It's been almost 14 years since the last episode of Friends aired, and we're still finding new things to say about it every day. In fact, since the show has been on Netflix, it's gained a whole new wave of popularity amongst younger generations - meaning the kids of the original fanbase now have as much knowledge of the whole Rachel/Ross drama as their parents.
As our obsession with the show has made a resurgence, though, so too have our questions about it. For instance, how come Rachel and Chandler don't seem to remember one another from when they were younger? What exactly happened to all those minor characters that were never mentioned again? And how exactly did five people with relatively low-paid jobs (excluding Ross, because he actually seems to have his gig together) afford such nice apartments in NYC?
Well, it turns out that the characters might have earned more than we thought, and a recent investigation by giffgaff mobile has generated what they believe to be an accurate representation of exactly how much dough each of the six friends brought home across the years.
After analyzing the jobs that each character had, along with predicting any pay increases or bonuses they might have received, the mobile network came up with a handy infographic which gave a breakdown of their incomes. The amount they each bring in obviously fluctuates a lot over the years, but - based on how much they were earning at the end of season 10 - there's a fair amount of disparity between the friends.
Unsurprisingly, Phoebe came last in the group, as her livelihood was mainly supported by her busking and her job as a masseuse, and giffgaff predicted that she barely ever made more than $20,000 a year.
The next lowest was Chandler, who - despite starting off on the second-highest income - took a massive pay cut in season nine when he decided to quit his job, take on an unpaid internship, and eventually move into the copywriting game.
Ross and Rachel also end up on fairly similar wages, meaning the top spot for the highest earner is between Joey - the loveable idiot - and Monica, who was recently voted the worst character in the series. And here are the results:
Yes, despite spending a good few seasons out of employment, Joey ends up bagging the best income overall - and it's mostly thanks to the large paycheck he received for his feature film role in season seven.
But that wasn't the only thing giffgaff calculated; they also made an infographic to show all the weird and ridiculous items that each character purchased over the decade - including Monica's accidental racecar bed purchase from the Mattress King and Joey's amazing investment in the white porcelain dog.
So, there you have it. Joey earned the most, but he also appears to have had some of the most frivolous purchases - so it sort of balances out in the end.
Now can someone please explain to me how Phoebe got by on $20,000 a year? Seriously, I need to know.
