25 women wholesomely share what they spent their first ever paychecks on

A person's first paycheck is special, bringing a sense of freedom, pride, and responsibility. With cash in hand, people must decide whether to spend, save, or invest it. Often, they choose to do something memorable. Some celebrate milestones, some indulge in personal gratifications, while others handle financial priorities.

u/debugger_life took to the r/AskWomen subreddit and prompted the community to share the first thing they purchased from their own salary. The answers revealed how people opted to either treat themselves or their loved ones with their salary. Some chose to spend the money carefully on basic necessities like groceries or furniture, whereas others chose to splurge on luxury perfumes, branded accessories or foreign vacations. Either way, their first purchases became memorable for them. Here are some of the best responses left on the Reddit thread:

1. Buying a pizza

"A pizza. I turned 15 and had gotten my first paycheck, which was not much at that age, but on my way home from work on my bicycle (the day I also got my first paycheck), I stopped at my local pizzeria and bought a pizza with my own money for the first time. Pizza never tasted that good before." -u/rottemold. "

2. Flight ticket for father

"My dad's plane ticket to see the family. My dad hasn't been home to see our family for almost 15 years. So, as soon as my first decent salary hit, I bought him his ticket home. It made me emotional, to be honest. Probably one of my small wins 2 years ago." -u/xrinnxxx. "

3. Polaroid camera

"The guy I was seeing at the time had the sweetest little stepsister and she was super excited about her 16th birthday. I got her a Polaroid camera with my first salary, although I wanted one for myself. She was sad since she didn't want to go back to her mom's for the holidays. So, we did our best to make it her best birthday ever. I would have probably gotten bored of the camera in a couple of weeks since the film does run out, but last I checked, she takes it with her on her travels (her parents are divorced and from different countries) and is having fun with it so everyone's happy." -u/Temporary_Piece2830

4. Cat tree

"A cat tree! A fancy one. I had already been living paycheck to paycheck and paying ridiculous vet bills for years. It didn't even occur to me to treat myself as I was so stuck in the mindset of everyone else first. I bought my cats a badass, 8 ft tall, 4-level mansion. They deserved it." -u/Cup-Mundane.

5. Pair of heels

"A pair of Tom Ford heels that were like $1000. I couldn't afford them, which I didn't realize until it was too late and it was kind of tight for the next couple of months. But I did look amazing at a party I went to in the Hollywood Hills later that night, where I saw my ex and his new girlfriend. It is bratty of me, but I can't lie. He had broken up with me and while I was nice to her. I could tell she was a little intimidated by me and that felt good. And a few years later, I still love the shoes. Not my best decision, but far from my worst." -u/atget

6. Buying groceries

"Groceries for the family since we were poor. It was the entire reason I started working so early. First thing I bought myself? Tickets to a festival on the other side of the country." -u/PM_a_llama. "Groceries and helping pay bills was what I did too. I believe the first thing I bought for myself was some shoes." -u/fluffymomma_d.

7. Furniture

"A foldable sofa bed. After sleeping on the floor for a month at age 20, it felt like I had osteoporosis and calluses all over my body. The first night sleeping on that sofa bed got me emotional and I cried my eyes out. I'm in my late 20s now, got a house that needs renovating and the only furniture in there is that perfectly kept sofa bed." -u/NadaDot

8. Video games

"A Nintendo Switch! My father always said video games are just a phase and are for children or boys and I am neither. So to finally buy the stuff I wanted, it was so great and freeing. Also, with my second and third job, I got a PlayStation and finally, a PC. Video games still bring me so much joy." -u/hoyrry.

9. Buying drinks

"A couple of happy hour drinks. But I couldn't afford a happy hour appetizer because my salary was so low compared to my previous earnings. I was just excited for a change and to finally have the benefits. I quit three months later." -u/rachcarp. "I took my family to a restaurant for a big dinner! It was a lot of money, but they have always been supportive and I could not have gotten to where I was (and am!) in life without them!" -u/ParadoxOfMeat 

10. E-book reader

"The first thing I ever bought was a Kindle Fire for my sister's 18th birthday. I got a job while at school and saved up all the money to get it because she really wanted one and it was when they first came out and we didn't have that much money at home. The first thing for me was a good mattress. I still have it to this day. Best investment ever." -u/Alexis_in_black

11. Mother's Day gift

"A Mother's Day gift for my mother. It was the first time I had my own earned money to spend. A whole $100." - u/thepiratecelt

12. Electronics

"I got a call center job when I was 17 studying at college. It wasn't great money, but I thought I was minted. I got the entirety of my first paycheck out at an ATM in cash and spent half of it on a PC. Felt like a king." -u/danislife. "A Vizio flat screen TV from Circuit City. I think the size was 30 something and the unit was like 5 inches thick. It lasted for many years." -u/deskmeetface

13. Laser hair removal

"Laser hair removal." -u/whoamI_98. "About 3000-5000. It depends on the studio, so, I would call. Packages or a monthly subscription would likely be more economical. Expect visible results after 6-8 sessions per body part. I did underarms, brazillian and legs. They still grow hair, but it's very light and slow. Also, my knees grow a lot. I was told you would have to go back once a year for a maintenance session." -u/in_effigie

14. Necessary gadgets

"I bought a phone for my bedroom when I got my first paycheck. It was 1996. I was 15. I made $4.50/hour at a grocery store. I was so proud of that phone." -u/driveonacid. "An oven for my mom (because I still lived at home) and ours had been broken for over two years." -u/Malgurath. "A watch. It is still one of the very few 'things' I'd say I'm attached to." -u/Puitzza. 

15. Perfume

"A very expensive perfume, which meant a lot to me, because I grew up with my mom's mentality of 'we don't buy perfumes, we use what we get as gifts.' Took my first step out of poverty." -u/Beaniebomb11. "Bulgari Voile de Jasmin perfume in 1999. A treat on my measly receptionist salary." -u/polkadotkneehigh

16. Music devices

"Beats by Dre. I didn't use them much, to be honest. I was working at my first job during high school in a clothing store. The next thing I bought was 2 pairs of Nike Air Max (90?) in white and in black. I was an idiot and wanted to be cool." u/Plus_Bison_7091. "A pair of Audio Technica ATH-M40X headphones so I can comfortably listen to music while working in the open office. I still have them seven years later and they are still awesome." -u/pugslington

17. Camera

"I think bedding was my first purchase aside from food. But my first big splurge was a Nikon DSLR camera. I loved taking photos and before that moment, I had never spent so much money on myself. It felt good that I could afford it." -u/WanderingSondering. "I walked my neighbor's dog for $5 a day when I was in 8th grade and eventually saved up and bought a professional camera but then after getting a real job my first purchase was concert tickets." -u/Secret_Pineapple_954.

18. Used laptop

"Used laptop. Because I needed it to study and mine was getting very old and I started having compatibility problems. We also do our exams on our personal computers, so I needed something that I could use." -u/KahwaNosNos

19. Speeding ticket

"I got a speeding ticket on my way home from the interview for my first job." -u/OhFuuuuuuuuuuuudge. "My first job in high school, I got two speeding tickets the first month I worked. My entire first month's pay went to paying my dad back for the tickets. They didn't even ground me because they figured I learned my lesson by working for free the first month. It worked." -u/IncomeOk413. " I was working as a server in a tourist town one summer in college and got pulled over for speeding on my way home. Thankfully, the cop took pity on me because he asked how much I made on my morning shift and it was only $30." -u/wolf-eyed 

20. Something for loved ones

"In grade nine, I had a gig supervising little kids at an after-school program at my church. Right after I turned 15, I got my first girlfriend and used my job money to buy her a silver necklace for Valentine’s Day. She loved it. Those are such happy memories." -u/Iowa_and_Friends. "Being the youngest, I always received pocket money. So, for a change, I divided my entire first salary giving small pocket money to my family and the little that I kept for myself, I bought desserts for everyone." -u/Confusedbrokebg

21. Washer and dryer

"A washer and dryer. I could not afford to buy them in cash outright yet, so I was going to do a downpayment ($200) and finance the rest of the amount (like $600, I think). The guy at the store didn't even bother to run my credit and told me I should get my husband or father to co-sign for me. So I went and got my mama." -u/catinthecurtains. "

22. Small treats

"I'm going to ignore my hourly/part-time clerking job. When I had my first salaried job, I asked if I could start two weeks later because I had a four day weekend for Memorial Day the first week. Then, the second week, I had to take off Friday for my wedding and then was leaving on Wednesday after that for my honeymoon and coming back the following Monday. Effectively, I worked about 10 days and most of them were me sitting around for training and doing HR stuff. So, I'm not sure why they forced me to do that. Anyway, as such, I got paid while on my honeymoon. So, most likely I bought a hat or a really bad sandwich at an outdoor cafe on the way back to the airport. Or possibly conch fritters or a painkiller." -u/scrivenerserror

23. Concert tickets

"Concert tickets. On my first date with the super cute guy in high school, he asked me out, but my dad insisted we go Dutch because that's the right way to date. I had been working a while, so I had the money. I think it was like $8 to see Sammy Hagar at Winterland." -u/Granny_knows_best. "Tickets to see '30 Seconds to Mars' and 'You Me At Six.'" -u/isaidyothnkubttrgo

24. Clothes

"It was a designer skirt I'd been eyeing for a few weeks. 42 years later, I still have it, although I don't fit into it these days." -u/Sylland. "A beautiful leather jacket. I got it when I was 14 and only gave it away a year ago because my arms were too fat for it. I'm 34. I bought it from a giant department store for $79. It was the most expensive thing I'd owned. (Dirt poor). The only thing that makes me sad is that department stores do not make anywhere near that level of quality anymore and definitely not for that price. I wonder if my friend still has it. I've lost some pudge. Maybe it would fit again." -u/emjoy90

25. Books

"I saved up my entire summer job's salary to pay for the required books for my first semester of college and a one-way plane ticket to get there. I was proud of myself for being able to save it all summer (except for gas to get to work), but I remember being upset it literally all was gone after just those two things and I was back to being broke again in a matter of minutes." -u/ManufacturerOdd1127."