This was based on a question that my economics professor in college had asked us. His question was more to the effect of “What’s a good/service people buy when they have a bit of money, then they stop buying or buy less of it when they get some more money, and then they start buying it again once they have even more money?” — feel free to answer that too.
My first thought was alcohol: lower class people might buy more of it to cope with their difficult situation, whereas upper class people have more money to spend on vices and luxuries such as alcohol. Not sure if this theory holds true.
The best answer I’ve been able to come up with is golf carts, at least in the US. It’s common to see lower class people drive golf carts around their trailer parks or neighborhoods, whereas middle class people rarely do that. An upper class person might live in a wealthy neighborhood with its own built-in golf course, or the person might even own their own golf course(s).
Some dubious investments, such as crypto or donations to certain social organizations or politicians might also qualify?
Disney Plus, Netflix, Hulu, Cable TV, etc.
The lower class usually get up for their hardworking but ill-paid jobs. The one thing they want to do is go home and turn on the TV and just have their one streaming service work when they’ve been busting ass all day.
The upper class doesn’t really care what the price is, they just have every service stream what they want.
The middle class makes just little enough to not warrant paying that much for a shit streaming service so that they can save up for x hobby, so they’ll pirate all day.
Any farm animal
This made me laugh, it’s so true! Apart from chickens though - I know a few middle class people with chickens.
Alcohol is a great example.
The streaming services are also great. I think a lot of poor people subscribe to them because they’re too ignorant to do anything else. Rich people do it out of laziness/convenience.
Expensive shoes comes to mind.
This is less of a specific good and more of a trend, but middle class people are more likely to buy bulk goods. Lower classes often don’t have the means to do so (space to store it and money to buy it, or access to places that sell in bulk) and higher classes simply don’t need to, or they buy luxury items that wouldn’t be sold in bulk.
Similarly, middle class people are less likely to shop at places with high markups, such as convenience stores.
The times when people shop would also see trends, with lower and higher classes doing more shopping midday on a Tuesday and middle class working people with average 9-5 office jobs being unable to do so.
Maybe car leases?
- lower income can’t afford to purchase and a lease is a lower payment
- wealthy either want to replace cars more often or use a car leases by a business
If middle income fall into that trap, it’s probably on the way to lower income?
It’s common to see lower class people drive golf carts around their trailer parks or neighborhoods
I thought this was regional. I’ve seen it in Florida but not where I live, not that I’ve ever been to a trailer park
Horse. You well off, Dad’s got a bit of land? Then you can have a horse. Nine of yous, living in a caravan with your Mum? Then you can have a horse. Grow up in a semi-detached? No horse for you!
I have to, sure the stairs’d kill him.
I live in a decidedly middle class area and people driving golf carts around is super common. Some communities even have their own golf cart paths to the local grocery stores, and those stores have dedicated gold cart parking.
It’s very common at least in the US south east.
I think golf carts are more a regional thing where the weather is good enough most the year and there are destinations in reasonable range. Driving 5 miles to Costco in freezing weather isn’t really a golf cart activity.
Gambling
Transportation services
RVs
Recreational drugs
Horses and related services
This is fun, but I’ll end this with the obligatory: There are two main classes, the ownership class and the working class. The lower and middle classes are subsets of the working class.
Old cars
I like that one. I used to jokingly tell people I drove a classic car. It was technically correct, but no one was impressed by my rusted out, 1980s, economy sedan or its 115 horses.
We finally got a family car when i was 16 - a 1978 corolla station wagon.
In the 90’s.
That’s honestly kind of cool, even if the circumstances that led to it might not have been.
Holy shit, close. Ours was a paler red
Here I am wondering how old i can get away with and still be safe and reliable for my teens to drive
I don’t think a 2025 Armored Personnel Carrier is capable of keeping a teen driver safe. Having said that, I think the best we can do is front and side airbags, crumple zones, a low center of gravity (sorry Jeep), and Electronic Stability Control (ESC). If I had to put a year on that, I’d say 2012, when the NHTSA required all new vehicles to have ESC. A roll cage wouldn’t hurt, if that’s an option. Bonus points if you can convince them to wear a racing helmet and Leatt neck brace while driving.
Old cars.
Good one!
I routinely use terms like “classic” to describe my cars. It amuses me, and is mostly harmless.
But, on occasion, this has disappointed a friend who I gave a ride to, who did not realize the term was meant as humor.
(Though technically correct, I guess? My car is old, if not nice.)
A friend’s parents are classic car buffs so they got him a cheap Trabant (car from former east Germany) for his birthday. It was awesome. I mean, the car itself sucked ass, it had trouble going uphill and it was made of cardboard. But it was still kinda cool.
When it died around graduation the class sawed it in half and buried it in the school’s garden so that it looked like it was driving out of the ground. It was part of that year’s graduation stunt.
Large amounts of debt.
College. The middle class is too rich for aid but too poor to pay
Lawyers
Bicycles! Lower class uses them as transportation, upper class uses them for recreation.
Upper class have pelatons
You and I have different definitions of upper class.
I know, I think I just got called upper and lower class at the same time. How was that up voted so much?
