The True Cost Of Convenience
It’s emptying the wallet faster than you think
If you knew up-front that ordering dinner on Deliveroo or Uber Eats once a week instead of four times a week for 12 months could save you $3,900 (based on $25 per order) for an overseas holiday or something else, would you be more mindful of your takeaway consumption?
We’re all guilty of splurging on ourselves from time to time, whether you’re a startup founder, business owner, student or a talented individual helping another business to thrive. That’s ok! But when that splurging becomes an unintended habit, that’s when we put ourselves in danger of regret.
It all starts with an extra 10% here and 20% there. Over some time, you begin to spend the extra 20% more frequently. And before you know it, it has escalated to an extra 20% as the norm and you’re foregoing an extra 18% on average for convenience that felt good in the moment. But 5 years later, when you decide to make a big life purchase such as a home or investment property, you realise that the cost for convenience was costing you an extra $32,500 over the 5 years for delivery weekday dinners. Would you have still opted for the delivery convenience you did if you knew this cost up-front?
From a business perspective, it’s fantastic that convenience is a growing sector predicted to be worth £47.1 billion by 2022. But we should not forget that we are also consumers once we step outside of the office. Today, we’re so busy being busy in our daily lives that we are easily distracted from how the extra money here and there for convenience is effecting our long term plan. Here are some of the common conveniences that many of us happily pay for today.
Why cook when there’s delivery
Cooking for one can be a challenge but it’s not impossible and you get to control what goes into your meals. On the other hand, cooking for 2 or more people really has no excuse. Yet, with services such as Deliveroo, Uber Eats and the like have made it easier and more convenient to eat restaurant quality food from the comfort of your couch. In addition to that, we usually feeling like just lying on the couch and “taking it easy” when we get home from work because “its been a hard day”. However, are you really saving time? Whilst we know that going to the grocery store and cooking takes time, how does that compare to the time it takes to order the food and wait for delivery? Let’s not forget that delivery isn’t perfect and the restaurant or delivery person always gets the order right. With delivery, we might not always choose the “healthiest” option because its tempting to eat what we’re craving in the moment and its easier to over eat because food we wouldn’t normally or easily cook is readily available. Doing delivery for dinner during the week could also be contributing to the additional thousands of dollars spent on a personal trainer unnecessarily. In this section, we’ll take a closer look at how much the convenience of doing delivery over cooking is actually costing someone.
Note that I’ve chosen to base calculations and comparison on a 4 day work week as we have social events, gatherings or the desire to go out for dinner “just because”. Note that the cost comparisons is based on the average cost for one person and only dinner.
Scenario 1.1: Delivery 4 days, no cooking
If this is you, I imagine that you’re schedule is super busy, you absolutely detest cooking or you don’t know how to cook. Fortunately, you have the luxury of doing delivery (eg. Uber Eats) 4 days a week. I assume that you’re aware of how much it’s costing you each time, but how about over 12 months or 3 years?
Scenario 1.2: Cook 3 days + Delivery 1 day
If this is you, I imagine that you may or may not have some routine for cooking but once a week you reach for the mobile to order delivery because you ran out of food or couldn’t be bothered to go to the shops or just wanted to “relax”. Luckily, delivery is cheaper than dining out so it can’t be that hard on the wallet right? Or wrong?
Scenario 1.3: Cook 4 days, no delivery
If this is you, I imagine that you have a pretty decent routine for your grocery shopping and preparing your meals. At some point, I assume you’ve done some rough calculations for your groceries and dinners at home vs delivery. As a bonus, these meals are generally healthier since you have control and know what’s going into your food.
Observations
- Cooking 4 days a week for 12 months saves you ~$4,700. That’s a savings of ~$14,000 over 3 years.
- Getting dinner delivered 4 days a week for 12 months is 4 times more expensive than cooking 4 days a week the same period — Forbes found delivery to be almost 5 times more expensive on average.
- Getting dinner delivered just once a week for 12 months is equivalent to the cost for cooking 4 days a week for the same period— even this surprised me.
- You’re more likely to eat healthier when cooking your own dinner compared to delivery because you know what’s going in your food.
If you knew the associated cost of the convenience for delivery before hand, which scenario would you have chosen?
In summary, it is important to be aware of how much the convenience of getting delivery for dinner compared to cooking dinner is costing us. I’m not saying that delivery is bad but being ignorant of the cost associated to the convenience that’s making you feel good is dangerous and could lead to regret. Plus, if you’re like me where the quality of food ingredients matters, you’re most likely not getting this in your delivery meals. What is the price you’re willing to pay for the convenience of delivery over cooking?
Cooking Tips
There are plenty of quick and healthy meal recipes online. I’ve listed some below for a kick start. For those who aren’t creative cooks, just start with a few meals to get a hang at cooking and slowly add in new recipes as you feel comfortable. You can also prepare meals for the week on Sunday, packing each meal separately, making it more convenient to “grab and go” during the week.
- Jamie’s 30 minute meals
- Weeknight dinner for one
- Good Food’s 6 ingredients or less
- Quick dinner recipes
Why walk or bike when there’s Uber
For some people, driving is the only option for the daily commute. But for many others, we have the option to walk, bicycle, scooter, Uber/taxi or use public transport. We often rationalise that we need to get somewhere quickly, easily forgetting about the other benefits that come along with the “second best” option (eg. walking or bicycling).
Aside from the obvious that walking is free, 30 minutes of walking burns 90 to 200 calories as well as having other health benefits such as improved mental wellbeing. Bicycling is free as well, with the exception of the one-off cost of the bike itself, and an hour of cycling burns 450 to 750 calories for the average person. Whilst these “second best” options may not be ideal or feasible, it’s worth factoring in the affects on your health.
In January 2018, CBA shared that the average Australian spends $712 million per month on health and fitness activities. So in fact, those taking an Uber to and from work 3 times a week and public transit the others days, the cost of convenience here is more like ~$12,100 instead of ~$4,900 for just Uber and public transit fares. There’s a good chance you’re working a lot harder at the gym as well or even paid for a personal trainer which is an additional cost of $7,200* for 6 months, three times a week. If you’re constantly living life in the fast lane and its eating away at your health, what advantage did really you gain by repeatedly prioritising convenience in your decisions? Let’s take a peek at some numbers.
*Based on Fitness First personal trainer charging $100 for 45 minute session
Note that I’ve chosen to base calculations and comparison on a 5 day work week for one person and based on a 30-minute walking distance (eg. walking 30 minutes is a $13 Uber ride and $4 public transit one-way ticket).
Scenario 2.1: Walking instead of public transit
Generally, public transit is perceived to be a good balance of time and cost for the daily commute to work. However, did you know that 60 minutes of walking or cycling each day is your required exercise done for the day? In addition to fitness, there are several other health benefits like improved mental wellbeing, lower stress levels and time to get your mind organised for the day which can have a positive impact on your productivity at work. It’s also sometimes faster since we all know that traffic can prolong the daily commute. And during the spring and summer, both walking and cycling is a good excuse to soak in some vitamin D. So by taking public transportation without these consideration has other costs in addition to the cost of convenience to take public transport.
In the situation where you’re office is not walk distance, cycling is a great alternative and can provide similar health benefits cost savings. The only cost would be the one-off purchase of the bike itself, approximately $150.
Scenario 2.2: Public transit instead of Uber/taxi
Once in a while, we run late for whatever reason so thank goodness for Uber and taxis. However, the running late often turns into a habit for some, especially if its not a long distance, and for others it’s an explicit decision. The rationale goes something like “Uber only costs me $10 to $15 each way which works out to be cheaper than driving into the city plus parking”. Thus, taking an Uber is perceived to not be that much more expensive than taking public transit. But, how about over a period of 12 months or 3 years?
But was taking the Uber really as convenient as you perceived it to be? How much time did you spend waiting for the Uber in addition to the commute itself?
Observations
- Walking to and from work everyday for a year saves you $2,080 to $6,760 (cost of public transit & Uber respectively)
- Riding a bike instead of public transit to and from work for a year saves you $1,930
- Getting an Uber to and from work for a year is over 3 times more expensive than public transit and $6,760 more expensive than walking
- Taking an Uber once a week to and from work for a year is equivalent to ~8 months of taking public transit five times a week.
If you knew the associated cost of the convenience for the different modes of transportation before hand, which scenario would you have chosen?
In summary, similar to the previous delivery and cooking comparison, your choice of how you will get to and from work also has an associated cost when it comes to convenience. It’s important to distinguish the actual time it takes versus the perception of getting somewhere because the usually faster option isn’t always the fastest as it depends on traffic, weather and network maintenance. Your health is an important to factor into the equation as well as that is impacted by the decisions we make around convenience. What is the price you’re willing to pay for convenience when it comes to getting from place A to B?
Exercise Tips
The small changes and choices that we make can make a bigger difference than we realise over the long term. Here are a few tips to get started:
- Walk 30-minutes each way to and from work, bus stop or train station everyday as it gives you the minimum exercise required per day. Plus, researchers found that those who walked every day had 25% fewer colds.
- If you’re commute is not walking distance, get off one stop early and walk the rest of the way to your destination.
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Aside from being more sustainable and being good for your happiness, research shows that those who take the stairs actually save time.
Why visit the markets, there’s online ordering
The concept of shopping at the markets has existed for thousands of years, specifically since 3,000 BCE and we still do it today. And the habits of how we purchase groceries is constantly evolving. Today, its becoming more and more popular to order groceries online. Whilst I personally don’t have a need for ordering my groceries online, I know some find it a convenient option. However, I wonder if those who do buy their groceries online were aware of how much extra the convenience would cost them? The cost itself isn’t just the grand total at the bottom of the grocery receipt. There are also multiple implicit costs to consider such as the quality of the produce and the preservatives added if any. Over time, the choices that may seem insignificant at the time can impact your health over the long term and create unexpected associated costs whether its getting a personal trainer, a gym membership, etc. In this section, we’ll take a peek at how much the convenience of ordering groceries online is actually costing someone.
Note that I’ve used Woolworths for the online shopping and supermarket and the Queen Victoria Markets (in Melbourne) as the local market for the prices. The prices are based on the average individual’s shopping experience for one person.
Scenario 3.1: Buy groceries at the local markets and/or supermarket
Typically, it’s a Saturday or Sunday morning and you’re off to the local markets to buy the groceries for the week. You get to hand-pick your food from selected produce vendors. Assuming the markets is a short walking distance from your place, each shop would take about an hour total. Also about once a fortnight or month, you go to the supermarket to pick up the things that you can’t get at the market like toilet paper, soap, etc. That might average out to just over an hour and a half each week.
On the other hand, for those who like the one-stop shop, the supermarket will have it all. From produce for your meals to basic household items, usually it takes about an hour to hour and a half to get what you need for the week. In this case, you’re more likely to drive since you expect you will purchase more as the supermarket will have everything you need for the week.
Scenario 3.2: Buy groceries online
When buying groceries online, there’s a requirement to order a minimum amount, eg. $50. Psychologically, this implicitly sets an expectation of needing to spend at least that much when you’re doing your shopping, leading you to spend more than you might have actually spent. Additionally, one should consider the trade-offs between being able to order your groceries anytime online but then needing to be home for the delivery window or alternative delivery option. On the other hand, going to the supermarkets or local markets has fixed hours, its might be easier to schedule plans around it so its known. There are many supermarkets now that are open to 10pm and midnight which allows for flexibility for shopping. Regardless, buying groceries online does not guarantee that you won’t have to walk into the supermarket. It’s realistic to spontaneously need to something random, realise that you forgot something or do an exchange because the incorrect item(s) were delivered.
Was that time accounted for you told yourself ordering online was more convenient? Also is ordering online a once-off convenience or overall uplift in freeing up your time to do something more for the associated cost? Of course, this isn’t a blanket rule and everyone’s situation is different but we should thoroughly consider all the factors.
How much time would you say online groceries save you per month? And how much did it cost you to save that time? Was it worth it for you?
Observations
- Driving to and from the grocery market costs $1.87 in petrol compared to $12 for delivery; over one year, delivery costs ~$527 more than petrol to go to/from the store.
- Let’s say you purchased the Delivery saver to get a flat fee of $129 for one year for delivery but it requires a minimum order of $100. Given a typical single person spends $75 on average for each grocery shop, over one year they would spend an extra ~$1,429 (($25 extra*52 weeks) plus $129 fee) just to meet the minimum order for “cheaper” delivery. But it’s not really cheaper because one spent an additional ~$805 overall (Delivery saver $129 plus Additional spending to meet minimum order requirement $1,300 minus Regular delivery fee for a year for minimum online orders $624).
- A typical single person’s grocery shop at the supermarkets costs ~36% more than at the local markets — comparing only the items that can be purchased at both locations. Over one year, shopping at the supermarket costs ~$1,100 more.
- A typical single person’s grocery shop online costs ~56% more than at the local markets — comparing only the items that can be purchased at both locations. Over one year, shopping online costs ~$1,600 more.
If you knew the associated cost of the convenience for buying groceries online before hand, which scenario would you have chosen?
In summary, “your health is your greatest asset”. Is that something worth trading time for? Note that everyone’s situation is different but these are some important factors to consider when we base our decisions on convenience. So ask yourself:
Is it a certain decision or action truly convenient or is it just creating more problems for later?
Healthy Living Tips
“You are what you eat” — This is true! Getting into a good habit of how you purchase groceries and from where is part of healthy living and know what you’re putting into your body. Here’s a few ways to make it easier
- Go to the shops or order online with a grocery list to prevent purchasing “unnecessary” food items
- Estimate what you need for the upcoming week
- Try and use any left over groceries in the upcoming week meals
The Convenience Illusion
It is easy to be persuaded by convenience because, as humans, we are wired to be lazy by default. Let’s go back to the example of online grocery shopping for a moment. When you saved that 1 hour by not having to go grocery shopping and an additional 5 hours for cooking 4 dinners Monday through to Thursday, what were you able to accomplish with those additional 6 hours each week? Did it:
- make you more money?
- make you happy?
- better your health and well-being?
- give you time to procrastinate?
- give you time to do something else more important?
If it was the latter, did you then utilise another service to try and further make your life “more convenient”?
A key point is that there is no end to the satisfaction of convenience. We live in a fast-paced, competitive world. Whether its racing to the next meeting, social function or activity, there is always going to be something else we want to do faster or save time on. Hence, it is necessary to take a moment, from time to time, to evaluate how your decisions around convenience will affect your wallet (and health) over the long term and what kind of trade-offs you’re willing to make with the true cost in mind. The quality of our decisions is limited by the time we invest and how far we look ahead with our everything on-the-go lifestyles. It’s only a matter of time before we burn out and/or realise that our cravings for instant gratification and short-term thinking was a lot more expensive than we had realised or hoped it to be.
Which convenient parts of your life are more expensive than you expected? How is it effecting your health?
As a society, we are responsible for the causes of our growing demands and consumption of services and products. As an individual, we are solely responsible for the costs and consequences associated with long term convenience that we desire in our lives. Having said that, I assume that some of us would prefer to take that additional overseas holiday each year if all it meant was investing only 6 out of 168 hours that we have each week to cooking a few more dinners. That’s less than 4% of our entire week!
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