How to live on a minimum pension. Social experiment or how I lived on retirement (1 photo)

30.06.2019

The size of the pension in Russia is the eternal pain of those who receive this same pension. Alas, the picture is no better in other nearby countries. We talked to several retired people we know and collected the best popular advice on how to live on retirement.

Optimize your nutrition

Cloth

Avoid impulse purchases. Take what you need at the moment. Choose what suits you in terms of quality, and buy the cheapest of these things.
Buy clothes by size. If it is a little too small, it may wear out or tear along the seam; if it is too big, it will get caught on something else and tear.

Try to master buying clothes online. The most profitable option is Chinese stores like Aliexpress and jd.com. If you want to definitely try it on, choose Russian stores where you can order it at a pick-up point with a try-on, and then buy what suits you. The most famous of these are lamoda.ru and wildberries.ru.
Buy clothes on sales. They occur after the New Year and from mid-summer. Each store has its own schedule. If suddenly your clothes or shoes fall apart at the beginning of the season, visit a stock or discount center. They sell collections from previous years at a discount.

Communal apartment

If you have a meter with several tariffs, use the washing machine after 11 pm. The same applies to other devices with high energy consumption.
Find out if you are eligible for a subsidy. Each region has its own rules, but some pensioners manage to reimburse themselves for part of their housing and communal services costs.
Give up your home phone. Now it’s more profitable to use a cell phone, but you pay for a landline every month. If you still have a radio point, turn it off too.

Energy saving

Frequent cleaning of the vacuum cleaner. If the vacuum cleaner has not been cleaned for a long time and is clogged with debris, it will absorb more electricity. But, if you clean it more often, your vacuuming will end much faster and you will see the difference in savings from frequent cleaning.
Removing scale from a kettle. Don't let limescale build up in your kettle. The more it is, the longer the kettle heats up and naturally absorbs electricity. If you need to heat enough water for one mug, do not fill the kettle full. Pour as much as you need. The more water, the longer it will take to warm up.

Defrosting food on refrigerator shelves. The easiest way to defrost frozen foods is in the refrigerator. Then you will save on processor work, and it will save energy.
Using a plastic bottle saves on draining the water in the tank. First, improve your barrel. You can buy a new barrel with a button for separate drainage. But there is also a way out for old barrels. You will need to place a plastic bottle of water inside the tank. The mechanism will work the same, but drain less. The savings are significant.
Unplug all appliances from outlets. Many people have the habit of leaving a charger, washing machine, hair dryer, TV, or microwave oven in the outlet. Even in this state, they slowly but surely “devour” electricity.
Use energy-saving or LED lamps. Use energy-saving light bulbs and your significant costs will drop quite quickly. It is better to use class “A”; although it is more expensive, it will pay for itself very quickly, and you will notice clear savings in electricity and costs.

Many pharmacies and supermarkets offer discounts for pensioners. And some also have loyalty cards - they give a discount or save you points so that you can pay with them later. In general, apply for all free cards everywhere - be it a pharmacy, a store or another institution, a discount will not hurt.
More often give your family and friends something made with your own hands. Such a gift usually costs much less.
Under no circumstances take out credits, loans, or use installment plans. Living in debt with little income is a very big risk. What if you find yourself without money?
Set aside 10% of your pension for unexpected expenses if you have no savings. If you have savings, then perhaps you can spend all your income.

Time has no power over my neighbor, 72-year-old Alexandra Vitalievna.

Youthful, elegant, always tastefully dressed, a cheerful pensioner looks 10 years younger.

She is a former doctor and is used to always being in shape.

- The main thing is to never lose heart. Believe me, the most valuable thing for a person is health and life.

Don’t be upset about the lack of money, the inability to buy the thing you like, or troubles at work or in the family. I live by the principle “everything will pass, this too will pass.” In any situation, you must maintain peace of mind. And be able to live according to your income.

Alexandra Vitalievna learned to stretch her legs by clothing a long time ago. After the last indexation, her pension is just over 13 thousand rubles. This money is enough for her to live comfortably and even for entertainment.

My neighbor is an avid theatergoer. Allows himself to go to the theater or museum twice a month. And all this thanks to the rational use of your budget.

She divides her pension into four parts.

First- mandatory expenses, which include utilities and internet. This costs 5 thousand rubles. Tries to save on electricity and water.

- Pensioners should under no circumstances have debts for services to utility companies. If you are late for one month, you will have to pay for two the next month. And this will take your entire pension, - warns Alexandra Vitalievna.

Second part intended for the purchase of non-perishable products and sanitary and hygiene products. With each pension, he replenishes his supply of cereals, sugar, canned food, vegetable oils, cleaning and detergents. Minus one and a half thousand rubles from the budget.

Four thousand rubles she leaves for her current expenses: the purchase of meat, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, dried fruits for tea.

All that remains, in her words, is money to please yourself. New things and entertainment. True, in order to treat yourself to a new blouse or dress, you have to save money for several months.

He buys tickets to the theater through promotions, for 300-400 rubles. And going to museums costs 100 rubles, fortunately the fee for this category of visitors is purely symbolic.

It's probably hard to imagine how you can get by with four thousand in operating expenses a month, but my neighbor manages to fit into this part of her budget.

Thanks to little tricks.

Firstly, he doesn’t go to the store every day, but every other day or two, and less often if possible.

Secondly, with a list of necessary products. This insures her against unnecessary and useless purchases.

Thirdly, he takes with him a limited amount, no more than 400 rubles. He tries to buy groceries in stores that offer social discounts for pensioners.

In addition, retail chains often hold various promotions, which she actively uses. For example, if butter, meat and fish products are on sale at a good discount, buy more and store it in the freezer. This allows you to reduce the number of trips to the store and save money.

As a doctor, he tries to adhere to a healthy lifestyle.

Her diet contains a lot of vegetables, fruits, and dairy products.
In the fall, he makes preparations for the winter: he freezes tomatoes, bell peppers, cauliflower, and berries.
Does not abuse red meat, prefers fish, chicken and seafood.
Doesn't eat sausages at all.

Alexandra Vitalievna even has her own emergency reserve. She puts aside more than a thousand rubles on her card every month, which the state returns to her as compensation for utilities (if utility bills make up 22% of income, the pensioner is entitled to a subsidy). This is money for unexpected expenses - medicines, gifts for friends or relatives.

She can't afford big purchases. And there is no need for them. Alexandra Vitalievna prepared for the moment when she will not work. I updated all the equipment, made renovations in the apartment, and purchased bedding. He advises future retirees to do the same.

People of pre-retirement age need to know that pensions are only enough for the most minimal needs of a person.

- The approach of retirement age has its positive aspects, and this period of life can be a joy if you learn to adjust your lifestyle, your needs, and find a hobby.

I don't consider myself an unhappy person. The main thing is that you are dressed and fed, there are relatives and friends.

Just don’t get sick and live under a peaceful sky. And so that the pension is paid on time,” says Alexandra Vitalievna.

Faina Svedovaya

How to live on a meager pension? This is the question thousands of pensioners ask every day. It is especially difficult for lonely old people who have no one to support them. Magazine Reconomica interviewed a pensioner who shared her experience of distributing a pension of less than 10 thousand rubles. How to save, what to eat, what to give up, how to live at the end of the month, when there is still a week until the next pension - about this in today's material.

At the beginning of 2015, I, Ilmira Imelievna Gavrilova , joined the huge 42 million army of pensioners in our country. I won’t lie, I was looking forward to this moment and left work with pleasure. I wanted to live freely: take care of my health, my beloved grandchildren, devote more time to hobbies and reading, and not jump up and run to “work hard” every morning.

Maybe this wouldn't have happened. Due to “optimization”, with 22 years of teaching experience, I became unemployed and had to get a job as a salesperson in a grocery store for a private owner on the basis of a mutual agreement without registration.

Therefore, the size of the pension, despite the total 30 years of experience, turned out to be slightly higher than the minimum, equal to the subsistence level per capita in our region - 8,200 rubles.

What problem did I face in the first months of retirement?

This is what my pension looks like

The first months of “free” life flew by instantly: I didn’t feel a lack of funds - my small savings helped. But everything comes to an end: savings have dried up, and a bare old-age pension has become the main means of livelihood. Out of habit of living lavishly, I continued to spend money twice as much as my allowance. In the end, I got into debt with friends, took out loans...

The former optimism diminished and the constant question “how to continue to live on 8,000 rubles” haunted me. Eg, . What's worse about me? It’s completely incomprehensible to me why there is such injustice. How can I live on half the money?

What to do when your pension is not enough?

Why is the problem of lack of money relevant for pensioners?

The number of pensioners in our country is growing rapidly, and it is becoming increasingly difficult for the younger generation to feed us unemployed people, so there is no need to wait for an increase in benefits as “manna from heaven.”

Most older people are unable to work due to poor health, and the crisis and rising unemployment prevent them from finding work. I don’t argue, not all pensioners are “offended”: hundreds of thousands of former officials,management staff, military, judges, oil and gas workersthey get a lot. These are only a few hundred thousand people, but the remaining millions are disabled,victims of radiation disasters,orphans without a breadwinner,old age pensionerslive on funds ranging from 7,000 rubles. up to 14,000 rub.

It turns out that millions of people have the same meager funds as my pension - 8,000 rubles, in most cases even less. But you shouldn’t despair about this, you can live, and you need to learn to live on what you have.

I offer some tips for solving this problem, gained from personal experience. I hope that the knowledge I acquired during my first years of retirement will help you not only learn to live within your means, but also change your outlook on life itself.

How I looked for a pension increase

I’ll tell you about the methods of increasing your pension that I excluded. I do not advise pensioners:

Take on hard physical work.

Feeling the first financial difficulties, I immediately went back to the store as a salesperson, fortunately they respected me there and did not forget me. I worked for three months, paid off debts and closed loans... But hard physical work and being on my feet for 12 hours undermined my health: my joints ached. Doctors explained that senile changes in the body cannot be cured, but can only be slowed down: reduce physical activity and alleviate it with the help of painkillers... There was no talk of continuing to work... Costs for medicines have increased significantly.

Take out loans.

Loans to pensioners are issued without guarantors and unnecessary documentary evidence: easily and quickly, but it is almost impossible to pay on time from a small allowance. I have already told about my such experience before. There is a big risk - getting stuck in a debt hole for a long time - also not a suitable option for replenishing the budget.

How I found the right method and started planning a budget

Having left my job, which gave me the opportunity to get out of the debt hole, but which completely undermined my health, I began to learn to live in a new way, within my means. Changing the entire way of life and attitude towards it in accordance with the sudden onset of physical and material disadvantages was difficult, but it turns out it is possible.

First I calculated all my expenses:

communal apartment,
nutrition,
cloth,
medicines,
gifts for relatives,
feasts on holidays,
necessary household goods,
repair

Etc. for a month. The result was an impressive amount, much higher than my allowance. I crossed out everything that was not urgently needed at the moment. The list contains the essentials for each month:

communal apartment,
food,
medicines,
household goods.

The total amount of money previously spent on this list did not suit me: if utility expenses remained within a certain amount, then expenses for food and medicine were large and did not change for the better.

Advice: utility bills can be reduced.

It was necessary to change the range of products, reduce medications, and reduce expenses on household goods. This means changing your lifestyle, your diet, a set of medications and necessary goods. My new life principle of “eat half as much and exercise twice as much outdoors” helped bring them into line with retirement.

How do I spend my 8,000 ruble pension? Specific plan of my budget for the month

I divided my monthly expenses into several groups.

Calculating utility costs

Communal payments. I live in my own house, so the costs of sewerage and general repairs are not included here.

heating (gas) – 1600 – 1700 rub.
electricity – 300 – 350 rub.
water – 100 rub.

Total – (maximum) 2150 rub.

How to live on 3,000 rubles a month: list of products

Going to the store now only with a list!

Nutrition. Probably, many are interested in the menu of a pensioner for 3 thousand rubles. Indeed, for this small amount you can eat normally. I excluded from my diet expensive meat products, sausages, canned food, smoked meats, overseas fruits and other food delights imposed on people by the insatiable trading industry.

Here is my grocery list for the month:

Bread– 1/2 loaves per day, that is, 15 pcs. – 300 rub.
Cereals:
oatmeal (most of all) 5 kg – 150 rub.
pearl barley 3 kg – 90 rub.
semolina 1 kg – 45 rub.
buckwheat (favorite) 3 kg – 210 rub.
millet (cheap) 2 kg – 50 rub.
rice 3 kg – 150 rub.
peas 3 kg – 75 rub.
Flour 2kg – 70 rub.
Meat and fish(usually chicken and cheap pollock) – 1000 rubles.
Dairy and 2 liters of cheap sunflower oil - 300 rubles.
Eggs 3 dozen – 180 rub.
Sugar 2 kg – 100 rub.
Vegetables and fruits(most necessary):
potatoes 10 kg – 200 rub.
apples 1 kg – 65 rub.
cabbage 3 kg – 60 rub.
onions 3 kg and garlic 3 pcs. – 100 rub.
salt and seasonings – 100 rub.

Total – 3245 rub.

How to save on medicines

Here are the most essential medications (the ones designed for me, you can change the list, but choose cheap domestically produced analogues instead of the recommended expensive imported ones, eliminating as much as possible the risk of buying a counterfeit):

Medicine for hypertension (one tablet every day) 1 package – 250 rubles.
paracetamol 2-3 packs (for colds, fever, joint pain) – 180 rubles.
nimesulide 1-2 packages (for joint pain) – 120 rubles.

Total – 550 rub.

How much does the minimum set of household goods cost for a month?

Household goods (most necessary):

Washing powder 1 pack – 50 rub.
toilet soap 2 pcs – 30 rub.
toilet paper 5 rolls – 50 rub.
dishwashing detergent – 50 rub.
toothpaste and razor – 150 rubles.

Total – 330 rub.

We create an emergency reserve

The total amount of expenses is in the range of 6275 - 6300 rubles per month. Of the remaining amount of 1,700 rubles, 700 rubles. I put it in my wallet (for unplanned expenses), and put away 1000 rubles for a “rainy day”. Of course, you can spend them right away, but the ability to withstand the onslaught of “habitual” desires and needs, to be content with the minimum, denying yourself the pleasure of eating delicious food and showing off fashionable clothes, is a new way of life.

I even noticed an improvement in my health on a meager diet of porridge in water with vegetable oil.

Opinions of people and doctors on the problem

True, there are not enough people who agree with my current daily routine. Strict accounting of budget expenses and income and strict adherence to what was planned seems almost indecent to people: like a manifestation of stinginess. But in developed capitalist countries people have been living like this for a long time.

Medicine has long convinced us that most people get sick due to poor nutrition: excessive consumption of high-calorie protein, fatty, sweet, salty and smoked foods has a bad effect on health. Eating carbohydrates and plant foods, on the contrary, improves health.

How to live on retirement in Russia: ways to survive, tips

So, my advice to retirees:

Make a budget plan and stick to it strictly.
Change your diet.
Do not spend money on expensive gifts, but rather sew, knit or make a souvenir for your children or grandchildren.
Do not follow the lead of the trade industry and do not “buy” into advertising.
Take advantage of the opportunities: vegetable garden, garden, picking berries, mushrooms and herbs.
Take advantage of subsidies and benefits offered by the state.
If your health allows, continue to work at light jobs.

Announcement: the magazine offers part-time work for retirees

Dear pensioners!

If you found this article because you are in a difficult life situation, we suggest reading the magazine’s vacancies. We are looking for freelancers without work experience. We don't promise big money, but the work is simple. To work, it is enough to have a VKontakte account.

Retirement, on the one hand, is an opportunity for good rest, the implementation of once forgotten plans, and the opportunity to devote more time to yourself and your family.

On the other hand, this is a rather noticeable financial limitation, especially if your stable salary during work was an order of magnitude higher than the pension that you were awarded and which you will receive for a long time.

Today we’ll talk about how to live on your pension without working, as well as how best to distribute and plan your family pension budget for the month, so that the pension you receive is at least enough until the next month, and not sit for several days with an empty wallet.

This will be especially interesting for pensioners who do not expect help from their children or other relatives.

I can’t work anymore, I’m retired

And so, you left work yourself, due to health conditions or general fatigue, or you were politely asked to do this in order to make way for younger, more promising employees. In general, you received your first pension in your life, and gasped: “How can you live on this amount?!”

Do you know what the best answer to this question is? In my opinion, the only answer is: “Modest and economical.”

Well, let's figure out how to live with it.

Let's start by calculating what your pension is or will be spent on. I hope that you have repaid all the loans that you had while working, otherwise, I recommend looking for a job and working until you pay off all your debts. Otherwise, your already small pension will be further reduced by the amount of payments to the bank or micro-financial organization.

Where does the received pension go?

In general, there are five main items that not only most families, but also most retirees spend money on.

1. Utility payments

These are constant and mandatory payments that cannot be avoided. You need to pay for the apartment, otherwise in your old age, if you have huge debts for utilities, you may not only be left without electricity or gas (they can simply be turned off for non-payment), but also lose your home altogether.

For example, by a court decision, a debtor pensioner can be evicted from an apartment, the apartment can be sold for debts, and the pensioner can be sent to a nursing home. God forbid, of course.

I'm not trying to intimidate you, I'm just drawing attention to the fact that you need to pay for the apartment. It is better to limit yourself to any other needs, but pay for the apartment.

In the end, if, based on the results of your calculations, you understand that you do not have enough money for basic needs, including not enough money for utility bills, it is better, while you are still full of strength, to move to another one, with a smaller area and, accordingly, apartment with smaller utility bills.

Or, if you are the owner of a multi-room apartment, let guests into one of the rooms. The money received from this will significantly simplify the current financial situation.

2. Food expenses

While you worked and received a salary greater than your current pension, you could afford not only expensive delicacies, but also the purchase of prepared foods, for example, various kinds of ready-made salads, semi-finished products, etc.

After retirement, you have a lot of free time, so you can spend this time on cooking. Believe me, cooking your own food at home, rather than buying semi-finished products in a store, significantly saves your already meager pension budget.

I recommend reading more about how to save on food at the link: How to save on food.

3. Cost of clothing

It is necessary to allocate a certain amount of money for clothes. This is especially true for underwear and constantly worn items. But, by the way, the clothes that you have in your closet, especially outerwear, will last you at least five years, and if worn carefully, for a longer period.

Yes, I would like to draw your attention to the following feature that can affect any person. When you retire, the intensity of life slows down, we move much less than during the period of work, especially if you do not have garden plots on which you spend your energy.

And the more measured our lives become, the greater the likelihood of gaining excess weight. That is, when we retire, we simply start to get fat! And this applies to most retirees.

In addition to deteriorating health, weight gain will also lead to the need to update your wardrobe. This means that clothing costs will increase.

Will your pension be enough for these expenses? Don't think. Therefore, when retiring, we make sure to monitor our weight. And we don’t allow weight gain.

4. Expenses for other household needs

In addition to food, every person needs normal living conditions. And this also implies monetary expenses, including the basic purchase of toilet paper, shampoos, soap, washing powder, apartment cleaning products, towels, bed linen, etc. and so on.

The existing reserves, of course, may last for a long time. But you can’t save up for your entire life, so we budget for these expenses too.

5. Drug costs

Unfortunately, with age we do not become more energetic and healthier, and by the time we retire, most of us are the “lucky owner” of a bunch of diseases. This means that the cost of medicine will accompany us for the rest of our lives. No matter how cynical it may sound.

Therefore, just as in previous cases, we include the cost of medicines in our pension family budget.

It is quite possible that you have more basic expenses than I have listed. If so, then add your expenses, they also need to be taken into account when planning and distributing your pension. For example, this could be helping children, or, for example, you are paying off a loan, or paying off debts. There can be many options.

So, how to distribute your pension per month?

Immediately after transferring your pension to a bank card or issuing funds in cash, you must immediately set aside the required amount for so-called mandatory expenses.

It is better to purchase products not in stores, but at wholesale centers or markets - prices here are much lower. This saving strategy will allow you to make a month's supply of groceries. This includes canned food, sugar, cereals, pasta, and other food products that can be stored for a long time.

You can also create your menu for the week ahead, and following this, purchase only the necessary products. This will help you avoid unnecessary purchases at this time.

At wholesale markets you can stock up on household chemicals, detergents, and other industrial goods.

Before going to the store, it is better to take a allocated amount of money, which must first be distributed among planned purchases - make a list.

It is important to avoid going to the store or market on an empty stomach. It may sound trivial, but experts even recommend having a special snack to avoid additional costs caused by hunger.

Elderly people who actively use mobile communications should sometimes visit the office of a mobile operator or obtain information on its official website. It is quite possible that the operator has added some new and favorable tariffs for the accessibility and convenience of its customers. Thus, you can significantly reduce your mobile communications costs.

The most important advice for retirees: spend more time on yourself, not money. A retired person can express himself in a completely new way. Think about your hobbies or hobbies that you didn’t even think about before retiring, or simply didn’t have time for.

It could be anything: embroidery, sewing, knitting, drawing and other interests. In addition, embroidered or knitted items, painted pictures, various crafts can be sold (even via the Internet). All this can provide the pensioner with additional income.

I cut my hair bald to save soap and shave once a week with an axe.

I survive very simply, I eat once a day, and the rest of the time I drink tea with crackers and dried fruit. I allow meat and fish on holidays. I wish our government to live like this.

Work, work, crawl and work, and there will be good people to bury.

The only way to survive on retirement is to save on food, this is the only way, since you can’t save on anything else, it won’t work.

I buy food at special prices and at a discount. For example, sausages for 27 and 39 rubles, a pack of 12 jokes or 1+1, that is, you get 2 for the price of one. The other day I took 500 grams of minced meat 1+1, it turned out there was only one pack, the director herself chose the second purchase of zrazy for me, and it turned out that I paid 25 rubles for the zrazy, and the minced meat was free. I know that summer residents keep it for themselves and sell it on the market. The old lady was in the hospital with me, and she said that during the season last year she earned 180,000 rubles in the market. If you have the strength to dig around at the dacha, then everything is not so bad. God bless you. I understand and feel sorry for those old people who, due to lack of pension, go to wash floors just to survive.

I have a pension - the cost of living is 8726, and the rent for December is 7700. How can I continue to live? Eating or dressing?

What do I save on? 1. By transport. I'm basically forced to stay at home. To get to another area, I walk, because even though they write that travel is free for pensioners. Although in Moscow transport in the city and suburbs is free. 2. On food. Food is just as expensive as in Moscow, although pensions are much lower than theirs. They are given various additional payments and benefits. 3. Turned off the landline at home. I use my mobile phone extremely rarely, for this reason I put money there only once every 2 months, 100 rubles each. It works out economically. But! But there is practically no connection with friends and family. I call only when necessary. 4. I refused to buy fish, meat, cheese, since it became an expensive pleasure for me. 5. Although it is written in the law that a pensioner has the right to benefit from free treatment once a year, we pensioners in Cherepovets are denied (perhaps, due to cronyism, someone is taking advantage). Muscovites enjoy this right to anyone who wants to. 6. I don’t have the opportunity to help my children and grandchildren, since I live from retirement to retirement. Although, after working for 35 years, they gave me a pension of 5,018 rubles. True, I retired early (1.5 years earlier than 55), since I wasn’t hired anywhere at that age. And I receive pension supplements bit by bit. Now it turns out to be a little more than 11,000 rubles.

Preface.

Everything written here is a social experiment. The author (that is, I) does not set himself the task of in any way forcing readers to do this, the author does not draw conclusions (you can draw them yourself based on the contents of your skull, or you can just forget), the author simply describes how you can ( and is it possible) to live on the minimum state pension in the Russian Federation. The experiment does NOT pretend to be maximally objective due to the fact that the author is not a pensioner and is somewhat unaware of all the nuances.
The total figures given in the experiment will differ slightly from the final amounts and calculations due to the fact that not absolutely all expenses are indicated here (for example, the purchase of bread, salt, deductions for some “trips” on public transport, additional purchase of small things like 1 carrot for 5 p), and the subtotals and final figures are taken from the bank statement, therefore more accurate.

So, let's go!

Reading articles and comments about the state of pension payments, about our parents (many of them are already pensioners), an obsessive thought stuck in my head - well, how can you live on the pennies described?
Over time, the thought transformed into a clear understanding that a bad head does not give rest to one’s hands, and one needs to conduct an experiment - to live at least for a month on the money that the state pays to its citizens in the form of pensions.

Let me make a reservation right away - I am not a pensioner, I work, I earn good money, so I removed some types of payments from my experiment, due to the fact that I need these expenses to maintain my earnings (maintenance of cars, for example).

So, I started by calling the local pension fund and inquiring about the size of pensions in our region. A nice voice on the other side said that today the minimum payment is 8,801 rubles, the average is 14,500 rubles, and the maximum reaches 42,000.
Well, what can I say, of course you can live on 42, but try living on 8.801!

I waited until the beginning of the month, emptied one of the cards, and transferred exactly 8,801 rubles to it. Now this is all my money for the month. Actually everything. You can start mowing like a pensioner.

First of all, we need to set aside money for our beloved bloodsuckers from the housing and communal services sector. It should be noted that in general they are not that bad. The average cost of services per month is approximately 2,700 rubles for a two-room apartment with 47 square meters (a little less in summer, a little more expensive in winter). The yard is swept, the light bulbs in the entrance are changed, the entrance itself is washed, and the garbage is taken out.

Well, after shedding a few tears, I paid for housing and communal services and uuuuppsss! They charged another 54 rubles as a “commission for translation services.” I didn’t even know there was such a thing before - everything was paid automatically. It seems like fifty dollars is nonsense, but money is already so little.

In general, I have as much as 6,047 rubles left (for mathematicians: 8,801 rubles - 2,700 rubles - 54 rubles = 6,047 rubles).
An inner voice clearly chuckled and suggested that we quickly finish with this nonsense and go to a tavern to eat steaks.

Ha! Russians don't give up! - I retorted and began calculations.

It turned out that I had as much as 195.06 rubles available to spend per day. Holy shit, so many! An inner voice whinnied tactlessly near my right ear.

So, I saw 2 ways.
The first is to go to a wholesale store and buy a bunch of everything at once with all the money, and then try to survive on it for a month.
The second is to visit nearby large stores (supermarkets) and inspect them for any promotions or discounts.

The second method was chosen. Promotions are good, and somehow storing perishable food in the refrigerator for a month didn’t excite me.
At first there was an idea to collect receipts and photograph them, but after I habitually threw a couple of receipts into the trash right in the store, the technique broke down. Therefore, some are from memory, some are based on bank card statements, some are based on preserved receipts.

There are 2 supermarkets within walking distance from me - one from the largest chain and also the most expensive, and a “supermarket for the poor” - the cheapest (if you take average prices). You can also get to the federal one by public transport, the prices there are so-so, but often there are promotions like 20-30-50% discounts, plus their own line of products “for the poor.”

Therefore, it was decided to graze these particular supermarkets, and for a trip to a “distant” (federal) market, it was decided to deduct 24 rubles from oneself (a trip on a municipal bus in both directions).

The first day of the experiment fell on a Friday, so the first thing I did was go to a distant supermarket to find good discounts (they are there every day on different products, but on Fridays it’s especially busy).

My instinct didn’t let me down and the market was full of signs with “20% discount”, but only for kebabs. However, what was interesting to me was that there was a discount of the day on chicken schnitzel. Only 202 rub. for 1 kg of this wonderful product. (It is a pounded chicken breast, rolled in breadcrumbs).

It was packed with 3 small schnitzels (costing 128.6 rubles), bread (I generally only eat rye bread, but 33.80 for a Darnitsky flatbread is a bit expensive for me these days, so I took the cheapest bread, for 16.90), the cheapest pasta (26.90 per 500 g), 2 tomatoes (Chinese at 69.90 per kg, increased by 28.40) and 1 cucumber (local) at 39.90 per kg, which increased by 14.6 rubles.
In addition, a jar of tomato paste "Kubanochka" for 29.90 and a package of some kind of mayonnaise-type sauce for 24 rubles.
At the checkout, I was upset that I had gone beyond the daily amount - as much as 269.3, plus 24 rubles for travel, but the snack should have been enough for a couple of days.

In total, at the end of the first day of my retirement life, I spent almost 300 rubles (293.3 to be exact) out of 195 available.

At home, I fried schnitzels, cooked pasta (as long as you eat it hot, you can eat it, but if it’s cooled down, it won’t look very good) and found out that the schnitzel is quite large, it can be divided into 2 times, and in the end you will get 6 servings, which is 3 times a day. nutrition fits into 2 days. And for 2 days, I can spend as much as 390.12 rubles, but I spent only 293.3, the profit is as much as 96.82! It just made me proud how thrifty I am [<- это был сарказм].

I spent the entire next week in the “supermarket for the poor,” which turned out to be greedy with discounts, but it had the cheapest promotional rice, at 29.90 per kilogram. Having suppressed the attack of the toad, I immediately packed a bag for a little over 4 kilograms (the local packaging is like this, apparently they pour it by eye and then weigh it), paying 129 rubles. Rice is a fairly economical thing; you throw in a glass, and what comes out is a small saucepan. True, eat it every day...
But there is also buckwheat and peas! And even oatmeal, which is “rolled oatmeal”, costs 19 rubles! In general, cereals are all our pension money, yes! It’s much more difficult with meat, but with chicken or fish there are no special problems - I came across a sale of chicken nuggets at 179 per kilogram, and immediately stocked up on two. There is even a whole chicken for 89.90 per kg, but I was careful not to take it (later it turned out that I did the right thing). Flounder for 79, pollock for 80, and pink salmon (on sale) for only 149 rubles per kilogram.

After 10 days, I recalculated the balance, checked the card and received a balance of 4,651 rubles. Holy shit! I didn’t even know that you could live for 10 days on less than fifteen hundred!
I decided to indulge myself and bought a whole kilogram of wonderful pork tenderloin - 380 rubles per kilogram. I ate for 4 days (fried, chop), saving and smacking my lips, snacking on rice and pasta (pasta at 35 rubles per kg - disgusting!).
I didn’t want to buy the “loin” part at 290 - a lot of fat, skin, bones. The 320 beef was also cut so skillfully that in any piece the bone occupied at least 30% of the volume, there is nothing to say about cartilage.

I bought a kilogram of bones for 60 rubles and cooked borscht. Cabbage - 15 rubles per kilogram, onions - 19, carrots - as much as 24 (Chinese, I couldn’t find it cheaper), beets - 19, potatoes - 16.90.
I thought about it and bought another jar of sour cream. 39 rubles for 200 grams. We, pensioners, love sour cream!
The 5 liter pan ran out in 3 days. I'll tell you - borscht without savory pieces of meat is so-so in terms of satiety. I ate a healthy plate, and 2 hours later I want it again.

On the 18th day the next recalculation is 4.012 balance. Not bad.

I bought 221 grams of smoked loin for 79.56, 800 grams of peas for 34 rubles, and started enjoying the soup. It would be nice to have more Koreans, but oh well, you won’t be able to run away much from retirement. Ate for 2 days.

I remembered that I didn’t buy vegetable oil for all 20 days - I used old leftovers. He immediately inspected the stores and, without flinching, laid out 220 rubles for a 3-liter jar of oil “for everyone.” The oil is so-so, but if you don’t overheat it in a frying pan, it will do.

On the 20th day, I bought myself a whole pink salmon, with the head on, but without the giblets. Rybina pulled out 190 rubles. I cut off the head, fins, tail and abdomen and put it in the refrigerator. I fried the fish in small steaks, it was quite good with mayanesique and rice. It was difficult to stretch it out for 2 days.

Day 22 - I have an earache! Yes, yes, from the same thing - head, fins, tail. I had to buy more potatoes and carrots. I'll tell you that the fish soup from all this, without the fish itself, is just so-so. I used up a three-liter saucepan in a day.

Day 23 is fishy again. I bought 1.5 kg of flounder and paid 117 rubles. A tasty piece of butter for 63 and a couple of kilograms of potatoes for 42. I had to buy a bag of flour. 0.5 kg for 23 rubles. More is cheaper, but I don't need more.
I ate fried flounder with potatoes for two days. It's tasty, but the flounder runs out faster.

Day 25 - another revision. 2968 on the map, there is some rice left, half a pack of peas, a lot of butter and vegetable oil, 2 carrots.

There is exactly a week left until the end of the experiment, and the money is almost 3 thousand!

I bought a kilogram of “homemade” minced meat (299 rubles per kg, cost 302 rubles) and a kilogram of chicken (220 per kg, cost 231 rubles). I bought some “fashionable” pasta (54 rubles/500g). I made meatballs, cooked rice - made meatballs, bought a loaf (6.90 for a small one) - made cutlets.

I ate for 4 days. On the 3rd day I ran out of pasta, so I bought more potatoes (39 rubles).

Day 29 2275 rubles on the card. The soap and snout accessories purchased before the experiment ran out, and I did not take them into account in my calculations.

Having cried, I inspected the markets, and it turned out:

259 rubles for 4 kg of the cheapest powder on sale
69 rubles for a hefty tube of the cheapest toothpaste
79 rubles per liter jar of liquid soap
2x18 rubles for laundry soap
89 rubles for a liter jug of dishwashing liquid.
199 rubles on sale for half a liter of shampoo is more or less normal. Although you could save money and get a liter of some chamomile for 99.

Out of anger, I bought 374 grams of smoked ham for 120 rubles, 10 eggs in a paper cell (saving 5.99 compared to a plastic one) for 41.90, took 910g of rice (market packaging), already at 39, it came out to 35.5, a pack of normal spaghetti for 69 rubles, 400g of chopped and packaged normal cheese for 199 rubles (cheese in a supermarket for the poor can be found for 220-260 per KILOGRAM, but there is such cheese... I, as a newly minted pensioner, am not yet used to this), 2 schnitzels and 3 chicken cutlets ( schnitzel without a promotion is already at 260, cutlets at 220, pulled up to 133 and 101 rubles, respectively).

Now it’s all over anyway! There should be more than enough munchies for the remaining 3 days; you can invite your grandchildren to the feast. 3 times haha.

30th day. I grate the schnitzel and cutlet, pouring melted butter over them and snacking on sandwiches with cheese and ham. Yes, that’s the kind of gentleman I am!

31st day. I saw a version of carbonara on the chips - I immediately kneaded the eggs and cheese, trimmed the remaining ham, and went to the store for green onions (-14 rubles). But I’m not a fan of raw eggs, so I fried everything thoroughly.

I remembered that I didn’t buy sugar and tea - I drink all the old supplies. I drove it to the store again. 5 kg of sugar - 249 rubles, 100 bags (may tea lovers forgive me, I'm a pensioner) of not very disgusting green tea - on sale 149 rubles.

In total, the balance is 381 rubles, 1 chicken cutlet, 6 eggs, 2 slices of cheese, a ton of sunflower oil and a full frying pan of carbonara and the last day of my experiment.

In the evening, the electronic idiot (who is a smartphone) said that it would be nice to pay for the light. In! Exactly! Electricity. 331 kW for 97 (already 97!!!) kopecks = 321.07 rubles:(

First of August. I devoured the remains of the carbonara (delicious, by the way, I recommend it), and I’m writing a “report” on the work done.
60.53 rubles on the card, 1 cutlet in the refrigerator.

As can be seen from the above, a pensioner can live on the minimum wage without starving and eating quite normally. BUT! In my case, this does not include medications (!), and this is a very important component for older people.
A single pensioner with a minimum pension will not be able to afford to buy things without austerity. Banal shoes, trousers or a whole coat at once - for this you will have to squeeze in food (giving up all “expensive” products - meat, cheese, switching to cheap cereals and, as a delicacy, fish) and saving, saving, saving...
Pensioners have some benefits, but I didn’t bother to understand them - who is entitled to what and by whom, how much can be saved on this - I don’t know.

Well, for those who read to the end, but have already forgotten what is written at the top, let me remind you. The author (i.e., I) did not set myself the task of assessing or analyzing the condition of pensioners in the Russian Federation. The author does not know how many pensioners receive the minimum pension (he also does not know how many receive the maximum or average pension). The author does not draw any conclusions from the experiment, except for the obvious - it is quite possible to live on a minimum wage, but not a coat (which is generally obvious to any adult).

Based on everything, take care of your relatives in retirement (especially at minimum), do for them at least a little more than the state machine does, because for you they are a loved one. Let him be pleased.