What started as an image of one woman has become a fascinating look at global beauty standards.
What the “perfect body” looks like varies greatly from country to country. Superdrug Online Doctors created a project called “Perceptions of Perfection” to highlight the different views of beauty from 18 different countries. They hired a designer from each of the countries included and had them all Photoshop the same image to reflect the beauty standards of each country.
This article originally appeared last year.
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Big-city comfort comes with a six-figure price tag.
Jaclyn DeJohn, CFP for SmartAsset
To truly understand the context of a household’s income, it must be compared to local costs and long-term goals, which both may fluctuate over time. For most people, the same pillars will make up the biggest nonnegotiables in their budget. These include basic necessities like housing, groceries, utilities, and transportation, and likely some discretionary spending on hobbies, activities, and other enrichment. In an attempt to secure this lifestyle for the future, many households aim to save some of their income for emergencies, investments, retirement, education, and other long-term goals. A common budgeting technique that encapsulates these three pillars is called the 50/30/20 rule: 50% of your post-tax income goes to needs, 30% to your wants, and 20% gets set aside for the future.
With this in mind, SmartAsset assessed the salary needed to reach this 50/30/20 ideal — designated as a comfortable salary — based on the local costs in 100 of the largest U.S. cities.
1. New York, New York
2. San Jose, California
3. (tie) Irvine, California
3. (tie) Anaheim, California
3. (tie) Santa Ana, California
6. Boston, Massachusetts
7. (tie) San Diego, California
7. (tie) Chula Vista, California
9. San Francisco, California
10. (tie) Fremont, California
10. (tie) Oakland, California
SmartAsset used MIT Living Wage Calculator data to gather the basic cost of living for an individual with no children and for two working adults with two children. Data includes the cost of necessities, including housing, food, transportation, and income taxes. It was last updated to reflect the most recent data available on Feb. 15, 2026.
Applying these costs to the 50/30/20 budget for 100 of the largest U.S. cities, MIT’s living wage is assumed to cover needs (i.e., 50% of one’s budget). From there, the total annual wage was extrapolated for individuals and families to spend 30% of the total on wants and 20% on savings or debt payments. Median household income data for cities comes from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 1 Year American Community Survey for 2024.
This story was produced by SmartAsset and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
Arlington leads a data-driven look at where Americans may be happiest.
Jaclyn DeJohn, CFP for SmartAsset
Happiness may not be easy to quantify, but some qualifiers may make a person more likely to feel satisfied in life. A reasonable degree of financial freedom can alleviate worry about day-to-day costs and the occasional unexpected expense. Similarly, good relationships, overall health and longevity, basic conveniences, and privacy can go a long way in keeping stress down and contentment up. While none of these things alone are the secret to happiness, they may all individually contribute to a life geared toward wants rather than needs — freeing up time and resources for individuals to explore and build a life on their own terms.
With this in mind, SmartAsset ranked 85 of the largest U.S. cities with available data based on 11 happiness factors spanning personal finance, physical and mental well-being, and quality of life factors.
Eighty-five of the largest U.S. cities for which data was available were evaluated across three categories: personal finance, well-being, and quality of life. Data comes from the U.S. Census Bureau 1-Year American Community Survey for 2024 and the County Health Rankings & Roadmaps for 2025.
Personal finance metrics included:
Well-being metrics include:
Quality of life metrics include:
This story was produced by SmartAsset and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
“I feel guilty — no one should live like this.”
Matt Fiddes runs a multi-million dollar martial arts franchise in Britain. His family’s weekly budget runs around $2,058. He’d never really looked at a price tag before buying something.
For a social experiment documented by the YouTube channel Only Human, the Fiddes family swapped lives with the Leamons (Andy, Kim, their two kids, and two dogs) who get by on $230 a week. Kim had a life-saving surgery after an accident and now lives with Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome. They lost their savings. Andy works alone to support the family.
On day one of the swap, Matt learned his weekly budget was $230. “That basically fills up the fuel tank of my car,” he said.
What followed was a week of grocery bills he had to think about, a neighborhood with nothing much in it, and night shifts, something he’d never worked in his life. His wife Moniqe cried when she heard about Kim’s condition from the Leamons’ friends.
By the end of the week, Matt had something to say that was harder to shrug off than the budget: “I feel guilty; no one should live like this.”
He also said the week brought his family closer together. The Fiddes left a gift behind for the Leamons when they returned home: a mobility scooter for Kim, so she could get around on her own.
The Leamons, meanwhile, spent the week in the Fiddes’ house taking their kids to a theme park and doing a little shopping experiencing, briefly, what it feels like when money isn’t a constant calculation.
One YouTube commenter put it plainly: “I feel this was a much-needed vacation for the poor family and a grounding experience for the rich family.” That’s about right.
You can watch the full documentary here:
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