How much is stress actually costing you?

How the math works

Three categories with research-backed cost factors:

• Healthcare costs: chronic high-stress workers spend ~50% more on healthcare than low-stress (American Psychological Association data). Adds $2K-$5K/year for typical US adult.
• Productivity loss: 8-12% reduction in cognitive performance under chronic stress (multiple studies). On a $80K salary that's $6K-$10K/year of lost capacity (whether captured by your employer or wasted on rework).
• Sick days + presenteeism: 5-10 extra sick days/year + reduced effectiveness on the days worked. Conservative estimate: $1K-$3K/year.

Lifespan impact: Yale long-term study found chronic stress reduces lifespan by 1-3 years on average for people in the heavy-stress category. The calculator translates this into "expected life-years lost" without monetizing it (different framework).

Why this matters: people accept high-stress jobs for $10-30K of additional salary. The financial cost of the stress often exceeds that. The non-financial cost (relationships, health, joy) usually dwarfs both.

Math runs locally. Inputs never leave your browser. Not medical advice.

Real-world scenarios

• $5K-$15K/year is what chronic stress actually costs (in dollars alone) — breakdown across healthcare, productivity, sick days, plus the lifespan gap that doesn't fit the dollar framing.