There are two myths circulating among Russians about how ordinary people live in America. Interestingly, they are exactly the opposite of each other. The first can be characterized as follows: “The USA is a country of great opportunity, where a shoemaker can become a millionaire.” And the second myth looks like this: “America is a state of social contrasts. Only the oligarchs live well there, mercilessly exploiting the workers and peasants.” It must be said that both myths are far from the truth. In this article we will not delve into the history of the United States or talk about slavery and racial discrimination that took place a hundred years ago. We will not admire the standard of living of the Soros family or focus on the homeless sleeping near the subway ventilation grilles. We'll just look at how ordinary people live in America now. Let's take an average family: two working parents, three children. Ordinary middle class. By the way, he makes up the lion's share of all US citizens.

Housing

The USA, among all countries in the world, boasts one of the most high levels life of the population. But at the same time, quite a few citizens have a house in full ownership. And even city apartments are preferred by Americans to rent. But a family that considers itself middle class must settle far from dusty cities. White-collar workers get to work by train or car, spending an hour and a half on the road. The house of an ordinary American family is a one-story (for the high middle-class - two-level) cottage with a green lawn in front and an extension-garage, with a spacious backyard, which houses a play area for children or a swimming pool. The area of ​​the house ranges from 150 to 250 square meters, and its cost is from 500 to 650 thousand dollars. Not everyone can just take it and lay it out like this. But here are ordinary people: the standard of living in the United States is quite sufficient to pay off a mortgage. A third of the amount must be paid in advance and taken out a loan for thirty years at 5-10 percent per annum. But! The loss of the job of one of the parents threatens the family with disaster - after all, for the house you need to pay the bank at least two and a half thousand “green” monthly.

Communal payments

Now let's look at how ordinary Americans live in America and what they pay for their mansions besides a loan. So-called townhouses (cottages) are a very expensive business. Although... how to calculate. Ordinary Americans don't bother with housing offices. In the basement of each house there is its own mini-boiler room, which is responsible for heating and heating water. Average bill per public utilities(electricity and gas) - about three hundred dollars. Since the water is served cold, the fee for it is small - about $10. In addition to utility bills, you need to pay property taxes: $500 - municipal and another $140 - the so-called community charges (for garbage removal and cleaning the area adjacent to the house). The lawn in front of the house must be well-groomed - this is the custom here. Don't get around to cutting it yourself? Hire a student and get ready to fork out $60. Mortgage loans obligated to insure real estate. Typically it's $300 per year. In total, you need to pay about three thousand dollars for housing every month.

Food expenses

A caveat needs to be made here. In the US, there is a big difference between so-called “healthy” foods labeled “organic” and conventional ones. Since ordinary people live in America, they tend to save on food. Yes, everyone knows about the dangers of chicken stuffed with growth hormones, as well as unhealthy fast food. But the average middle-class American couple usually shops at the grocery store, buys red-marked groceries, and eats lunch at Starbucks, McDonald's, or similar fast food establishments. By the way, prices for some products in America are lower than in Russia (especially in Moscow). But eating in restaurants or self-respecting cafes is very expensive. The average middle class family allows themselves this pleasure twice a month. Usually, about four hundred dollars are spent on food - this is if you do not deny yourself anything, and two hundred if you establish a strict economy regime.

Car and spending on other devices

How do ordinary people outside the city live in America? They start their day with and then get behind the wheel of a car. Living without a car in the American countryside is simply suspicious. Every adult is required to have a car - at least a used one. Leasing helps. Moreover, in the event of a breakdown, the company bears the cost of repairs. Thus, monthly payments leasing company for two cars - from 300 to 600 dollars, and gasoline - 150. Cars must be insured. Typically this is two hundred dollars per month per car. But you can reduce the cost of insurance by using a package with a higher price. For Internet and cable television, you need to pay about eighty-five greenbacks per month. No one can tell you how ordinary people who don't have money live in America. mobile phone, since there are practically none there. Even a child visiting kindergarten, has such a device (with a beacon, just in case). A package with unlimited calls will cost about sixty-five dollars per month.

Insurance

Foreigners who observe how ordinary people live in America probably notice that they have a lot of income going to various funds. They are insured against everything: from disability, from the loss of a breadwinner, from weakened visual acuity, in case of problems with teeth, and even in case of an unforeseen situation if a dog damages a neighbor’s property. Sometimes the policy is paid for by the employer. But after dismissal, it stops working. In total, the family needs to shell out about five hundred dollars every month, enriching various insurance companies. But in the USA there is a practice... of transferring pensions by inheritance. Every working person pays contributions that accumulate on his individual card. Americans can use these accumulated funds as they please. After a person’s death, the money does not burn, but, as with a regular deposit, is passed on to inheritance.

Spending on clothes

Another discovery that foreigners can make by observing how ordinary people live in America is that they do not wear expensive things. They usually dress simply and practically. On the street you rarely see a woman wearing high heels. The typical American wears jeans and a jacket in winter, and a T-shirt and shorts in summer. But this does not mean that all US citizens do not know how to dress. It’s just not customary here to show off your income. Casual style reigns here. Branded clothes are worn on occasion. And they buy it easily. The fact is that in America sales never stop. They are timed to coincide with some holidays, but after them the prices drop even more: the collection that was not sold during the sales is sold for next to nothing. Particular excitement reigns during the so-called Black Friday (after Thanksgiving). Then you can buy branded clothing for a price ten times lower than its usual cost. Thus, the average US citizen does not spend much on clothes: up to one hundred dollars a month.

Education

High school education in the United States is free. And this debunks the myth that in America you have to shell out money for everything, and a lot of it. By the way, medicine for the poor is also free here. But how does ordinary America live? For kindergarten you need to pay about eight hundred dollars per child. Or for a baby sitter - $10 per hour. An American's income directly depends on his education. Therefore, parents try to “invest in the child’s future” at any cost. To study at a college or institute, they take out loans. Particularly highly paid professions in America are lawyers, managers, and doctors. After graduating from a university in this profile, a young man can count on twenty thousand dollars a month. Bank employees, civil servants, junior medical staff and teachers earn slightly less. But studying at an American university is expensive: from three to ten thousand dollars a year. Although there are also flexible scholarships available here.

Income

This is how ordinary people abroad actually live. Huge expenses every month. Where do they get this kind of money? The answer is trivial: they don’t drink and work hard. They don't go out for a smoke break every hour. They are paid not for sitting at work, but for a specific result. And the better it is, the higher the wages will be. This motivation forces Americans to work conscientiously. Wherein minimum payment labor - seven and a half dollars an hour. This is the kind of money paid to teenagers or students on vacation just to walk your dog while you're at work. Cleaning by a visiting housekeeper will already cost one hundred dollars a day. But for that kind of money you need to do more than just vacuum the carpet: wash it, iron it, and polish it.

How do Americans who are private entrepreneurs live?

Private activity in the USA can provide a good income. The country is so large that if you wish, you can find a niche in any field. The government encourages and supports starting your own business in every possible way, especially if you create new jobs. There should be no bureaucratic delays when registering your business. Doing business in America is easy, as long as it is honest.

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My name is Carina. I was born in St. Petersburg, received my education and got married there, and since 2014 I have lived in Seattle. My husband, a programmer, was transferred to work in the USA. That's how we ended up in America. During my life in the States, I said goodbye to many of my stereotypes and prejudices about Americans. Here is just one of them: in the States they eat only fast food, and therefore there are many overweight people there.

For website I have collected the most interesting and impressive moments about life in the USA and myths about Americans that are worth saying goodbye to.

Myth 1: All Americans are workaholics

I lived for a long time believing in this myth. Until I started working with Americans and realized that they don’t come to work early in order to work longer. And in order to leave earlier.

People in the US often start their workday at 7:00 am and leave for home at 3:00 pm. Staying after work to finish some business is not at all like Americans. Work outside normal hours is possible only for an additional fee or is compensated by days off.

Myth 2: There are a lot of overweight people in the United States.

This is probably the most common prejudice about Americans. Of course, I can’t vouch for all of America, but this is definitely not about Seattle. The vast majority of people here play sports, run and obsessively watch their diet. Almost every high-rise building has a gym that is open to all residents, and this is not counting the countless online sports clubs.

But sometimes you can meet very fat people. They are considered disabled and travel in automated wheelchairs. Bus drivers help them get on and even lower the bus if the person is overweight and does not have a wheelchair.

Myth 3: America has a good tax system

In Russia, a company fills out your taxes for you, and you don’t even see all this paperwork. In the USA, once a year in the spring everyone starts going crazy because it's filling time tax return. Everyone has to do it themselves, and many locals get their own financier to do it for them and pay him $400 for such a service.

Myth 4: There are many educated people in the USA

Few people know, but in the USA there are not many people with higher education, and they usually enter a master's program several years after graduating from a bachelor's degree.

There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, the high cost of studying for a master's degree. Many young people are forced to take out large loans to continue their studies. Therefore, before entering a master’s program, they take a pause to decide on their choice. Secondly, in order to get into a particular specialty, you must first earn hours in it, and only then submit an application.

Myth 5: Women are socially protected

Yes, indeed, women are protected in some aspects here - just try to raise your hand or allow yourself any hint of harassment, you will be punished to the fullest extent of the law and even more.

There is a huge “but”: in the USA there is almost no maternity leave. The duration and compensation depend on the initially signed contract with the company. More often maternity leave lasts no more than a month. In transnational corporations it can be up to six months, but no one guarantees job security. Of course, many women are completely unhappy with this state of affairs.

Myth 6: There is no bureaucracy in America

Alas, there is. Government agencies are working with significant delays and disruptions. My friends were forced to stay away from work because of paperwork and were unable to fly out of the country. I myself was mistakenly extended the wrong visa, which is why I almost lost my work permit and got stuck in Russia for 3 months.

Myth 7: Americans eat only fast food

Stories about Americans' deep love for fast food are not entirely true. All sorts of McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Subway and similar establishments are not held in high esteem here. There are almost none in Seattle. They are mainly scattered along country roads, because, as a rule, two categories of people eat there: those who travel and are in a hurry, and those who are very tight with money.

But burgers and sandwiches can be found on the menu of almost every restaurant, and you can even choose the degree of roasting of the meat. Such high-quality burgers cost almost the same as a regular menu item - sometimes the price reaches $20. So it’s not really “fast”, and it’s not that harmful.

Myth 8: America has the best healthcare system

Here, of course, there is modern equipment, service and technology. But what's going on with the cost? medical care and insurance, even the medical sector workers themselves are perplexed. Mandatory health insurance in America, no, but there are a huge number of different programs.

In the best case scenario, the employer pays for the insurance. In the worst case, you buy it yourself or live without it at your own peril and risk. But even if you have insurance, before starting a specific medical procedure, you don't know how much it will ultimately cost. Insurance Company and the clinic agree after the treatment how much your insurance plan will cover and how much you will pay out of pocket. And sometimes you have to pay mind-boggling amounts.

Another difficulty: you can’t buy anything in a US pharmacy without a prescription, except for the most common medications. When I scalded my stomach with boiling water, the only thing they sold me was aloe. If you want real medicine, then see a doctor, and an appointment is usually about two weeks in advance.

Myth 9: Everyone is always polite and friendly

1. People = robots

Most Americans are like robots, they live according to instructions, they lack almost any flexibility in their affairs. In the post-Soviet space, people are still much more flexible; you can come to an agreement with them and resolve almost any issue. This definitely won’t work in the States, and often it reaches the point of absurdity.

In America, people almost never change lanes on the roads and drive in their own lane until they win, even if their lane is stopped and those next to them are driving. Yes, for the prosperity of the state and compliance with the law, such behavior is simply ideal. No attempt to reach an agreement will definitely fail, and you can be confident in your own safety if you do everything according to the law. But on an everyday, human level, when they don’t want to hear you and repeat the same phrases as if according to instructions, it’s very infuriating, and you get the feeling that there are some robots around you. Because of this, our people have a sense of soul, but Americans, at first glance, do not.

2. Prices in stores without taxes.

So-called sales tax(sales tax) varies from state to state and even city to city. For example, in Los Angeles, California, and New York, New York, the tax reaches almost 10 percent. But in the capital of America - Washington - it is slightly more than 5 percent.

What does this mean? In shops, cafes, restaurants and even car dealerships, all prices are indicated without this tax. If the price tag on the price tag is 10 dollars, then at the checkout you will pay 11, because 1 dollar goes not to the store, but to the state, and so on everywhere. Did you buy $150 worth of groceries for the week? Pay another 15 bucks on top. An iPhone in the most expensive configuration, costing $969, will actually cost you almost $1,100.

3. Excessive independence from the opinions of others

Here it reaches the point of absurdity, like many other things. Most people on the streets are very unkempt, literally walking around in rags. You can often find young people wearing sneakers or sneakers with holes from which their toes will stick out. This also includes the abundance of people who are very overweight. Due to the fact that this is not condemned by society here, they calmly walk around in tight clothes to emphasize how much they don’t care about their appearance and that they are not going to do anything with it. Excess weight is, of course, a personal matter for everyone, but it can greatly spoil your impressions of a country or a city.

4. Girls

When you live in America, you understand why Russian girls are so popular here. In the States, our girls immediately stand out, because the majority of American women don’t take care of themselves at all. Many people begin to take care of themselves, dress normally and do makeup only after the age of 30, since in the modern consciousness of Americans, the age under 30 is, in fact, a second childhood. Most Americans under 30 do not do serious things, but have fun and get high. And you immediately understand why Hollywood actresses become so popular - they stand out from the crowd with their appearance.

5. American hypocrisy

You've probably heard more than once that Americans are very responsive, they always smile, ask how you are doing, and try to help. This is true, but only partly.

In fact, there is nothing behind these smiles and questions. It's just common courtesy. In my experience, the person who says that you are his brother, that you will always be in touch, forgets about you the very next day, may say bad things about you behind your back and generally not understand what’s wrong with it.

Friendship in America is not at all like ours. Here everyone is more acquaintances from work, from college, from school, and not real friends in our understanding. Of course, there are exceptions everywhere, but I am talking about my general impressions.

6. Eternal discontent among different segments of the population

I saw how our people live in Russian regions. And after this, of course, you are amazed when you hear dissatisfaction from certain people in America. Here, constantly in the media or on the street, during numerous rallies, you can hear protests from women, gays, blacks, scientists and in general any representative of the population about how they are oppressed, how they are not allowed to develop, how they are not heard, and so on. Sometimes this reaches the point of absurdity, and often the state really, seriously expresses concern about a particular problem and begins to do something about it.

My opinion is that they got greedy. If local women, gays and blacks knew how people live in other countries, they definitely wouldn’t whine so much. A person quickly gets used to good things and demands more and more. That's why same-sex marriage is legalized here, white people are prohibited from speaking badly about black people (but not vice versa!) and every fire brigade must have at least one woman.

7. American food

America completely lacks any kind of cuisine of its own. Burgers, fries and steaks - that's about it. All other food is the cuisine of the peoples who live here. In addition, the restaurants have huge portions and all the food is somehow too voluminous and tasty. It's like they added a lot of flavor enhancers.

But the biggest problem is in the stores. You can't even imagine how popular convenience foods are in the United States. There are entire departments in stores where you can even find plates of breakfast, lunch or dinner that you just need to stick in the microwave and heat up. This food is very fatty, unhealthy, it is not clear what it is made from, but it is advertised everywhere here, and there are actually hundreds of types of it.

Also in America there is an incredible amount of food and drinks with an incredible amount of salt and sugar: chips, chocolate bars, soda, and hundreds of types of all this, much more than in Russia. If you are going to move here and raise a child, be prepared for the fact that you will need to work through the issue of nutrition with your child, explaining that what his peers eat can lead to serious illnesses.

8. Homeless people are everywhere

This is a real problem, and it is very glaring, especially compared to Russia. There are a lot of homeless people here. Moreover, many of them live on the street not because of a bad life, but simply because they are against the system. They behave very arrogantly - they come up to you and ask for money. If you answer that you don’t have them, they tell you: then take it from your friend and give it to me. If you go with bags from the store, they will come up and ask for something from the bag. In Moscow, a homeless person would have already received a slap in the face for such behavior.

9. Huge tips

Restaurants do not include tips in the bill, but they will tell you three recommended tip sizes: 15, 20 and 25 percent. If you leave less, no one will say anything to you, but the waiter definitely won’t like it. But if you don’t leave a tip at all, the waiter may catch up with you and try to find out what exactly you didn’t like. So be prepared to add $25 to a $100 bill so as not to offend the waiter.

It is a well-known fact that in America medicine is very expensive and it is very difficult to live here without insurance. But even if you have insurance and are undergoing major medical intervention, you will still have to pay 10% of the bill yourself. And without insurance, get ready for serious expenses... A regular ambulance call will cost you $1,500, an appointment with an ordinary therapist - $200-300, an ultrasound - $500.

The same goes for housing. You won't be able to find anything without an agent and a decent commission. The adequate cost of the most ordinary one-room apartment is $2,000.

We have discussed the life of Americans in general, now let's find out how ordinary Americans live in rural areas. I find this topic extremely interesting, especially in the context of the constant confrontation between “patriots” and “liberals”. Of course, like most ordinary Russian people, I have not yet had a chance to visit the USA, so I draw my knowledge from the media. And if in the Russian state media they have been constantly, for many years now, saying that there is nothing good in the USA, that people there are practically surviving, and only a few, the ruling class, so to speak, have a normal life there. The media paints a particularly terrifying picture when it comes to the question of how ordinary Americans live in rural areas, that medicine is in a terrible state there and that they eat some kind of semi-finished products there, that the roads there are terrible and that in general it’s not life, but hell.

However, in times of rapid development of the Internet, it is becoming increasingly difficult to hide information about how ordinary Americans live - you turn on the channel of some emigrant talking about life in the USA and you understand that not everything is so bad in that America. In the video from the States you can see ideal roads in remote rural areas, well-kept houses along these roads, and new cars cutting along them. Of course, one of the most hotly debated issues is financial issue, because from the level of average wages depends on how an ordinary American lives in America.

How much do Americans earn on average?

When starting a conversation about earnings, it is worth immediately dividing the population into classes; in the United States, the largest class is the middle one. It is he who dictates policy and sets the tone in the economy of any country, and in the USA it is even more so. Although the middle class can be divided into three more subclasses, the upper middle class, the lower middle class and the middle class itself. It is the latter who make up the majority of US residents, about 50% of the population, and their average annual income ranges from 90 to 180 thousand US dollars.

For this money, the average American can afford a lot - have a nice house, change cars every few years, provide for their children’s studies at universities. At the same time, the average American saves 15-20 thousand dollars a year from his income. This money can later be spent on children’s education or buying a dream house by the sea. A few words about the lower middle class, people with an average income of 50 to 90 thousand dollars. This subclass, of course, lives from paycheck to paycheck, as they say, since most of the money goes to cover current expenses. Yes, they have a house, two cars, and they go on vacation a couple of times a year, but they can’t save from that income. True, the percentage of such Americans is only 10% of the total number. Another 10% are upper middle class, with salaries ranging from 150 thousand and above. Naturally, these ordinary Americans can afford almost everything.

Those earning less than 50 thousand a year are considered poor in the United States. Yes, you heard right, having received 40 thousand a year, the citizen turns out to be poor! True, not everyone can count on social assistance, since only the poorest really receive it!

Beggars in the United States are considered to be those whose income per person is less than 17 thousand dollars; for two people, the income of poor people should be less than 22 thousand dollars; for three people, just under 28 thousand. Such families often receive benefits, various grants and subsidies from the state.

Since the topic concerns residents of agricultural areas of the United States, I think it would be appropriate to discuss a little US agriculture, as well as employment of the US population in agriculture. According to various sources, only a small number of the population is employed in US agriculture, something like 5%. However, they fully satisfy the need for agricultural products not only for their citizens, but the United States is also largest exporter meat, grains and other agricultural products. At the same time, food prices in the USA are comparable to prices in Russia!

As we can see, the way ordinary Americans live in the USA cannot be compared with the way ordinary people live in Russia. This is how we smoothly move on to the section - a comparison of life in Russia and the USA.

Standard of living in the USA and Russia, comparison

We now know the approximate average salaries in the USA per year, we also know how much they earn on average in Russia, from here we can conclude who lives and how and why many seek to leave the USA either for work or for permanent residence.

Of course, we cannot completely trust the words of emigrants, because we all know about the “emigrant syndrome”, that they present distorted information, as if to say, look, it’s not for nothing that we dumped here. But it is possible to paint an approximate picture of how ordinary Americans live today.

They live well, unlike the Russians, but in Russia the nature is beautiful, the people are kind and there are birches!

Hi all! This is Alexander Khvastovich, host of the “America for the Successful” project. And today the comment “Tell me about the everyday life of Americans” received the most likes, so I will talk about it. I want to say right away that everyday life in America and in Russia is, by and large, not much different. If you do not take into account scientific development and cultural differences, then people live the same way as in Russia: they fall in love, they quarrel, they give birth to children, they go to work. If in Russia someone is thinking about saving up money to buy a used car, then in America people are thinking about how to save up for a more modern new car. In fact, the problems are the same, and life is the same, just on a different level. If you work in America and have good friends, then you will live well and with dignity. Maybe it will simply be better than it would be at home, due to problems with corruption or because it is difficult to find a job there, even as a qualified specialist. That is, things might have turned out worse there than here, but everyday life is the same.

The average person gets up in the morning for work, takes a shower, eats, many here go to the gym before work, then goes to work, works, some at a construction site, some in the computer industry, some in the office. After work he comes home, if one person lives alone, then he spends the evening for his own pleasure - watching TV or going to bars, if with someone, then he can go to eat in a restaurant, raising children. Everyday life in America is the same as everyday life in Russia, it’s just the level of wealth, the culture around it, and the introduction of technology into everyday life that changes. This is probably the main difference. Because both Russia and America are the developed countries. This is not some third world country where you have to look for food or water and you live in a tent. So think of it this way: America is Russia, pardon the pun, just with a slightly more advanced level of society and wages. But despite this, there are also plenty of poor people in America, there are people who have been living from paycheck to paycheck for generations, and they also need to pay for housing. Every month they have to look for money somewhere. There are a lot of rich people here, but a rich person for us is the middle class here. He will have several cars in the family, each member will have a car, he will have a personal house in which he lives. This is probably the main difference. There is no such thing here that mortgages are paid off for the rest of your life, it is quite possible to buy a house or a car on credit here, and you can pay it off within 10-20 years, earning, by average standards, 40-50 thousand dollars a year per family member, not including children.

Therefore, America is America. It's difficult for me to add anything on this issue because it is so all-encompassing. If you go into details, you can find differences, I can tell you something more specific, but everyday life in America is the same as at home, just with a different level of wealth and culture and, as I said, the introduction of technology into everyday life, which, of course, is important. This is exactly what many people come here for.

I hope I answered this question. As always, give us a thumbs up, tell your friends and look forward to more episodes. Thank you all, Alexander Khvastovich, host of the “America for the Successful” project, was with you. That's it, bye everyone!

It's me again. I have a couple of things I'd like to add. First of all, I think it’s time for me to shave, but that doesn’t matter. And the second thing I wanted to say is that the video turned out to be uninformative. I didn't really know what to say. I knew, but there’s not much to say, at least that’s what I think. Therefore, as a bonus, if you watch this video on Youtube, you will see in the description of the video links below to my articles, interviews with various emigrants. There are, for example, stories about how a girl came here as a student, then went to prison in America, then got out and is now legalized. There is a story about how a pensioner came to live in America. How different people come, their impressions, how they come and stay on a study visa. In short, I will give a few links to read and you will understand a little what it is like to live in America. I hope this makes up for the lack of information. Thanks to all! Bye!

Moving to the USA is difficult, but there are categories of people for whom it is possible:

— Investors. It is enough to invest at least 1 million dollars and after 2 years all family members will receive the status of permanent resident of the United States ( EB-5 visa).

— You can also open a branch of an existing company in America or buy an existing business in the USA (from $100,000). This will make you eligible to receive an L-1 work visa, which can be exchanged for a green card.

— Famous athletes, musicians, writers and other extraordinary people can move on an O-1 work visa.

— In case of oppression by the state for religious, political reasons, or humiliation due to belonging to a gay minority, you can request political asylum in the United States (asylum).

— You can stay in the United States for a short time on a B1/B2 tourist visa.

— You can also get a second higher education in the USA after studying for 1-3 years.

If you want to emigrate to the USA and meet one of the points above. We partner with trusted immigration attorneys and business brokers who can help make your dreams come true.

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