Absolutely! Let’s dial this up into a vibrant, SEO-friendly, personality-packed post in your Stephi LaReine style — rich with Friends references, witty quips, and expert-level authority, while keeping it EEAT-compliant (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness). Perfect for your blog or socials:
Could the Friends Cast Actually Afford NYC in 2025? Here’s the Real Cost of Living Like Rachel, Monica & Co.
Could Friends even exist today? Thirty years after Friends first taught us about “being on a break,” pivoting sofas, and Central Perk hangouts, a brand-new study reveals whether our six favorite New Yorkers could realistically afford their iconic Manhattan lifestyles in 2025.
From Ross’ endless rent to Joey’s pizza addiction, this research — conducted by the team at Chicks Gold using Glassdoor and Expatistan data — breaks down exactly how much it would cost to recreate each character’s life today. And spoiler: it’s enough to make you spit out your $7 latte.
☕ Central Perk’s Most Loyal Customer: Ross Geller
- 2025 Lifestyle Cost: $66,440.64/year
- 2025 Salary Estimate: $280,625 (paleontologist extraordinaire)
- The Tea: Turns out Ross’ passion for dinosaurs pays off big time — he’d be NYC’s least financially stressed Friend. His massive two-bed apartment alone costs $57,672 a year, but he’d still have $214,184 left over. Maybe his fossil jokes weren’t so boring after all.
🦖 EEAT Insight: As a tenured paleontologist, Ross’ salary is solidly sourced from Glassdoor averages for NYC university positions. But don’t forget — this doesn’t factor in child support for Ben.
🍕 Joey Tribbiani: How You Doin’… Financially?
- 2025 Lifestyle Cost: $44,428.64/year
- 2025 Salary Estimate: $25,738 (actor, sometimes Dr. Drake Ramoray)
- The Reality: Our favorite flirt would be $18,690.64 in the red every year. Five dinners out a week and bi-weekly pizza deliveries don’t come cheap — and his unpredictable acting gigs just can’t keep up. Even the chick and duck couldn’t bail him out.
🎭 EEAT Note: Salary estimates are based on NYC’s median pay for actors with sporadic work — so Joey’s financial struggle? Totally realistic.
💇♀️ Rachel Green: From Waitress to Fashion Exec
- 2025 Lifestyle Cost: $39,514.64/year
- Waitress Salary (Seasons 1–3): $20,215
- Fashion Exec Salary (Seasons 8–10): $164,957
- The Verdict: Rachel’s glow-up from Central Perk waitress to fashion queen is iconic — but early on, she’d face nearly $19k/year in debt. Once she lands her dream job, though? She’s thriving with $125k to spare.
👜 EEAT Insight: Glassdoor’s salary data for NYC fashion executives underpins Rachel’s rise, while waitress earnings are based on modern service industry averages.
👩🍳 Monica Geller: Could She Keep That Apartment Today?
- 2025 Lifestyle Cost: $39,514.64/year
- 2025 Salary Estimate: $84,449 (head chef)
- The Truth: Monica’s rent-controlled miracle helps, but even at market rates, she’d still come out ahead by $44,934 thanks to her successful culinary career. Remember when the gang asked how she could afford her apartment? It’s finally answered.
🔪 EEAT Insight: Salaries for NYC head chefs place Monica comfortably above her lifestyle costs. Her time as an unemployed waitress, however, would’ve been a financial nightmare.
🎸 Phoebe Buffay: Smelly Cat, Broke Bank
- 2025 Lifestyle Cost: $39,514.64/year
- 2025 Salary Estimate: $21,715 (massage therapist + busking)
- Bottom Line: Quirky Phoebe would rack up nearly $18k in yearly debt just trying to pay rent and occasionally catch a movie. Not even “Smelly Cat” royalties could save her.
🎤 EEAT Insight: Combined massage therapist and busking incomes reflect NYC’s lower-paying service gigs — proving Phoebe’s bohemian dream life was far from financially stable.
📊 Chandler Bing: The One Who Actually Budgeted
- 2025 Lifestyle Cost: $39,372.64/year
- 2025 Salary Estimate: $79,436 (junior copywriter)
- Reality Check: Even after splurging on cigarettes ($1,768/year) and a gym membership he never uses ($1,704/year), Chandler would have a cool $40k leftover. Could his statistical analysis skills have made him the group’s secret financial planner?
💼 EEAT Insight: His salary as an advertising copywriter in NYC comes directly from Glassdoor estimates, ensuring Chandler’s financial storyline lines up with real-world data.
📊 Full Cost Breakdown Table
| Character | 2025 Lifestyle Cost | 1994 Lifestyle Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Ross | $66,440.64 | $31,781.03 |
| Joey | $44,428.64 | $21,251.87 |
| Rachel, Monica & Phoebe | $39,514.64 | $18,901.32 |
| Chandler | $39,372.64 | $18,833.40 |
So Could
Friends
Happen Today?
According to the research by Chicks Gold, only Ross, Rachel (post-promotion), Monica, and Chandler could keep up with 2025’s brutal NYC costs. Joey and Phoebe? They’d need roommates, side hustles, or — let’s be honest — a miracle.
Chicks Gold spokesperson:
“Despite Friends being a timeless cultural icon, our data shows just how unrealistic their Manhattan lifestyles would be for most people today. Rent, social lives, and everyday costs have skyrocketed far beyond the characters’ means — highlighting how much New York has changed since the ’90s.”
🔎 Methodology
- Salaries (2025): Calculated from Glassdoor data for each profession.
- Lifestyle Costs (2025): Sourced from Expatistan’s NYC cost-of-living index.
- 1994 figures: Adjusted with inflation calculator for historical accuracy.
- Expenses factored: rent, coffee trips, dining out, gym memberships, smoking, cinema visits, and late-night takeout.
- Full dataset available upon request.