discretionary income
noun
: income that is left after paying for things that are essential, such as food and housing
She has enough discretionary income to pay for a nice vacation each year.
Examples of discretionary income in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
During Trump's first term, his administration pushed for monthly payments to increase from 10 to 12.5 percent of borrowers' discretionary income and also wanted to merge all IDR plans into one simplified option.
—
Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 13 Dec. 2024
Those plans cap your monthly payments at a percentage of your discretionary income and forgive any of your remaining debt after a certain number of years.
—Annie Nova, CNBC, 1 Dec. 2024
When Jill Kraus and her husband, Peter, started collecting in the early 1980s, the couple had $600 in discretionary income each month and would pay off their early acquisitions in increments.
—Kate Dwyer, ARTnews.com, 8 Oct. 2024
These are viewers that have discretionary income and love to spend it on something that’s going to be a bit of a splurge or a luxury for them, which a lot of our viewers say Acorn is — part of that monthly indulgence.
—Josef Adalian, Vulture, 21 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for discretionary income 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 13 Dec. 2024
Those plans cap your monthly payments at a percentage of your discretionary income and forgive any of your remaining debt after a certain number of years.
—Annie Nova, CNBC, 1 Dec. 2024
When Jill Kraus and her husband, Peter, started collecting in the early 1980s, the couple had $600 in discretionary income each month and would pay off their early acquisitions in increments.
—Kate Dwyer, ARTnews.com, 8 Oct. 2024
These are viewers that have discretionary income and love to spend it on something that’s going to be a bit of a splurge or a luxury for them, which a lot of our viewers say Acorn is — part of that monthly indulgence.
—Josef Adalian, Vulture, 21 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for discretionary income
Dictionary Entries Near discretionary income
discretionary income
Cite this Entry
“Discretionary income.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discretionary%20income. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share