The phrase you’re looking for is “lifestyle creep” – that’s the term for the phenomenon through which luxuries gradually become perceived as necessities as someone’s income, expectations, or environment change.

What lifestyle creep means

Lifestyle creep happens when, over time, people start treating optional upgrades as standard parts of life.

  • A nicer apartment, frequent takeout, rideshares instead of public transport, or premium subscriptions may all start as treats but slowly feel non‑negotiable.
  • Once someone adjusts to this higher level of comfort, cutting back feels like “losing” something essential, even if it was originally a luxury.

In personal finance and economic discussions, lifestyle creep explains why some people feel just as strapped for cash at a higher income as they did at a lower one, because their baseline lifestyle has risen along with (or faster than) their earnings.