"If Only I Could Save At Least 1,000 Rubles A Month"
- 18.08.2026, 8:40
A Belarusian couple dreams of spending their vacation in Japan, but they can't save up enough money for the trip.
Alina lives with an IT specialist; their combined income is about 5,000–6,000 rubles a month. However, she feels they aren’t managing to spend their money wisely. The couple dreams of vacationing in Japan, but they can’t save up the $6,000 needed for the trip. They live in their own apartment (so they don’t have to pay rent), have an easygoing cat, love trivia games, but in the summer they mostly relax outdoors: they drive out to the countryside in their own car. Our protagonists have no debts, except perhaps for Alina’s small loan for a new door. So where is their money going, and why haven’t they been able to save up for their long-awaited trip for several years now? To help figure out what’s wrong with their budget, the couple asked Onlíner.
If there’s a hole in your budget (a large debt, a loss of money, or unexpected major expenses), let’s figure out what to do. Write to our reporter if you’re willing to share the details.
Alina (name changed at her request) is 26 years old; she completed her graduate studies and is now working in a government agency through a job placement program. According to her, her salary varies by season: at the beginning of the year, it can be 700–1,000 rubles a month; by the middle of the year, it levels off at 1,500–1,600; and by the end of the year, it usually rises slightly, with Alina earning up to 1,800.
Her boyfriend is a software engineer with a salary of about 4,000 rubles.
The couple enjoys active leisure: they go on trips, hikes, river rafting, and escape rooms, and occasionally play soccer, table tennis, yoga, and padel. They also spend time playing “Mafia,” trivia games, board games, and video games; they love to draw and do diamond mosaic puzzles, and go to the theater and concerts.
In the summer, they do these things less often: they go to quizzes once or twice a week (admission is 15 rubles per person, and if they snack during the game, that’s an additional 30–40 rubles), and on escape rooms once a month—which costs 30–40 rubles per person.
I took out a loan to move away from the cat
The couple lives in an apartment that belongs to Alina’s family. Major renovations have been done there, but when they moved in, there were no doors or ceiling, and the only furniture was a bed and some tables.
— I took out a loan in my name for interior doors at 4% per year for two years; the monthly payment is about 350 rubles. The total loan amount was 7,250 rubles.
In our case, the doors were necessary because the cat keeps us awake, and there’s nowhere to shut him in except the balcony.
Alina assures us that expenses for the pet are minimal: 10 kilograms of food costs 150 rubles, and that lasts four to six months. A 12-liter bag of litter costs about 50 rubles—that’s enough for about two months.
“We overpaid for utilities during the renovation, so now we only spend 10–15 rubles a month on utilities.”
Alina’s boyfriend has a car, which they use to get away from Minsk on the weekends. Fuel costs about 500 rubles a month. Occasionally, they use car-sharing services.
“We go out to a café once or twice a week.”
According to Alina, their main expense is groceries.
— We shop for groceries once a week, either on the weekend or on Monday; the total comes to about 300 rubles. Plus, we buy a few extra things during the week—on average, 30–50 rubles at a time. If we plan a weekend trip out of town, that’s another 200 rubles on top of our basic expenses.
Once or twice a week, we head out to a café or a small restaurant—if we just have coffee and dessert for two, it comes to about 40 rubles; at a Chinese restaurant, it’s about 70 rubles for two.
A TV for 2,200 rubles and gifts for 200 rubles each
The guys hang out in a big group, and once a month, one of their friends celebrates a birthday. Alina says that spending on gifts starts at 15–30 rubles, and for close friends—at 100 rubles.
Alina and her boyfriend both have birthdays in May; they give each other meaningful gifts—starting at 1,000 rubles.
— This year was my boyfriend’s milestone birthday—I bought him a TV for 2,200 rubles. New Year’s gifts—200 rubles each.
Alina tries to set aside money from each paycheck whenever possible. Until this summer, she was putting 500 rubles into her piggy bank, but in July she took out a loan to buy a door, so she has fewer options now—she can only save 300.
Overall, here’s what the couple’s average expenses look like:
Alina has saved up about 2,500 rubles, but a recent move, some expensive birthday gifts, and a vacation forced her to “dip into her emergency fund,” our heroine admitted.
Alina reached out to us with a question that’s likely relevant to many readers:
“Our main expenses are either food or some kind of entertainment. We’re not ready to give them up, but we can be more selective about them.
I’d like to start spending money more wisely and save at least 1,000 rubles a month.
What we save for isn’t that important. It’s nice to have a cushion, but it’s more motivating when there’s a specific goal. One of our big goals is a trip to Japan next fall. I think the trip will cost $6,000 for the two of us.
I’ve been dreaming about Japan for many years; I’ve been interested in its culture and art since childhood. In recent years, Asia as a whole has become more accessible to tourists, including Japan. I started thinking about a trip like this three or four years ago. And then some friends started going—so why can’t we make our dream a reality too?
We still need curtains, mirrors, a sofa, and other small pieces of furniture for the apartment. But renovations are secondary for us right now. Our goal right now is to gain more experiences rather than take out loans to decorate our home.
“Food expenses can be cut in half”
We pass the young woman’s wishes on to financial advisor Olga Murashkevich. And the first thing the expert points out is our protagonists’ spending on food.
— Food, of course, is a basic necessity. But if it accounts for too large a share of expenses, this indicates either objectively low income or irrational spending on food. Alina and her boyfriend spend about 3,000 rubles a month on food, which is really a lot.
This category can easily be cut by one and a half to two times while still maintaining a balanced diet.
Olga notes that there’s usually no need to keep a detailed record of food expenses by subcategory: dairy, meat/fish, beverages, sweets, coffee shops, lunches, restaurants, and so on. But Alina and her boyfriend’s case is an exception.
“I’d advise the couple to track absolutely all their food expenses for at least a month or two to figure out which specific subcategories are ‘draining’ their budget.” It’s always easier to tackle and optimize the largest ones, so they need to identify those.
The couple’s spending on hobbies and entertainment accounts for 15–20% of their total income. The expert emphasizes: if the couple didn’t have a dream of traveling to Japan, such percentages would be acceptable. But if they don’t have a financial safety net, if they have a big-picture dream, or if they already want to invest or make major purchases like furniture, home improvements, or appliances, that’s too much.
— Think about what’s most important to you at this stage of your life, and based on that, allocate your disposable income among non-essential categories. If a vibrant, fulfilling life is your priority right now, then set aside that amount for entertainment. Given the protagonist’s fluctuating income, you could aim for 15% of the couple’s total income. If a trip is more important than a hobby, allocate part of that money toward it.
“The safety net must remain untouchable”
Olga points out that Alina’s salary fluctuates throughout the year. In such cases, the expert believes, a financial safety net is especially important—something to fall back on during tough months.
“The minimum necessary financial safety net is three months’ worth of monthly expenses.” That means our heroine’s personal safety net should be at least 3,000–3,500 rubles. Right now, it’s 2,500—which is already good. And Alina continues to set aside 300 rubles at a time and doesn’t spend all her money—that’s also the right thing to do.
It’s wrong that gifts and vacations force her to dip into her safety net.
There should be separate “envelopes” for such expenses. So the first thing I’d redirect excess spending from food and hobbies toward is the safety net. And it must remain untouchable.
Remember that Alina started saving less after taking out a loan for doors. The expert is puzzled by the amount of debt—7,250 rubles. If it’s not because there were so many doors, then they were likely expensive, and she could have found suitable ones at a lower price. But overall, in Olga’s opinion, this is a good way to handle the situation.
“This is an important purchase for the home; the protagonist invested in her apartment. She took out a loan at 4% per year—that’s a low interest rate. It doesn’t make sense to pay it off early; she can continue making payments according to the schedule.”
Olga says that Alina’s boyfriend’s gas expenses—500 rubles a month—caught her eye. According to Olga, if these are summer expenses related to travel, that amount is acceptable.
— But if this is a recurring expense, I would advise switching to a more fuel-efficient car or cutting back on non-essential trips. Such expenses are justified when a car is needed for work.
In her inquiry, Alina emphasized that spending time with friends is an important part of the couple’s life, and a tradition of expensive gifts has developed among their close circle of friends. However, the financial advisor argues that, for the young woman’s budget, gifts costing more than 100–150 rubles (about 10% of her income) are too expensive.
— If possible, I would stick to this principle: spend no more than 10% of your income on “gifts”—of course, not at the expense of friendship. And aren’t such expensive gifts a bit excessive for a couple, especially considering that there’s a threefold difference in their incomes?
“There won’t be enough money, and you’ll have to make a choice”
After analyzing the budget and Alina’s request, the financial advisor notes:
— Creating a budget and tracking expenses will help you achieve your goals. Sit down, open a notebook or Excel spreadsheet, and list your expenses by category. Immediately add investment categories to your existing ones: an emergency fund, investments for the future, and major goals—in this case, a trip to Japan. Then start allocating your money.
For example, out of 6,500 rubles in income:
2,000—food and dining out;
700—hobbies;
300 — gas and car expenses;
100 — gifts.
At some point, you won’t have enough money, and you’ll have to make a choice: allocate funds to category 1 or category 2.
Your task is like a game of Tetris: fit all your expenses into your income so that you have enough for what’s most necessary and valuable to you.
What makes today’s protagonists’ situation interesting, the expert notes, is that they have separate budgets, but they split the cost of gifts equally and are also saving equally for the trip. At the same time, the young couple lives in Alina’s apartment.
— The girl has almost built up her personal safety net, while the guy, by all accounts, is breaking even. In my opinion, I would advise them to combine their budgets, plan their expenses, and set aside money together for the trip to Japan.
If the client were concerned about renovating the apartment or buying furniture, I would advise them to plan for those expenses as well. But Alina hasn’t mentioned anything like that. So right now, her priorities should be her financial safety net and saving for the trip. A trip like this is definitely achievable, but she might have to postpone it for a year.
Overall, Olga Murashkevich notes that Alina adheres to the basic principles of sound money management: our heroine tries to set aside a certain amount from each paycheck and takes on manageable debt with favorable terms. However, according to the expert, it’s worth paying attention to long-term planning and investments.
“As early as age 20–25, it’s a good idea to start growing capital that can generate additional income in the future. The sooner you start, the easier it will be and the less money it will require.