Here’s how much it really costs to live that ‘perfect’ Instagram lifestyle
- Posted by
- Lauren Geall
- Published
From extravagant brunches to a perfectly-styled #ootd, living an “instagrammable” lifestyle certainly doesn’t come cheap.
If you’ve read anything about how your Instagram habits could be influencing your mental health, you’ll probably have heard of the “perfection myth” which haunts the hallowed feeds of Instagram apps everywhere.
Instagram is a land far, far away from reality. With its gorgeous foodie spreads and jealousy-inducing shots of isolated sandy beaches, everything just looks so good. It’s no big shock then that we’re all a little bit jealous of those people who live an Instagram-perfect lifestyle, with their lavish #ootd’s and stylish homes.
But (surprise surprise) it all comes at a cost.
That’s right: a new study by investment manager Nutmeg has calculated the average cost of some of the items you’ll need to live an “instagrammable” lifestyle, and it’s a lot more expensive than you might think.
By analysing the top 50 posts tagged with some of the most popular hashtags on Instagram such as #gym or #ootd, the study found that Instagrammers could be spending up to £2,548.40 per month on items and activities inspired by their feeds.
While the average #brunch post cost the ‘grammer around £32.41, it was the #homeinspo tag which came in as the most expensive lifestyle to replicate, with items tagged within each post totalling to an average of £1,131.10. Posts tagged with #gym also set Instagrammers back an incredible £271.38 on average.
While it’s easy to spend hours scrolling through Instagram drooling at the products, garments and spaces which are being paraded in front of us, it’s important to remember that no one lives the perfect Instagram life without paying a hefty price.
There’s nothing wrong with living an Instagram-inspired lifestyle – in fact, some women have made a living out of the platform – but for those of us who don’t wish to live that way, it’s important to remember that we shouldn’t have to spend lots of money just to feel valid online.
Having expensive, “instagrammable” items may boost your like count and gain you a few followers, but money never bought happiness – and that’s what’s really important.
Image: Getty