Here’s how much the Emily in Paris lifestyle would really cost to maintain?

• Following the release of the Emily in Paris season five trailer, a new study has revealed whether Emily would realistically be able to afford her lifestyle in 2025.
• Working as a Marketing Executive in Paris would earn Emily a salary of $49,236 (€42,000), which would realistically leave the character in a significant amount of debt based on her extravagant lifestyle expenses.
• The research also analyzed the earnings of other fictional characters who work in the world of marketing and PR, including New Girl’s Schmidt and Chandler Bing from Friends.

This week saw the release of the Emily in Paris season five trailer, which has quickly sent fans into a frenzy.

With episodes due to be released later this month, new research has analyzed how much Emily Cooper’s lavish lifestyle would realistically cost in 2025.

The digital marketing agency Searchbloom analyzed data from Glassdoor to determine how much each fictional character working in the world of marketing, communications, and public relations (PR) would earn in 2025 based on their job title and location.  

The research also obtained data via Numbeo to analyze the cost-of-living rates in 2025 to determine whether each character would realistically be able to afford their fictional lifestyles.  

Emily Cooper, the protagonist of the hit Netflix series Emily in Paris, is revealed to be the lowest-earning character in the study. Working as a Marketing Executive in Paris would earn Emily an annual salary of $49,236 (€42,000).

However, the research shows that this wouldn’t be enough to maintain the character’s expensive lifestyle.

Emily’s iconic Paris apartment would realistically cost around $33,127.84 annually to rent.

Utilities are another essential yet pricey expense, and Emily’s bills would add up to $2,372.40 a year.

The character is also frequently seen dining out at restaurants across Paris. Going out to eat at least twice a week in the city would add up to a total annual cost of $3,239.28.

Other expenses like regularly getting taxis across the city, going out for cocktails at least twice a week, and grabbing daily cups of coffee would also add up to a high annual cost of $4,471.45.

Emily is often spotted wearing a selection of luxury brands, ranging from Chanel to Hermes. One of her most expensive pieces includes the Vassilis Zoulias yellow printed jacket from season two, which comes with a price tag of $53,987.96.

It’s estimated that Emily’s lavish wardrobe would cost around $76,795.40 per year to upkeep.

Based on these figures, it’s thought that Emily’s Parisian lifestyle would cost over $120,000 to maintain each year, which would realistically leave the character in debt by around $70,764.

Season five’s trailer sees Emily swap the streets of Paris for Rome. Working as a Marketing Executive in the Italian city would earn Emily an even lower annual salary of around $40,284.27 (€34,500), which would make the character’s expensive lifestyle even more difficult to maintain.

Meanwhile, Sylvie Grateau, who is Emily’s boss, is revealed to be one of the highest-earning fictional characters in the world of marketing and PR. During recent episodes of the Netflix series, Sylvie memorably splits from the marketing firm, Savoir, to open up her own rival company. As the owner of a marketing firm in Paris, Sylvie would earn a comfortable salary of around $111,000 (€96,500).  

While Paris’ average cost-of-living rate currently stands at $14,937.16 (€12,692.49), excluding rent, it’s likely that Sylvie could comfortably afford her luxurious Parisian lifestyle. However, renting an apartment in the center of Paris would add up to a staggering fee of $20,926.53 (€17,785.44) each year. Despite this, Sylvie’s success in the marketing industry would leave her with around $78,277.40 spare each year. 

Cody Jensen, the CEO and Founder of Searchbloom, has commented on the study:  
 
“It’s interesting to see how the representation of the marketing and PR industry varies on the screen. Many fan-favorite characters work in the world of marketing and communications, like Chandler from Friends and Schmidt from New Girl. While the world of TV and film certainly offers a dramatized view of the industry, it’s still an exciting incentive for many young people to consider a career in marketing and PR.  

“It’s also interesting to observe how these characters’ real-world salaries would range from a regional perspective, with characters working in New York typically earning the highest salaries in the ranking.  

“The study is also reflective of Los Angeles’ growing influence in the marketing industry. Even in the fictional world, this research is clearly demonstrative of the marketing hotspots across America.”  

New Girl’s Schmidt is another character who would be struggling to make ends meet in the real world. While Schmidt is often shown enjoying the best of the best, particularly when it comes to his high-end wardrobe and expensive beauty regimen, the character would realistically earn a salary of $66,000 as a Junior Marketing Associate in Los Angeles. On top of the city’s average cost-of-living of $16,230.50 and annual rent of around $13,413.49, it’s unlikely that Schmidt would be able to maintain his expensive lifestyle. 

Chandler’s career change to a Junior Marketing Copywriter would earn him a salary of $72,000. However, moving to the New York suburbs at the end of Friends would likely take a toll on the character’s expenses. The average home in the Westchester County area sells for $818,460, making Chandler’s end-of-season lifestyle financially questionable.  

On the other end of the scale, Shiv Roy would be the highest-earning PR professional in 2025. In the hit series Succession, Shiv initially works as a political correspondent in New York, which would earn her a high-flying salary of at least $186,000 each year. When a scandal threatens to emerge against her family’s company, Shiv is responsible for crisis management to mitigate the situation, working to protect the image of Waystar Royco from the press.  

While the cost of living in New York isn’t cheap in 2025, coming in at an average cost of at least $20,650.80 each year without the additional cost of rent, it’s likely that Shiv would be able to afford her extravagant lifestyle thanks to her family’s riches and high-earning salary. However, the character’s luxurious penthouse apartment situated on Broadway would realistically cost around $5.99 million, taking a large chunk out of Shiv’s earnings.  

Mad Men’s iconic protagonist, Don Draper, is identified as the second-richest character in the ranking. As the director of a successful advertising firm in New York, the character would likely earn a salary of at least $147,000 each year by today’s standards. During the 1960s, when the series takes place, Don Draper would have been on an annual salary of around $13,444.08.  

Olivia Pope is identified as the third highest-earning fictional character in the study. In the drama series, Scandal, Olivia Pope is the owner of a crisis management company in Washington D.C. In 2025, this position would have earned the character an annual salary of at least $131,000.  

Other high-earning characters include Succession’s Hugo Baker and Mike McLintock from Veep.

The top 10 highest-earning fictional characters:  

Rank	Character	TV Show/Film	Average Salary in 2025
1	Shiv Roy	Succession	$186,000
2	Don Draper	Mad Men	$147,000
3	Olivia Pope	Scandal	$131,000
=4	Hugo Baker	Succession	$116,000
=4	Mike McLintock	Veep	$116,000
5	Sylvie Grateau	Emily in Paris	$111,623
6	Jerry Maguire	Jerry Maguire	$95,000
=7	Pete Campbell	Mad Men	$90,000
=7	Roger Sterling	Mad Men	$90,000
=8	Shauna Roberts	Entourage	$88,000
=8	Amanda Woodward	Melrose Place	$88,000
9	Nick Marshall	What Women Want	$87,000
10	Alexis Rose	Schitt’s Creek	$86,000

This information was provided by the digital marketing agency, Searchbloom.