The average annual income for a US citizen is right around $46,000. Now, if it takes 40 hours a week for every week of the year to earn this, one ends up with 2080 hours worked a year. (40 x 52 = 2080). If you make 46,000 a year, you are earning $22 per hour (46000/2080 = $22.11/hour) or $0.3685 per minute.
Why should you care? My husband (or you) still has to work 40 hours regardless. Try to think of each item you buy as trades for you or your husbands time. Say, this name brand milk is $3.25 per gallon. That is equal to approximately 9 minutes of the Average Breadwinner's workday. If I buy the store brand milk that tastes no different for $2.00 per gallon, I am only taking 5.4 minutes to earn the same thing - thus you can use that $1.25 towards something else - like bills.
Now, we all have our brands we like. No matter how hard I try to wear him down my breadwinner will accept only the softest of Charmin in our bathrooms. My suggestion is to try out a store brand and if you cant tell the difference, save money - and the Average Breadwinner time - that is what we are all trying to do. According to freemoneyfinance.com, the average household could save over $1k per year by switching to name brands. How does an extra half of a paycheck per year sound?
*If you would like to figure out your breadwinner's numbers, here is how:
By annual salary:
1. Figure out how many hours per year are worked:
a. multiply: hours per week worked x weeks per year worked (or paid)
2. Figure out hourly wage
a. divide: annual salary / answer to 1a
3. Figure out per minute earnings
a. divide: answer to 2a /60
