How Much Would You Spend on a Rug, Handbag or Bottle of Wine? We Asked 8 Women and Their Responses Shocked Us

Sure, you know your budget, but aren’t you curious about how much others around you are willing to spend? We were, which is why we polled women across the country to find out their spending benchmarks for a few of life’s necessities: a purse, a rug…and wine. Here’s how they responded.

Salary: $50,000
A rug: $100. “It needs to be soft and comfortable so I can go barefoot, but won’t show the dirt and grime.”
A handbag: $150. “I like Coach bags, but I’ll only buy them from the outlet if they are on sale.”
A bottle of wine: $15. “I know what I like, so I’ll only go over that if I’m at a winery and I truly love the wine.”

Salary: $150,000
A rug: $2,000. “Because I want it to last!”
A handbag: $1,500. “Quality is better. I’d even go up to $3,000.”
A bottle of wine: $100. “Because life is short and wine can be beautiful if I’m with the right people!”

Salary: Prefer not to disclose
A rug: $500. “For a kid’s room, I’d spend $200 or under, since they will outgrow it eventually. For a living room or dining room, I’d go as high as $500.”
A handbag: $59. “It’s about color and size and texture for me. I’m too practical to care about labels. Hello, TJ Maxx!”
A bottle of wine: $15. “I will spend more in a little wine shop. I think budget when I’m in a discount liquor store.”

Salary: $0 (Living on student loans)
A rug: $75. “Ideally, one that is more expensive than that, but bought on sale so it fits this price range.”
A handbag: $150. “Again, big sale girl here. I don’t do cheaply made bags though—I draw the line there.”
A bottle of wine: $15. “I look for expensive bottles that were discounted because I’m a broke dental student with loans, but I still want to enjoy the nice stuff!”

Salary: $150,000
A rug: $300. “Rugs get a lot of wear and tear in my apartment, so I don’t want to be too precious about this purchase. I have made peace with the fact that someone will spill on the rug within hours of arrival.”
A handbag: $450. “People—myself included—can usually see the difference between a super cheap bag from Century21 and a mid-level handbag from, say, Tory Burch. But when it comes to the difference between a mid-level bag and one that’s ultra-luxury? No one really notices…or cares.”
A bottle of wine: $22. “Anything more than $25 is a rip-off and anything under $20 is too cheap to serve to guests.”

Salary: $150,000
A rug: $700. “Plenty of gorgeous rugs in that price range. Plus, a rug makes the room!”
A handbag: $75. “I’m talking about an everyday bag here. I am hard on them so I don’t want to worry too much about taking care of a luxury item.”
A bottle of wine: $12. “It all tastes the same to me.”

Salary: $80,000
A rug: $400. “It’s the bare minimum I need to spend to get one big enough.”
A handbag: $80. “I can’t justify spending hundreds of dollars on it.”
A bottle of wine: $8 to $15. “I don’t drink wine, so it would be for cooking.”

Salary: $40,000
A rug: $300. “I just want something that goes with the décor.”
A handbag: $600. “Some classic designer bags actually gain value and I love investing in a timeless piece like that.”
A bottle of wine: $20. “Unless it’s a bottle of red. Then, I’ll pay more because I swear I can taste the difference.”