This was not because she did not shell out over $200 for the tickets, but because she paid for the tickets in July 2023, and hence no actual money was spent on the day itself.
And you’ve guessed it right if you thought this has to be “girl math”.
This was a buzz phrase in 2023, with the TikTok trend’s hashtag racking up views of over three billion. And while we might use the term less now, the sentiment behind it remains – the use of excuses for indulgent purchases.
I find myself indulging in girl math from time to time. If I resist the temptation to buy bubble tea today, I save $4.50, which means I am $4.50 richer and I can happily spend it on something else another day. In reality, my bank account sadly continues to hold the same amount, with no extra inflows just because I stopped myself from spending some money.
But this grows even more dangerous when it comes to bigger-ticket purchases. For instance, I spent $500 less on flight tickets than I thought I would because I got them during a sale. This means I can spend $500 more on accommodation and get a nice swanky place in the middle of town on my next trip.
It seems like I am just one of the many who are girl mathing. The term started making its rounds in July 2023 when New Zealand radio hosts discussed a dress that cost NZ$330 (S$268). Their conclusion was to divide the cost by three because the dress would be worn thrice, meaning the dress really cost NZ$110.
It is all tongue-in-cheek and in good fun, but girl math has its fair share of serious critics who brand it as irresponsible spending, or take people to task for using it to justify logical leaps in spending habits.
Many of us often try to give various reasons to justify our spending, even if these reasons do not make sense, said Mr Ian Tan, a lecturer in strategic communications at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information at NTU.
Girl math was a fresh spin on this behaviour, resonating with viewers because it exaggerates the quirky excuses we sometimes make for indulgent purchases, he said.
He added that the trend could have gained additional traction due to the post-Covid-19 period of revenge travel and revenge spending by many consumers.
But DBS Bank’s head of financial literacy planning Lorna Tan said that more importantly, it points to the influence of psychology on an individual’s financial choices, and the fact that people cannot separate emotions from decisions around money and investing.
“To reduce this bias, consider your finances holistically. This means understanding what your personal balance sheet is and being able to understand how one financial decision affects another. After all, money is money no matter where it’s from and where it’s lost,” she said.
With greater clarity on one’s financial situation, a person can build a plan that includes a realistic budget to better manage cash flows and achieve saving and spend targets, she added. Set aside at least three to six months of emergency cash, have adequate insurance and invest wisely for the mid and long term.
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OCBC Bank head of wealth advisory Aaron Chwee said that while some social media trends are just for kicks, having a warped or illogical basis for making financial decisions can have detrimental effects on one’s financial goals.
“For instance, if you believe that using cash to make a purchase is ‘free’ because your bank balance doesn’t drop, or if you go to a store and you don’t buy anything, you made money – well, you might need a reality check,” he said.
He noted that financial planning takes discipline and precision, such as consistently and accurately tracking expenses, so you know how much to set aside monthly for necessities.
“Only then will you be able to know how much you can afford to allocate to insurance, investments and other expenses,” he said.
But apart from the psychology of spending, girl math also takes on a social dimension because it plays on stereotypes of women being seen as impulsive and emotional, less able to handle money and unable to understand “cold, hard” finance.
In fact, the word “girl” already infantilises women, by referring to their supposed immaturity and frivolity when spending money.
In a way, girl math only makes sense to us because it speaks to cultural stereotypes that we already hold. It exposes those unspoken ideas and prejudices about gender and finance, but it also reinforces them through continuous usage.
But girl math at its heart is really gender-agnostic and also speaks to examples of “mental accounting” that have been around for a long time, said DBS’ Ms Tan.
For example, a man can say his car is “free” since he plans to use it daily for more than 10 years and it is his preferred choice over the inconvenience of not having a car and having to rely on other methods of transport, including private car-hire services, she said. A man can also say his Patek Philippe watch is “free” because he is merely looking after it for the next generation.
Hence, the term is really just the latest expression of the mental gymnastics people execute when they try to justify spending, and it became codified as a trend, thanks to platforms like TikTok.
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Looking at data, it is also factually untrue that women’s spending habits differ significantly from men’s.
According to the 2023 OCBC Financial Wellness Index, a study which measures Singaporeans’ financial health, men and women had similar financial wellness scores. There was also an equal percentage of men and women citing “emotional” as their dominant financial personality trait, which measures an individual’s ability to separate emotions from financial decisions and assess whether they regret their choices.
“Thus, this gender stereotype is unfounded – from our index, we found that women ensure that they spend within their means, and they do not differ from men in the amount of unsecured debt they have accumulated,” Mr Chwee said.
He noted that regardless of gender, overspending is a negative financial habit.
“Everyone should spend within their means. It is important to cultivate a strong saving habit, in case emergencies like a job loss, urgent home repairs, or illness hit,” he said.
“But if you can plan your finances well, put aside sufficient emergency funds, invest for the future, buy adequate medical insurance and have some extra set aside to treat yourself to your favourite singer’s concert, then you can spend that extra budget without worrying about compromising your financial goals.”
Hence, my next trip overseas in June is not free just because I paid for the flight tickets last year. But if I have done my budget correctly and there’s money to spare, then the next trip will be guilt-free. And that’s not girl math, it’s just good maths.
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