Russians Need 175,000 Rubles a Month to Feel Happy, Poll Shows

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – October 31, 2015)

Russians believe they need an income of at least 175,000 rubles ($2,725) a month to feel happy, according to poll results published by the Izvestia daily Friday.

The cost of happiness is higher in Moscow, where an average resident needs at least 193,000 rubles a month to feel happy, the poll by the Superjob employment website indicated, Izvestia reported.

Men feel they need more money than women to be happy, with the average threshold of a Russian man’s happiness starting with a monthly paycheck of 193,000 rubles, while women were content with 158,000 rubles, the poll indicated.

Russians view as “rich” anybody who earns 450,000 rubles or more per month, while the poverty threshold starts at 15,000 rubles or less per month, the poll indicated, Izvestia reported.

No margin of error for the poll was provided.

The average monthly salary in Russia stood at 34,000 rubles, according to official government data for April this year, Ekho Moskvy radio reported. Only 2.8 percent of the country’s residents earn between 100,000 rubles and 250,000 rubles a month, Izvestia reported.