25 Items People Can’t Believe They Actually Paid For

Whether it’s a trendy gadget, an ill-fated investment, or a spur-of-the-moment buy, these experiences remind us to think twice before opening our wallets. After all, the best things in life often don’t come with a price tag.

#1

Image source: tummyache-champion, Snack Toronto / pexels (not the actual photo)

A pair of Christian Louboutin stilettos that I absolutely could not afford and paid for with my whole credit card limit. I wore them twice. They are INDESCRIBABLY uncomfortable, the soles are paper thin, and the red scrapes off pretty much immediately if you wear them outside. I was young and clearly very stupid.

#2

Image source: SevenTheTerrible, Norman Tolba / pexels (not the actual photo)

Cigarettes. I didn’t mind at the time, but having been off them for a decade, it is such a stupid way to spend money in retrospect.

#3

Image source: xilata, Liza Summer / pexels (not the actual photo)

Extra lives on candy crush.

#4

Image source: verltodd, TranStudios Photography & Video / pexels (not the actual photo)

My wedding. We are now divorced so I feel I could have used that money for something more worthwhile. Lesson learned.

#5

Image source: Dee_Breeze, Mstudio / pexels (not the actual photo)

$40 on a pair of jeans and belt just to get into a club with my friends never wore them again.

#6

Image source: skulloflugosi, 20th Century Studios

A life-size Danny Devito cardboard cutout. I use him as a seasonal decoration so right now he’s wearing a flower crown. In the winter he become a Christmas tree.

#7

Image source: Missus_Aitch_99, Ron Lach / pexels (not the actual photo)

A soup tureen. I thought a married lady who throws dinner parties and fancy brunches (which I was at the time — widowed recluse now) just HAD to have one. I searched for two years to find one that blended with my taste and looked good with my China but not so good that it was all matchy-matchy. Finally found the perfect one, bought it (expensive!) and put it in a cabinet. And NEVER used it, not even once. Turns out I’m too control freaky to serve from a tureen — have to plate the soup so I can get the swirl of sour cream or truffle oil or scattering of minced chives just right.

Kept tureen for a few years then took it to my cousin’s annual yard sale. It didn’t sell.

#8

Image source: Wishilikedhugs, cottonbro studio / pexels (not the actual photo)

I got my degree in audio engineering right before everyone stopped buying CDs and the music industry completely changed… So that.

#9

Image source: sasa_shadowed, Emrah AYVALI / pexels (not the actual photo)

Actually my first cat.

I saw her and fell in love.  Knew she had never seen a vet, was way too small and ill.

Regret came after I brought her to the vet.

I was dumb a f … that was expensive.  (Cat is healthy now – and I am broke) .

#10

Image source: Commercial-Novel-786, RDNE Stock project / pexels (not the actual photo)

You know that box on your tax form that asks for $1 or $5 for the presidential re-election fund?

I checked it.

Once.

#11

I went for one of these stuffed animals vending machine with a claw. It was a big machine with a lot of empty space but a few animals on the right side. Actually it was so big that it had two payment terminals, two claws, etc. I paid for it using my CC on the left side and went for the controls. Well, guess what, it was not one big vending machine, but two separate machines with a god damn glass window between them, and the one on the left that I was using was completely empty.

The laugh my fiancee and I had was well worth the $1 I wasted. Actually after that I went for the other machine and… Also didn’t manage to get the stuffed animal. But my fiancee tried and got one in her first try!

Image source: Morpheus_Roland_Sam

#12

Image source: scienceforbid, Beata Dudová / pexels (not the actual photo)

DLC and pay-to-play on phone games.

#13

Image source: ZeldaTheOuchMouse, José María Mateos / flickr (not the actual photo)

A factory sealed copy of the Bibleman PC game.

#14

My ex-wife, of course.

Image source: ThinkingMonkey69

#15

Image source: Stormraughtz, Robert / flickr (not the actual photo)

Know that replica frostmourne blizzard and epic weapons made? yeah one of those.

Doesnt even steal souls, what a rip off.

#16

Image source: Iriscze, The Lazy Artist Gallery / pexels (not the actual photo)

A diet program that cost a fortune. Ended up binging on pizza instead.

#17

Image source: MrsJaneEmma, Vickie Intili / pexels (not the actual photo)

A Furby. I actually still got it somewhere, more than 25 years later.

#18

Image source: Sea-Air-3193, Caleb Oquendo / pexels (not the actual photo)

Honestly, fast food. I always crave a specific thing and buy it and then it’s just ok. Why did I spend $20 on a s****y burger and fries? I could have just taken my lazy a*s home and made better for cheaper.

#19

Image source: zippyboy, Alex Koch / pexels (not the actual photo)

My Go-Pro camera 10 years ago. Turns out, I don’t live the exciting life I thought I did.

#20

Image source: FulaniLovinCriminal, Bruno Scramgnon / pexels (not the actual photo)

I got given a voucher for a iwantoneofthose.com about 15 years ago, and could find nothing I wanted, so I now “own” a square kilometre of the moon.

#21

Image source: MegawackyMax, Alexander Kovalev / pexels (not the actual photo)

Once, just ONCE, I purchased in-game cash with real cash in a videogame.

I felt *dirty* afterwards. Never again.

#22

Image source: PedalMonk, Dmitry Demidov / pexels (not the actual photo)

I bid on a guitar signed by Metallica through a radio station auction, where the proceeds would go to a charity. This was over the phone (before cell phones were big and everyone still had home phones) and live on the air. Me and one other dumb a*s got into a bidding war for this guitar signed by Metallica. I “won” by making a crazy ending bid of $8000, $1500 more than the last bid. The goal was to be the crazy one, and it worked. The other dude bowed out and I “won” it.

I went down to the radio station to pick it up. No party hats, no “great job!”, no greeters, just me and my shame of paying waaaay too much for a s****y, Chinese made Fender with 4 sigs on it. They gave it to me in an open cardboard box with no COA.

It’s worth about $300 now, probably. Even worse, I played it a few times and wore down one of the sigs. I mean, it’s still there, but you can tell it’s been rubbed off a little.

The only saving grace was that I got to write it off on my taxes and got back like 6K that year or something like that.

So yeah, used a credit card with 12% interest. Luckily I had a good job, so it only took 6 months to pay it off.

Do I win?

#23

Image source: thatcompguyza, William Choquette / pexels (not the actual photo)

I paid upfront for a 4 year gym contract.
Price was mind blowing.
I went once in 4 years, my own fault.

#24

Image source: ActuallyTBH, Peter Fazekas / pexels (not the actual photo)

Drones were such a fad. I bet 90% of people found themselves in a single situtation where they thought “Damn, I wish I had a drone here” bought one and never did again.

#25

Image source: Dolphin_Princess, Eliézer Fernandes / pexels (not the actual photo)

A Porsche

Because midlife crisis.