There are all kinds of stories of celebrities who had everything then lost it all through poor money management. However, some famous people are surprisingly frugal with their fortunes.
Here are 15 celebs who opened up about living "below their means":
1. Keke Palmer — who bore financial responsibility for her entire family at age 12 — filed for bankruptcy when she was around 18, despite having a business manager. So, moving forward, she decided to live below her means to provide herself with a financial safety net.
2. In 2018, Zach Galifianakis told Jimmy Kimmel Live that he drove the same '98 Subaru Outback for 20 years.
Watch the full clip below:
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3. Keiran Culkin lived in the same one-bedroom apartment for about 20 years, starting at age 19. It wasn't until after he filmed Succession Season 3 that Keiran, his wife Jazz Charton (who was expecting their son at the time), and their daughter Kinsey moved to a bigger place.
4. In 2018, Sarah Michelle Gellar told CNBC Make It, "I cut coupons to this day. I'll never forget one time I was at Bloomingdale's, and they had these coupons — Bloomingdale's has really good coupons — and I was taking them all out, I was doing holiday shopping. And someone behind me turned around and said, 'I can't believe how long you're taking. Why are you using coupons?' I remember looking at her like, 'Why should I pay more?'"
5. In 2010, the New York Times asked Eminem what he does with "all [his] money." The rapper, who's been sober since 2008, answered, "Save it. I save a lot of money by not buying drugs anymore. I invest. I always try to be smart."
6. Tyra Banks learned good financial habits from her mom. In 2018, she told Money, "Even before my career, I was a saver. My brother was a spender. I was a saver. I would hold onto it forever and dole it out slowly. My mom explained to me the importance of real estate and that, typically in Los Angeles, it's going to appreciate. While a lot of models were partying it up and going shopping and buying a closet of designer clothes or staying at the top hotels during fashion week, I was at the Doubletree or Embassy Suites, saving my money, and bought a house at 20 years old."
7. In 2017, Jay Leno told CNBC Make It, "I always had two incomes. I'd bank one, and I'd spend one."
8. In 2014, Keira Knightley told Glamour that she gives herself an annual "salary" in the neighborhood of $50,000 out of her earnings. She said, "I mean, if I want or need something that goes over that, I get it, but yes, around that."
9. In 2012, Kristen Bell told Conan about her love of coupons.
Watch the full clip below:
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10. Chow Yun-fat reportedly lives on $800 HKD (about $102 USD) a month, takes public transportation, shops at discount stores, and uses the same Nokia cellphone he's had for 17 years.
11. In a 2023 TikTok video, Julia Fox gave a tour of her "modest" apartment.
12. In 2009, Hilary Swank told Live! with Regis and Kelly that she's a coupon clipper — and shut down the suggestion that she would be ashamed of it.
Watch the full clip below, with this part starting at the 1:28 mark:
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13. In 2012, Ashley Greene told Marie Claire, "Twilight has ruined me. When this is all over, flying internationally is going to be very hard for me. It is just not worth it to buy a first-class ticket because of the cost."
14. In 2010, Vincent Kartheiser told the Guardian that he gave up his car. He said, "I go on the bus, I walk. A friend left his car recently at my house, and I took it out one day just for 15 minutes, and it was terrible. You know why? I felt like I was back in LA again. Four or five years ago, when I had a car and I had been out of the city I wouldn't feel I was back until I got in the car, you know. But now I feel off the grid. I feel that I am not part of the culture. And because I don't have a car, I don't really go anywhere to buy things. In fact, I have been in a slow process of selling and giving away everything I own."
15. In 2016, Sarah Jessica Parker told InStyle, "I dress based on what I have. I'm not a huge shopper, but I love beautiful things. To be able to borrow them is ridiculously fortunate, and I enjoy every second of that. I have a pretty standard wardrobe, though I've got wonderful shoes."
16. And finally, Ed Begley Jr. learned to be financially conscious from his dad, Ed Begley Sr, who was a factory worker before becoming an actor. Interacting with his dad's Hollywood peers also impacted him. In 2015, he told Ask NASA Climate, "We would visit some of these people with fat houses and they didn’t seem one bit happier to me; in fact, they had all this stress and all these problems.”
What's the most frugal thing you've ever heard of a celebrity doing? Let us know in the comments!
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