that putting the thermostat up higher will heat the house up quicker

If you have a 2 stage furnace, this may actually be a thing.

Actually it’s by design! Right side is for the lower ports, that’s why there’s the number with an arrow above it.

To build on your comment: cost of living has a surprisingly fixed price. Different qualities of living don’t cost massively different. If the average person has to spend their whole earnings on living an “average life”, if you make 2x and want to live twice as nice of a life, it likely only cost 1.5x the “average life”. Earning 2-3x opens up a lot of luxury even though it may not seem like it.

If you have HVAC, make sure the filter is replaced regularly and try running a higher MERV filter.