Cost of Full Time RV Living

There are full timers that spend $5k+ per month and others that live on $200-300. We fall somewhere in the middle of this wide range when it comes to the cost of full time RV living. But why is there such a range and why is it so hard to find the answer to how much it costs to live in an RV full time?

Just like living in a home, people’s spending habits vary when it comes to RV life. Some people stay at RV resorts that have monthly fees higher than most mortgage payments and others live off-grid on free public lands by boondocking.

When it comes down to the typical pre-retirement full time RVer, they’re choosing this life to live simply and save money, making it a cost-effective lifestyle. 

How much does it cost to live in an RV full time?

We rarely spend more than $1,500 per month for everything we need for full time RV life. While each person’s budget does vary, here’s breakdown of our fixed expenses to give you a good example of the cost of full time RV living:

Monthly Expense	RV Life	Traditional Home
Mortgage/Campground Fees	$60	$1,700
HOA	$0	$285
Utilities (water, propane, electric)	$50	$200
Cable/Internet	$0	$130
Cell Phones	$285	$160
Eating out/Delivery	$50	$200
Groceries + Alcohol	$500	$500
Health Insurance	$180	$0
Gas	$480	$360
Car Payments	$0	$500
Car Insurance	$40	$86
Routine Maintenance on Vehicles	$130	$120
Total	$1,765	$4221

Keep in mind that the home costs listed here don’t include variable expenses like events, online shopping, nights out, and every other way we entertained ourselves pre-full time life on the road. When you’re out in nature, all those things tend to become less and less important (with the exception of live music for us).

Once you become a full time RVer, you become more intentional with your spending. Extra income goes towards savings, improving your RV, or making your experiences in the outdoors even better. Yes, you will have a breakdown at some point but you’ll be prepared for that financially thanks to your intentional spending habits.

Can you save money living in an RV full-time?

Absolutely, yes! Our fixed expenses after rental income are $1,365/month compared to $4,221/month in a traditional home. 

While each person’s situation and budget is different (something we go into in detail during our 8-week program), our cost breakdown is a good example of the fixed expenses you’ll have during life on the road.

So why do you get different answers when people ask if it’s cheaper to live in an RV vs. in a home? A lot of it depends on where you’re starting your RV journey.

Where we launched out of Scottsdale, it would be close to impossible for our total monthly expenses to be under $2,000 when you consider housing and food alone. If you’re coming from somewhere like Mississippi with the lowest cost of living in the US, $1,300/month might exceed your current monthly costs. 

The biggest variables when it comes to the cost of full time RV living are:

• Location (factors into cost of gas and accessibility to public lands)
• Where you rest your head (RV resort, campground, boondocking)
• Healthcare
• Vehicle payments (on your RV or RV + truck or even RV + truck + TOAD)

Full time RVing gave us the financial freedom we’d been trying to capture for a while now. Our costs of living plummeted overnight, allowing us to do work that we actually enjoy without chasing higher wages and climbing the corporate ladder.

We know you can do it too! If you’re ready to take the leap to RV life but remote income or the cost of full time RV living is holding you back, we’d love to connect with you to see how we can help!

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