Shubhi and her husband spend about Rs 1.73 lakh monthly in Bengaluru, led by travel and rent. Their budget contrasts sharply with the ₹22,000-27,000 take-home pay of many IT freshers.

In Bengaluru, two software engineers can live in the same city but have very different ideas of what a monthly budget looks like.Take Shubhi and her husband, both senior software engineers who shared their experience over social media. The couple reportedly spends around 1.7 lakh every month on rent, food, household help, shopping, travel and other expenses.And no, most of that money does not go towards luxury shopping or expensive restaurants.Their biggest monthly expense is rent.

According to the spending details shared by the username @SHUBHI.REPO, the couple pays 60,000 for rent and maintenance. Groceries cost another 13,000-14,000, partly because they include high-protein foods such as whey protein, Greek yoghurt and paneer.They spend 8,000 on a cook and a maid, 10,000 on weekend outings, 3,500 on petrol and cabs, and around 3,000 on shopping and miscellaneous expenses.

But there is one expense that stands out: travel.The couple spends approximately 9 lakh a year on trips. That works out to 75,000 every month when averaged across the year.Add everything together, and their monthly spending comes to roughly 1.73 lakh.ONE COUPLE, TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PAYCHEQUESThe couple also has an interesting approach to managing money.

They track their expenses but do not maintain a record of who owes whom. Their reasoning?

They are permanent roommates, not flatmates.However, their spending becomes more interesting when compared with what young IT professionals earn in the same city.Many freshers working in India's IT services sector start with salaries of around 3.4-3.6 lakh per annum. For example, TCS lists 3.4 lakh as the minimum annual CTC for its Ninja fresher category, while an Infosys recruitment notice for Systems Engineer Trainees in 2025 listed 3.6 lakh per annum.Depending on salary structure and deductions, this can translate to a monthly take-home of roughly 22,000-27,000.Now consider the difference.Shubhi and her husband's monthly rent of 60,000 is more than twice what many freshers take home.

Their average monthly travel budget of 75,000 is almost three times a fresher's monthly salary.Even their combined grocery and household-help expenses can take up a large part of a young employee's monthly income.Bengaluru's housing costs add another layer to the story. Magicbricks' Q1 2026 rental report puts the average rent for a two-bedroom home in the city at around 40,900, although actual rents vary by locality and property.Of course, Shubhi's spending figures are a personal account, not an independently verified household budget.

Their salaries have also not been disclosed. The comparison is about two different spending capacities, not a claim that every IT fresher earns the same amount.And that is what makes this story worth discussing.For one household, travel is a regular 75,000 monthly budget item.

For another, 25,000 has to cover rent, food, transport and savings.Same Bengaluru. Same cost of living.

Very different financial realities.So, what does your monthly spending look like in Bengaluru? Are you managing comfortably, or does payday already feel like a distant memory?- Ends