‘Sex and the City’: Carrie Bradshaw’s Love of Manolo Blahniks Would Have Landed Her in an Insane Amount of Debt in Real Life
Sex and the City highlighted the lives of four GenX women living in New York City in the late 1990s. The main focus of the series was Carrie Bradshaw, a single, 30-something, fashion-obsessed sex columnist played by Sarah Jessica Parker.
It’s no secret that NYC is one of the most expensive cities on Earth to live in — even in the world of fiction. And when you break down the numbers, Carrie’s spending habits and her love of Manola Blahniks would have landed her in an insane amount of debt in real life.
Carie Bradshaw’s spending habits on ‘Sex and the City’ would have landed her in an insane amount of debt
One Main Financial recently analyzed 16 sitcom characters to find out which one was the biggest fictional spender. And the winner — by a mile — was Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw. According to their analysis, Bradshaw was working as a columnist in NYC at the turn of the century, which would result in average earnings of $33,444 per year.
In a breakdown of her monthly expenses, they estimated Bradshaw spent $10,422 for housing, $2,438 for clothes and Manolo Blahniks, $300 for hobbies, and $346 for “food and drink faves.” This added up to a total monthly spend of $18,637, or $223,644 annually. When they added in an extra $9,612 for “personalized” yearly spending needs, Bradshaw’s annual spending was $233,256.
When you subtract Carrie’s expenses from her income, that results in $199,821 worth of debt each year.
Which fictional character came in second behind ‘Sex and the City’s’ Carrie Bradshaw?
Coming in well behind Bradshaw at number two on the list was Modern Family’s Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell). He was the only one in the top four that didn’t live in New York City.
As a real estate agent in Southern California, OneMain Financial estimated Phil’s income to be approximately $94,655. But as the head of a household with a wife and three children, Phil had some serious expenses. His annual spending was estimated to be $205,876, which would rack up $111,221 in debt every year.
The number three and four spots on the list went to Valentina (Francia Raisa) and Sophie Tompkins (Hillary Duff), both characters from Hulu’s How I Met Your Father. They live in Manhattan, with Valentina working as an assistant stylist and Sophie as a photographer.
Their salaries were estimated to be $34,602 and $41,705, respectively. And, they both were thought to have expenses that greatly exceeded their incomes. Valentina’s annual debt was calculated to be $99,988, while Sophie’s was $95,287.
Monica Geller and Chandler Bing from ‘Friends’ were also in serious debt
Also on the list were Monica Geller and Chandler Bing from Friends, who both were seemingly in serious debt when they tied the knot. As a chef in mid-1990s NYC, Monica’s estimated earnings were $49,677. But her monthly expenses were thought to be more than $11,000, leaving her in more than $86k of debt each year.
As for Chandler, his estimated earnings as a statistical analyst were $70, 556. But, his expenses added up to $134,028 — leaving him with an annual debt amount of $63,944.
Fans can watch Carrie Bradshaw overspend by bingeing Sex and the City on HBO Max.
