Is it ever worth taking a pay cut?

Though a lower income will mean reworking your budget, it can also mean more free time and a better work-life balance

Scissors lying on a table next to a piece of paper that says "salary," cut in half
There are steps you can take to adjust to living on a lower income
(Image credit: takasuu / Getty Images)

If you believe that money equals happiness, then willingly accepting a pay cut may sound like a straight path to gloom and doom. But as it turns out, some people who trade their higher-paying job for one with a lower salary end up "happier," said The Wall Street Journal. Though a lower income obviously entails reworking the budget, it also "can come with a raise in free time and work-life balance." 

Still, "while a better work-life balance may benefit your mental health," said USA Today, "taking a pay cut could negatively impact your financial health," which is obviously important as well.

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Becca Stanek, The Week US

Becca Stanek has worked as an editor and writer in the personal finance space since 2017. She previously served as a deputy editor and later a managing editor overseeing investing and savings content at LendingTree and as an editor at the financial startup SmartAsset, where she focused on retirement- and financial-adviser-related content. Before that, Becca was a staff writer at The Week, primarily contributing to Speed Reads.