Rising inflation and high living costs force many Americans to tighten budgets. SmartAsset estimates an adult living alone needs $80,828.80 annually for a comfortable lifestyle in West Virginia, while a family of four would need $195,353.60. Only 23.9% of U.S. households earned $150,000 or more in 2024, and LendingTree reports up to 76% struggle to pay bills. Some individuals adopt multiple jobs or online income strategies; others relocate to lower-cost cities. Quito, Ecuador, offers monthly living costs of $600–$2,099, urban amenities, outdoor recreation, and a 2025 population around 2,017,260.
Many Americans are pinching pennies to get by, thanks to inflation and the high cost of living. SmartAsset recently revealed that if you're an adult living alone, you need at least $80,828.80 per year to enjoy "a comfortable lifestyle" in West Virginia, which is the most affordable state in the U.S. in 2025. However, for a family of four, that number shoots up to an unbelievable $195,353.60. In this case,
"comfortable" means affording necessities like food, healthcare, and housing, as well as a few luxuries, going by the popular " 50/30/20" budget rule. Now, here's a bummer - only 23.9% of households in America brought in $150,000 and above in 2024, according to Motley Fool. This leaves no doubt that a great deal of people are barely scraping by. In fact, data from LendingTree shows that inflation has hurt Americans so much that up to 76% of them are struggling to pay bills.
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