed when it became trendy; now it's more expensive than stores, and I question if it's even from local farms and not Costco."
16. "We cook from home 99% of the time these days. Too expensive, and the quality of food has gone so far down to go to a sit-down restaurant."
17. "Ordering delivery. Used to be same price as ordering in person with just a small fee and tip per item. Now most places have signed with a 'service,' so they no longer do it themselves, and now your have to go through an app — which add on additional fees, increased prices from the regular menu price, and larger tips expected for what in most cases amounts to worse service than back when restaurants or pizza joints did their own delivery."
18. "Camping. One site, no water or electricity. Use to be, like, $18 a night. Now you might pay that at a shitty state park campground that doesn't allow dogs, alcohol, or a fire; that's not camping."
19. "Most theme parks in general — with all the upcharges. I refuse to pay an extra $200 to skip the line or $80 so I can park 20 feet closer to the entrance. Want to get harassed by a bunch of teenagers in costumes? That'll be an extra $65. NONREFUNDABLE."
20. "Pizza. The average is $18–$22 for a large cheese, which is insanity. Pizza is incredibly cheap to make. And $2–$3 per topping for a small sprinkling. Making pizza dough is the easiest thing at home, tons of great recipes online for how to make one."
21. And lastly, "Subscriptions! And everything is now a subscription. OK, I guess I don’t need it."
You can check out the original thread over on Reddit.
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.