For those who buy lunch at work: how much do you usually spend each day?
Not looking for money-saving tips, just curious what people consider a reasonable daily spend when at work and not WFH.
What’s a Normal Lunch Spend at Work?
patmccrotch on 15/04/2025 - 20:37
Comments
I'm the same as you. I probably bring my own lunch about 80-90% of the time. I typically just make sure whatever I make for dinner is in some way reheat-able the next day and then beyond that, I hope that chilli sauce hides any of my sins (i.e. the tastelessness of reheated food).
Because I probably only end up buying lunch two days per month, I usually end up spending a bit more (like $20 -$25 or so) and just take it up a notch. Bar Luca is uncomfortable close by and it's always quite tempting.
Eeryone is different.
ALSO … Have you factored in takeaway shops - VS food vans / delivery services ???
Some people I work with - spend $50+/day (food vans that come to our site).
Personally … I'm usually around $12-$17/day (also food vans, but try to make lunch to take to work most days).
[EDIT] … That also includes breakfast - as usually start between 6-7am.
Eeryone is different.
That's scary…
How can anyone spend $50+ on van food?
Maybe they're bullied into buying lunch for their bullies.
Some people eat a lot of food.
Not even spend $50 sit-down inside restaurant at lunchtime. May be dinner but not lunch.
$6.50 for 2 sushi rolls at Coles?
Must be a city option the 4 nearest Coles to me in regional Victoria dont stock Sushi rolls. Thats also a good price.
My local Coles has piles of them every second day selling for 50% off. They taste fine. Let's face it, if you add the soy sauce sachet all you're tasting is the soy sauce.
$16-19 for me, depending on location
If I forget, $3 for a toastie.
Where do you get a toastie for $3?
School canteen.
Although there are free ones in the staff fridge but have to have a break to cook it myself 🤷♀️
Plus they’re for the teachers/school staff. Kids have to stay in the playground.
We get free fruit at work so I eat fruit for lunch.
If management have leftovers from catering for their meetings then I'll pinch that
from the skipfrom the meeting room when they leave.I like it!
I WFH but regularly need an excuse to go out and get some steps in. I I feel fancy it's $16 for a bowl of Phở noodles or I'm feeling cheapskate it's the $6.95 McSmart meal at Maccas. Or I need my fibre, a medium $13.90 Salad at Soul Origin.
I try to spend less than $10 on lunch.
Try but it's hard now days
Depends how much you eat, drink and what your standards are.
Plenty of fast food under $10 - McSmart Meal, 6 inch subs, Jacks App deals etc.
Most of the sushi places near me have 3 rolls for $10.Worst case I get a frozen meal at Colesworth and microwave it at work.
How big are the rolls?
@BartholemewH: Yes I noticed my *ahem* typo there.
I also consumed that day's free Dall-E image generations trying to teach it the difference between girth (circumference) and diameter…
Poor chap. U guys need a banh me sandwich shop
mcd $3 burgers x 3. ergh…
I try to follow this too, around 10 but vary between $8-12ish
Couple of sushi rolls $8
Japanese curry place - $10.30
Sri Lankan - $12
Banh Mi - $11Breakfast place that does 2 slices of sour dough with a extra shot almond latte for $10
Allocation for the week = one hour's pay
This is a good rule
What if you only work one hour per week?
You're unworthy of a lunch break
Pre or post tax?!
Post
I just went from eating like a log every day, to eating like a peasant :,(
a normal lunch doesn't spend anything, it gets spent
Pre covid it was two whopper jrs and two small chips, but that’s $10.75 these days.
If I’m only in one day a week, $15-20. If I’m in the whole week, $10 a day max (usually a Woolies metro, try get marked down salads or something). $15 a day is at least $3k a year and for what, disappointing cafe food?
I do try bring leftovers, I’m just also very forgetful.
$17 to $20 for a sandwich and a coffee
$18-25 in the Sydney CBD. This is takeaway or sit down at a cafe/fast(ish) food place. Not restaurant lunch. yes it's relatively expensive, but when you consider a food prep like Foober/Aplus Life etc.. is $12-$15 each, it's not too bad. I do a mixture of both.
that's about normal for CBD food courts where I work (the Quay end of the city)
A sandwich and water from one of th many convenience stores can be under $10 though.
At my office food court most of the shops mark down food after 1.45pm. What is normally $14 gets marked down to around $8.
This is the OZB way.
Eating once a day, zero spent on breakfast/lunch :P
And gives more energy throughout the day - win, win.
Finally someone who has escaped the matrix.
So you skip breakfast/lunch and just have dinner? That's sounds miserable.
Agreed, it's hard for sugar junkies that are addicted to the insulin spike :/
Humans are born with growth hormone for a reason, but for the majority of the western world, they will never see growth hormone hit active levels because the only way it accumulates in the body is by not eating for ~ 16 hours!
Growth hormone in humans does amazing things (ie initiates autophagy, which is a human "self heal" mode for every modern disease we get) … for me, natural growth hormone reversed coronary artery (calcium score from 122 to zero in under 4 years) and kidney diseases - to the point they can no longer be detected!
$3 large Reddy Express coffee that does a better job than a lot of cafe's.
Range is $6-$18.
5 sugar packets from the office kitchen - $0
$4.20
Hah! ;-)
$15-20 once per week. I’d rather go out and have a nice lunch once per week than have lunch out every day and feel gross and poor.
What’s a normal lunch spend at work?
There's always free food to be found in the office fridge…
A couple of local to work shops mark down food after 2:30 pm to around $7 to $7:50 + coffee $4.50. And they're really good.
3 x per week. Late lunch - shorter afternoon 8-)Sushi place next to work does $1.50 rolls. So a hearty sushi lunch of 3 rolls runs a ridiculous $4.50. No idea how they make any money but there's always a line running through small food court for people after those cheap glorious goods. If I'm feel frisky then I'll get the same place to make a dish to order, $13.
Sushi place next to work does $1.50 rolls.
You kind of have to wonder what kind of ingredients they use…
Common discussion at work. We've all been suspicious and won over one by one. There is another sushi palce in the same food court that is double the price and honestly tastes no different. I think their bulk turnover is the secret, but I admit to still waiting for the catch but it has never come.
You definitely not in Sydney 😂
They are trying to bankrupt[t the exy place and will then triple their prices.
Wonder no more!
The majority of it is rice.yes, but fresh sushi grade tuna, salmon is not cheap either…
Send me location
Tower Sushi
1 Queens Rd, MelbourneThank you, nice, I’ll need a plane ticket for that
Couldn't believe a $1.50 sushi roll in 2025. I remember it was at least $2.40 / roll year 2004 in Midtown Plaza.
$15 - $20 - 2-3 times week
So between $1500-$3000 per year?
Given that you reside in Monte Carlo, Monaco; one might assume that the affluent JV would indulge in meals exceeding $100 each.
jumped from 4.28 to 14.28 per day since I can't be bothered cooking
You don't have to reply to every comment.
Why not?
Nah, 50c
They're freaking great.
$5 can go a decent way at the supermarket.
Ready meals are $4-5.
2 tuna cans, a banana and a muesli bar is about $5 too.
Loaf of bread and a can of Tuna. You can freeze the loaf and use it again another day …🤔
Working Monday to Friday from 8-4pm,
Using this opportunity to FAST, then hit the treadmill and lift Fasted. Win win 🏆
Up to $30 is reasonable
What’s a normal lunch spend at work?
Are we talking big lunch or little lunch?
I usually just get eucy drops ($0.25 for a bag) or a sunny boy ($0.50) for little lunch. Sometimes red frogs ($0.05 each) if I need a pick me up.
Have a look in the communal fridge to see what looks nice…🤣
I love seeing what people name their food. Best chicken sandwich I ever
(stole)borrowed was named Mark!He might even include some laxatives and ghost chilli to speed up digestion as a courtesy too.
I usually bring my lunch, but on those occasions when I forget to grab it out of the fridge, I think $15 is reasonable.