Money Talk: Robin, 24F, Wedding
If you asked 10 people how to manage your money, you would get at least 10 different answers. Berlin is no different. Some people track every euro, others don’t really care. Some save aggressively, others prioritise experiences. With this new series we want to offer an insight on how Berliners handle their finances.
Today’s guest is Robin, a 24‑year‑old full‑stack software engineer in Berlin who has been extremely disciplined with money. She did meal‑prepping and, at some point, capped her miscellaneous spending at €5/day! She saves almost half of her salary (€1,500 on around €3,800 net).
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Personal snapshot
Age & gender:
24, female.
Relationship status:
Single.
Kids? Pets?
None.
Where do you live and since when?
Berlin, Wedding, for 2 years
Describe your housing situation—own/rent, size, and monthly cost.
Subletting 2-room apartment, 52 m2, €780/month.
What did you study or train in?
Graduated from university with a BSc in Math and Computer Science
Income and work
Job title, annual salary and monthly net income:
Full Stack Software Engineer, €75,000 (40h), no bonus, around €3,800 net.
Additional monthly income (if any):
None.
How did your salary evolve throughout your career?
My timeline here is a bit fuzzy, but it went roughly like this:
- First summer corporate Software engineering (SWE) internship (in the US) - $3,600/month
- Second summer corporate SWE internship (in the US) - $3,600/month
- 6-month startup PM Internship - €1,900 net/month
I was then hired at the same startup:
- nine months SWE - €65k/year
- three months SWE - raise to €68k/year
- two months SWE - raise to €75k/year
Do you negotiate salary? How do you prepare for it?
I haven’t negotiated my salary. I received compensation increases as a part of regular review/promotion cycles. I also feel privileged to make so much money at this age and because I feel compensated fairly, I don’t feel the need to negotiate.
Remote, hybrid, or office?
Hybrid - in office two times per week.
What was your best career move? Your worst?
I’m unsure. If my life goal were to climb the career ladder, then moving to Germany from the US was probably a bad decision. I would make more money in the US, learn more, and I had stronger connections there. The startup landscape is also better in SF and NYC. But that assumes career advancement is the only thing that matters, which is not the case for me.
Daily life and spending
BVG monthly ticket, Deutschlandticket, bike, car, or something else?
Deutschlandticket, monthly BVG Bike ticket, otherwise using my bike.
Do you cook regularly? How many times a week do you eat out?
I cook almost all my meals, and I’ll eat out 2x per week or so.
What’s your threshold for an “expensive” restaurant meal? (incl. drinks)
Above €20 pp.
Which subscriptions do you have? (Netflix, Spotify, gym, etc.)
BetterHelp, Urban Sports Club.
Do you have a cleaner?
No.
What’s worth every cent you spend on it?
Health - nutrition, mental, physical
What do you spend on that you wish you could quit?
Nothing in particular.
Money mindset
How do you manage money: disciplined tracking, intuition, or something in between?
For the past year, I’ve been very disciplined, never eating out, meal prepping, not spending on anything nonessential, and had a budget of €5 misc spending per day. I’ve relaxed this in the past months and am trying to find a balance between being flexible and using money as a tool to pursue my goals, but still remaining frugal.
I believe that above a certain point, spending won’t increase my quality of life. So I keep a low baseline of spending and am comfortable with it. I don’t want to need a lot or spend a lot.
Is there a tool or book, essay or anything similar about money, you would recommend?
I don’t have any good recommendations, but I do like this quote about wealth from Dune (book 4): “Wealth is a tool of freedom, but the Pursuit of it is the Way to Slavery.”
How comfortable do you feel about your financial situation right now?
Very comfortable, I’ve been able to save a lot, so I don’t feel reliant on my salary.
The numbers
Checking account balance (accessible today).
€124.
Monthly savings amount.
€1,500.
Do you invest? (stocks, savings plans, other)
Not really, a little bit in ETFs each month.
Private or public health insurance?
Public.
How many times per year do you leave Berlin/Germany?
10 times.
Your current net worth
€24,000.
Looking forward
What’s your biggest financial goal right now?
Learning how to invest my money so it’s not sitting in cash.
If you got a 20% raise tomorrow, what would change?
I would be saving more money.
What money advice would you give your younger self?
Read more about financial planning, how to start saving for retirement/life goals, so financial decisions feel more like practical decisions and not moral ones.
Want to share your story? Drop us an email or message. Your details will remain anonymous.
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