Money can buy happiness!

But only if you spend it wisely. Tips from research on turning Benjamins into bliss.

Spending money on others is extremely rewarding. Pro-social spending - when we buy coffee for a friend, or treat mom to a massage - can make us feel good for weeks. And it doesn’t take much: spending just $5 on someone else is often as powerful as spending $50 on ourselves. What’s more, accepting gifts is a kindness - you, and the giver, both get a neurotransmitter boost. So set aside $10 each week to buy a co-worker a latte, and accept a flower from a stranger.

“My parents and little sister on a vacation in Croatia.”

Buy time, rather than things. You’ll be happier paying someone $100 to clean your home than spending $100 on Amazon. But use that extra time wisely - the to relax, seek out experiences (like a nice bath, a walk in the park, or calling a friend). It’s even better when you make it social: People who spend more time and money at religious gatherings, on sports, or with friends consistently have higher happiness levels.

They waited a while to buy this portrait, but I think you can agree, it paid off.

If you splurge, make it outsized, long-awaited and risky. Our sense of reward is amplified by anticipation - so you’ll enjoy that blouse even more if you buy it a month from now. (And half the pleasure of a vacation comes from the planning.) When rewarding ourselves, bigger is better: when indulging, it feels great to overshoot, because the extra luxury feels disproportionately luxurious. Finally, buying something that feels a bit risky (Will I look good in this new dress? Will the skydiving class be too scary?) heightens our pleasure when we commit to the purchase (and even more so when we prove ourselves right).

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What’s the best thing you spent money on in the past month? Tell us in the comments!