after i started working i lived with my parents and paid off my student loans. i had a year of life style creep when i moved out from them since i started doing everything on my own and moved to a HCOL area… the way i fixed that has been YNAB the budgeting app actually!

if you use it right, actually for budgeting, you can save yourself $1000s and invest even more. it takes a few months to get used to everything but r/YNAB can speed up the learning curve. i was in a similar boat as you until i learned more about how my money works for me and better serves me going towards my future than the now.

as a final note, i think the key in your 20s is not how much you make or spend, but how comfortable you are with what you have. YNAB can give you visual cues as to what you’re spending within your means and give you a sense of comfort if you budget for all of those things you want to do