While the United States is considered to be one of the richest countries in the world, it has a huge wealth gap—more than 34M of its residents live in poverty. Many of them are facing financial struggles every single day and can easily see the privileges others are lucky to have.

So when a couple of users asked people who grew up in low-income families to share things that the rich would never understand, it sparked quite a conversation on the r/AskReddit sub. Whether it’s talking about household items, chores, or Food on the table, commenters quickly started telling the unwritten rules they had to live by.

Take a look below at some of the most illuminating answers we collected from the thread. And after you’re done, don’t forget to check out our previous posts about the subtle signs that show a person is rich here and right here.

#1

That it never goes away. I want from homeless growing up to having a very comfy six figure job. I still find myself acting as if I am always living on the edge of homelessness again. Thinking I can't try new foods because it I don't like it then I won't get dinner. That I'm a bad person for throwing out things instead of trying to reuse them. I get serious panic attacks I think I did bad at work because my brain still tells me I'm one paycheck from the street.

Image credits: AsexualAccountant

#2

A lifetime of clutter because it's so hard to throw anything away even when you're no longer poor.

Image credits: HermitWilson

Bored Panda reached out to the Redditor Leroy_Spankinz whose question “What’s something you’d find in a lower class home that rich people wouldn’t understand?” amassed more than 15.5K upvotes and 9.6K comments. The user was kind enough to discuss the idea behind this thread and the conversation that it sparked. 

Leroy_Spankinz told us that they post on r/AskReddit a lot and are always interested to hear others’ thoughts and experiences. “I think a lot of people, the majority even, grow up in financially strained households,” they said. 

“I wanted to hear about all of the different ways poorer families learned to adapt, and what they have in common with each other. Wealthier households just don’t have that same kind of creativity, and that was the basis for the question.”

#3

I've got one: not having vacations.

I'm in my thirties now. Work in tech. Work thing they had some trivia game and one of the questions was both "(senior leaders) A and B went to this same ski lodge last so and so".

Had been functioning as the team 'ace' with the more brainy questions- for that I just leaned back and went "Welp, no help to us here; I don't know any ski lodges"

My whole team, baffled prodded me going "wait, you don't know any? Just guess the one you went to as a kid with your family"

So . . . explained to like 3 other adults that poor families don't do that. I had never had a family vacation. Winter meant hauling firewood.

Image credits: Sekret_One

#4

It’s expensive being poor.

Image credits: saltierthancats

They shared with us that one of their parents was very poor while they were growing up, and the other was financially secure. “I asked that question just because I’ve seen the differences between those households myself and I wanted to understand how other people viewed those differences as well,” Leroy_Spankinz explained. 

The user also mentioned some examples that come to mind when discussing the differences between low and high-income households. In the former ones, you could find “a drawer full of condiment packets, a pile of old napkins from various fast food restaurants, old Slurpee/BigGulp cups used as normal kitchen cups, stuff like that.”

Meanwhile, wealthier households just buy the “proper” version of such items “and are even disgusted when they see other people living with these.”

#5

This actually is painful to type, but, here goes.



Sometimes, only being able to see your mother for fifteen minutes a day when she picks you up or drops you off at school, because she has to work 18 hours a day just to support you. Having to wear shoes from Pay-Less because your mom can't afford anything better. Having to borrow food from other kids at school because your mom can't afford food, and the school lunches aren't free. Having to sometimes go a day or two without eating at all because you lost your food stamp card. Only having 12 channels of TV, and that TV is 30 years old, and only 14 inches. Having to watch other kids get everything they wanted for their birthdays, just so you can kind of pretend its your birthday party.

Image credits: Damionstjames

#6

What a luxury laundry is. Those kids i went to.school with will never understand I was so poor my family couldn't afford to use the laundry machines in our building, so often times my dad would just get a big cheap bottle of dish soap or some bars of Irish Spring, and that soap was for laundry, dishes and bathing. Also that those tv dinners were a god send. Getting 20 banquet tv dinners for 10 bucks meant eating good for a few days.

Image credits: WanderingGenesis

#7

Watching your mom have to put items back as there is it not enough money to pay for everything.

Image credits: Poenkel

Leroy_Spankinz was truly impressed by how respectful and constructive the comments were: “It was so cool to provide a space for people to learn and laugh together over all the little things they didn’t know they had in common.”

We also contacted the author of another thread, Bobtheglob71, who was curious to ask people from low-income homes about things “that ‘rich kids’ will never understand.” They told Bored Panda that they came up with this post after spending a lot of time browsing the r/AntiWork subreddit, a community dedicated to discussing job-related struggles.  

#8

When I went to school (in the '70s). At lunch time we had to stand in line in the hall before going into the cafeteria. they made those of us on 'free lunches' stand in the back of the line. It was quite humiliating.

Image credits: BirdGuy64

#9

Sleep for dinner.

Image credits: Leeono

#10

When it's really hot in the South, it can be hard to sleep. I keep a mister water bottle by the bed and mist the sheet before I go to sleep, and periodically cool off through the night.

Image credits: dolphinwaxer

Bobtheglob71 noticed that there were quite a few posts expressing hatred towards people who were born into wealth and “was curious to see what everyone else thought.”

The user disclosed that they didn’t grow up poor: “This question was also partly made so that I could see others’ views on life based on what family they were born into. I’ve learned that the ‘rich kid’ doesn’t experience just about any of those things that people answered.”

#11

“You didn’t make good choices, you HAD good choices.”

They seemingly always try to downplay the headstart they get, and how it boosts them throughout their life, versus someone who didn’t have that.

#12

I remember coming back from summer vacation and dreading going back to school for the mere fact I had nothing interesting to share about the summer. All my classmates would talk about their vacations and I would make something up so I wouldn’t sound boring.

Image credits: Scared_Difference_24

#13

Back in the Dominican Republic, my mom would lean a chair against each exit door at night and put metal cups on top of the chairs. If someone tried forcing the door open, the metal cups would fall — alarming us of the danger. That was our 'security' system for years.

Image credits: JohnnyEdwrd

#14

True hunger. I don't mean that casual "I guess I should eat..." feeling, I mean that hollow, cramping pain deep in your stomach, the hunger that feels like your own body is eating itself from the inside out and that drives you crazy to the point you'll eat anything you can chew through just to try and keep the pain away.

Nobody should have to feel that, poor or not, especially a child.

#15

My ex was wealthy and never understood why I don’t answer phone numbers I don’t recognize. We just never did that at my house, and now I understand it was probably to avoid debt collectors.

Image credits: cmconnor2

#16

All my gifts for Christmas and Birthdays were something I needed or would need and had to be bought anyway. Like clothes, shoes, or school supplies. Never, never anything fun or just because I wanted it. I also had to steal my first real bra because I'd outgrown my training bra. I'd even snipped the elastic all around to provide more stretch but it wasn't working anymore and people were commenting on it.

Image credits: freckledjezebel

#17

'There's a trick to it' is a phrase to indicate something is messed up, but not enough to fix it. See also: 'Ya gotta jiggle the handle.'

Image credits: ModernSwampWitch

#18

I think Western poor houses would tend to be more cluttered. You can't rebuy things easily, so you end up keeping around doubles of things you already have, or extra things you aren't using but might need sometime. You don't know if you'll be able to afford it in the future.

Image credits: madeto-stray

#19

Why your parents are incredibly strict and won't let you go anywhere or do anything.

My mom never allowed me to go with friends because she knew I wouldn't be able to afford hanging out with them. I always thought she was just really strict, but really she just wanted to spare me the embarrassment.

#20

Having dinner and knowing that your Mum isn't eating, not because she isn't hungry, but because she's making sure her kids have food first.

Image credits: DragonsLoveBoxes

#21

Cold hot dog on piece of bread. Turning off every light in the house except the room you're in. Window unit ACs. Space heaters. Little storage space. Little freezer/fridge space. Microwave as only way to cook food. Saving all extra napkins/utensils/condiments. No working bath/shower in home. No washer/dryer. Leaky roof. Makeshift insulation made of bubble wrap and tin foil for windows. Blankets over windows instead of curtains. Sprinkler on roof to keep it cooler in the summer. Dirty laundry because you have to wait to get quarters. Rationing quarters, rationing food, rationing everything. Always have a mental list of things you can sell to get quick cash in an emergency. Torn/worn clothes/bedding. Wearing the one good bra constantly. Laundry day outfit. Spaghetti. All. The. Time. Foods with long shelf life. Chips in dishes. That one thing (or few things) that's just literally held together with duct tape. Stuffing down the trash to make sure you get full use out of each trash bag. The sack of other sacks. The car that you'll drive until it can't go anymore, if you have a car. Moving a "spare" lightbulb from one room to the other so you can delay buying more. Holding on to food past it's expiration date even though you won't eat it in the foreseeable future but what if you NEED it? Squeezing the s**t out of the toothpaste. Adding water to the drop of shampoo in the bottle. Delaying medical care. Having to put down pets yourself because you can't afford the vet doing it. Baking soda as carpet freshener. Febreezing everything if you don't have money for the wash. Using paper towels as toilet paper. Using paper towels as tissues. Using paper towels as plates. Negotiating with the electric/water company so that they don't turn off your utilities before you get paid. Lots of blankets in winter. Hanging clothes to dry. Washing clothes by hand. Washing dishes by hand. Taking a "rag bath." F**ked up teeth, can't afford dentist. Some long term ailment that you put off seeing a medical professional about because it's not an emergency, just an inconvenience. Reusing ziploc bags. Buying paper folders vs. plastic ones. Cinnamon, sugar, butter tortillas for desert. Hand-me-downs.

#22

Amount of time feeling powerless.

#23

A lot of people are mentioning being deprived of food and clothes, so I'll mention other things. People who grew up umm not poor often don't understand how come I've never been ice skating. Or roller skating. I don't know how to swim, because I didn't have any means to pay for swimming classes or pool entry (no swimming pool at my school). I could never participate in any after school activities, because even if they were funded by a nearby town, I had no way to get there. My hobbies were writing awful poems and drawing with s**tty crayons, because it was free. I didn't have any video games, except of pirated The Sims. We've never been on vacation as a family. I never went to a summer camp. If you are rich, these things are a given. They are normal. Also, so many knock offs. Knock off toys, knock off cereal, Tesco Value everything. Also, toilet paper was a luxury.

#24

Diluted dishwashing soap that doubles as hand-washing soap.

Image credits: dawnangel89

#25

Seeing your mother wear 20+ year old worn out clothing and what amount to rags she collected from hospital visits, all so her child could have the best. Then the sadness of not being able to spoil her when you finally have your own money because she passed away too young.

Well... I just made myself sad lol

#26

Buying kids clothes that are too big so they last a couple of years.

Image credits: pokemontrainer-anna

#27

Hamburgers made with sliced bread.

Image credits: lamado_king1324

#28

Reused ziplock bags — they're still okay."

Image credits: bigbakedp0tato

#29

Using the larger plastic shopping bags as trash can liners.

Image credits: /New_Game_P1us

#30

We used each others bathwater to save on the water bill for a long time.

Image credits: stillnomad

#31

I used to have a can crusher outside and one of my chores was to crush the cans. We would put them in this industrial plastic barrel that my dad got from work. When it eventually filled up, we took it to the scrap metal yard and sold the cans.

Image credits: WeirdJawn

#32

There was a scene from Family Guy where Carter Pewterschmidt (Lois’ rich dad) visits their house. When he walks in, he says

“Oh, I forgot you were poor and so your front door opens directly into your living room.”

I felt that.

#33

Being told:

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without."

#34

Collecting aluminum cans.

Image credits: DryMartini_Up

#35

Days of hunger , parents crying and begging for help , being bullied and picked on in school , no hope , crippling depression , suicide and watching drugs consume people . If you make it out you turn boy to man very early and you’ll be strong in the heart and mind . I guess that is hope .

#36

Clothes. You wear what you have, and you wear it out. Yes, this is the same bathing suit as last year, you judgemental b****.

I have a steady job, savings, and a closet full of clothes. I still wear everything like I did when I was 7. You wear it until it is visibly stained, or noticeably smells. And you don't ever throw anything away, because you might need it again.

Or if you do give clothes away, you give them to another neighborhood child. Every single one of your neighbors is as bad off as you, they will not turn away clothes that fit.

#37

Getting a job as soon as it's legal to help out with rent and groceries

#38

Even though I am years beyond it and have a good job. I have gotten past most of it except for 2 things.

Guilt over spending anything on myself even if I need it (work clothes for example)

Food waste. I am more like,y to eat the oldest leftovers in the fridge so the don’t go bad or overeat if there is just a bit left than to throw it out. I know this is detrimental to my health but haven’t stopped because throwing something out makes me stressed.

#39

Yogurt and other grocery containers used as Tupperware. A bunch of basins for hand-washing clothes in the bathtub.

Image credits: madeto-stray

#40

'Glassware' that is actually novelty fast-food cups and mugs stolen from work.

Image credits: scurvy_knave

#41

The drawer where you put the bills you have to pay but don't need to pay immediately to live. The drawer is only emptied after it won't close anymore because 16 duplicates have been received and said bill is no closer to getting paid.

Image credits: prettychickenfinger

#42

A lot of unfinished 'renovations.

#43

Tons of random promotional items: free pens, scrap pads, Frisbee, back scratcher, stress ball, etc. And yes, I came up with this quick list while sitting at my dad's house and glancing around.

#44

Black mold on the bathroom ceiling and crusty faucets! Those cheap plastic shutter blinds that's always missing 2 to 4 panels. The plastic containers from lunch meat or sour cream being used as tupperware. Free calendars from the asian supermarket. Those note pads with the local real estate agent on them. Folded towels being used as a kitchen/bathroom mat.

#45

Getting to stay home instead of school field trips because mom could never afford the ticket.Used to get excited about it until I realized why.

#46

Being bullied for being poor.

#47

My bedroom is the living room of our trailer. I tied a rope from one wall to another and draped a blanket over it so I have somewhat of a wall.

Image credits: RIP_Vladimir_Lenin

#48

I felt like a total [jerk] once.

I was visiting someone for coffee, and something spilled, so I was helping wipe it up. A single AA battery rolled toward me on the counter, and I asked if it needed to be someplace, and was told it went in a drawer. I opened the drawer, and there were several batteries, but none in packages. I said, "Damn, don't you hate it when you accidentally destroy the packaging getting a couple of batteries out, and then have to find a place to put them all?"

It turned out they didn't leave batteries in small devices. They just put them in to use the item, then took them back out and saved them to use in something else when needed.

#49

A lot of poor addicts are addicts because they need the escapism of it. Lifting people out of poverty is the biggest mental help you can give someone

#50

When I was a kid, grabbing our clothes in the morning and dressing in front of the wood stove because it was the only warm spot in the house. In the summer, fans everywhere and all the windows open.

#51

That you don't need to flaunt your processions like they are personality traits. Once did a project with a guy in college. And all he really talked about was his expensive family trips and expensive things that they owned and how much they cost. I was generally kind but also dismissive of his stories because I knew hey wanted me to be impressed and be wow but I wasn't. "wooo you have an expensive thing, cool beans.. Want to know the most prized thing I have. it isn't a yacht but my father's ashes." Is something I dearly wanted to say but couldn't.

#52

Being astounded that other people see not giving or buying gifts on christmas as inconsiderate, unthoughtful, or even just unnatural because growing up all you had was each other

Mcdonalds as a very special occasion

#53

A space heater. Apparently some people have a thermostat that just makes their whole house warm.

Image credits: lollzyax

#54

Free furniture. Mis-matched, chipped/broken...found on roadside, marked "Free."

Not enough chairs to seat the whole family for a meal. The folding chairs being in constant use.

Buying office chairs used for $15-20 bucks and making them last five years.

#55

If you grow up poor in a city then the odds are pretty high that you're going to grow up around a lot of different races so that means you see race and racism a lot differently than rich people, who tend to grow up in areas with other rich people who pretty much all look the same. Most people who grow up poor have a much more practical and realistic view of race, racism and class. And people who grew up poor are almost always going to relate more to other poor people, regardless of race, than they will to rich people of their same race. How many people who grew up poor and somehow managed to move to a wealthier area have had neighbors or acquaintances say or do something "questionable" and then had to figure out how to react to it without starting an unwinnable argument or fight?

#56

I used to do sleep for lunch. Because I’m high school some days I’d be there from 7:30 to 6:30 and counting leaving the house I actually was away from around 6:00am to 8:00pm.

Image credits: docasj

#57

Not sure I can exactly play here, but certainly there were points where perticularly my mum was struggling, (sole custody for a while then split custody, mum didn't work, dad worked, but was living off credit) However, I'm also incredibly fortunate, as I know others situations would have been much worse.

-Getting a donation box for Christmas of mostly tinned food and from that getting hair pins as my Christmas present. It's weird looking back on this, I remember being so excited, the box was even wrapped up.

-waiting for the free baked goods drop off. There was a spot we would go where local bakeries would drop off there left overs after close of business, first in best dressed, and we would just grab what ever

-when 'new' clothes are always op shop clothes or neighbor/friend hand me downs.

-the sheer guilt of asking for money, I quickly learned to just not ask, I ended up pretty young doing jobs for neighbors and earning money, so I wouldn't have to ask.

-when Christmas presents are cheap things you need, one year was a lunch box.

-white rice and tinned tomatoes for dinner, over and over and over. Also liking really weird cheap food combos.

-the shock of discovering the financial devide of yourself and other kids, and kids questioning this

-living in a refuge centre

-always getting second hand school uniforms, which are way too large and looks comical even 4years later.

Looking back on this, it's incredible as a kid, I didn't really understand what was going on when I was young, I just kinda dealt with it, it was just how life was.

In my later years as a teenager, I went to a private school, as things did change for financially, and it was a rude.. introduction to kids who had daddy's credit card and on a school trip would buy a $450 pair of jeans. I remember being floored that someone could carelessly throw that sort of money into a pair of jeans, (let alone spending someone else's money) when it could be better spent in many other ways, perticularly on the homeless people we had just passed...

#58

Being poor isn’t cool if you don’t have the option not to be. Going to bed hungry sucks ass. Wearing the same shoes in July as you do in January sucks ass. Watching your parents waste their lives away in dead end jobs to support their children is traumatic and painful. What was that song again, “you’ll never live like common people”

#59

Obviously depends on the person, but clutter.

Rich people often have more space and more options for organizing their things out of sight. Poor people have fewer places to put things and often a harder time letting go of stuff because what if they need it later and can't afford a new one?

#60

"Can I get $2.46 on pump 3?"

#61

Hot showers. My wife grew up poor and told me stories of how her parents would collect snow in buckets and heat them on the stove so they could take a bath. She grew up in the mountains of Virginia. When she went to college in NYC she would turn on the hot water in the shower and just sit there for an hour.

#62

Several almost worn out pairs of cheap shoes.

#63

Never going to birthday partys because your parents work 7 days a week so you can't get there and even if you could, you can't afford to give a birthday present or card so it's better to never attend social events and pretend you're busy with something else.

#64

Back when I was a kid....the needle nose pliers we changed the channel on the TV with. One kid would change the channel while the other (usually me) went outside whatever the weather to turn the antenna until the channel came in. Then my dad would decide to go back to the other show and we’d repeat the process.

#65

Extension cord connected to another extension cord with a multiple power plug adapter with too many electronic devices connected to it.

Image credits: stankystank_01

#66

Laundry in the bathtub because you can’t afford to take it to the laundromat and you don’t have a washer/dryer because they’re too expensive and your tiny apartment has no hookups for them anyway.

#67

That thing in the kitchen. Where you store the things you might need but you never do. But you can't bring yourself to get rid of the stuff. And 1 plastic grocery bag stuffed full of other grocery balls.

#68

I do home inspections for low income homes.

“The Throne”

Generally an entirely unfinished basement with a lone installed toilet in the center or corner. No walls, sink,or anything around it. Bonus points if the concrete slab they pour for it allows you to touch the ceiling above you while sitting. Generally the water is not hooked up to it and the bowl has a drowned rat in it. I have used it once, found out the hard way that it doesn’t work

#69

A junk drawer

...which is full of things that are almost garbage, but could still be useful maybe, one day. almost used up pens, almost dead batteries, plastic bags, the last of the tape, a pair of scissors with half its handle broken off but can still be used to cut maybe, a broken ruler, pencil sharpeners, old needles and old spools of thread you wont remember you even have when you want thread...you'll just go out and buy some more, countless paperclips, those paper binder things too, for some odd reason ear wax sticks, random cotton balls and bandages, rubberbands...single keys you have no clue open what...

what i do know about junk drawers is that you don't just go diving in looking for what you want. that's an easy way to get your finger pricked on some random thumbtack or rusty egde.

you respect the junk drawer. you push its items to the side, purposefully and considerately, until it decides to yield the item you were seeking.

#70

A large chest freezer stuffed with frozen food from the bargain shop

#71

Having to ration gas, many weekends of no road trips because I needed that gas. Or going to pump and only putting a gallon or two in.

Man, those were some rough times

#72

Currently have a new coworker who grew up poor and is still struggling financially. It’s sad to see her face when food is brought to the office this time of the year. Really hurts my heart because you can see it all on her face

#73

Stop asking something (toy, clothes, vs) and hiding sadness about that

#74

Duct taping your shoes when the soles start falling off so they'll last a few more months.

#75

Grew up poor but lucky to be pretty bright. Where I grew up was pretty rough but everyone was in the same boat so it seemed normal.

I managed to get a junior brokers job in the City through a kind of gifted scheme and the rich kids I worked with thought a rough accent, state high school without college and a s**tty address equaled stupidity. Not every one of them but a lot thought the same if you didn’t know what type of clothes to wear or did not know how to order in a restaurant, that kind of bulls**t.

It was tough to suffer that at first but I quickly realised that it was an advantage to be underestimated.

It also formed my opinion that your financial background is much more of an important factor in having a nice life than race, religion or sexual preferences. I’d rather be a black gay Muslim with rich parents than anyone from a ghetto regardless of their race, sex or religion. The sad facts of life is that the vast majority of poor people are f**ked from the time they are born, and what’s really heartbreaking is that few of them realise how bad things are because they never experience the dignity of a life where you don’t go to bed every night worrying if you’re going to be kicked out of the place you’re staying tomorrow, or if you can send your kids to school with a sandwich.

#76

No towel is ever the same. Just random odd towels and face cloths.

#77

A working TV on top of a broken, old floor console TV because the old one weighs 300 pounds.

#78

Putting all your food in the fridge because the cabinets are full of cockroaches and ants.

#79

The Sauce Packet Drawer™! Got extra ketchup packets, Taco Bell hot sauce packets, soy sauce packets, etc.? Toss them in the Sauce Packet Drawer™!

Image credits: ckuiper

#80

Jury-rigged furniture--plywood and cinder blocks are super versatile. My personal favorite is the kitchen table that's actually a giant cable spool.

#81

Aunts, uncles and grandparents - all living together.

#82

A pot with oil on the stove to reuse for later.

#83

Wearing the same [stuff] to school almost every day.

#84

Family vacations were nonexistent.

#85

Multiple; uninsured, unregistered, uninspected, broken down cars that show no sign of restoration. Mismatching lawn furniture, front yard. An above ground pool. Several grills, smokers. A chain link fence around the property with a snarling rottweiler. A sign that says something about forget the guns, beware of owner on the front door. A bright red sticker from code enforcement stuck to the front window. A pink flamingo. Welcome to Florida.

#86

Overdue bills.

#87

packets of disposable chopsticks in your cutlery drawer

#88

A big rock we used one as a door stop when I was a kid

#89

A walmart bag full of walmart bags.