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Gen Z is increasingly choosing not to date because of the high cost of going out.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to a national research project<\/a> from Brigham Young University\u2019s Wheatley Institute and the Institute for Family Studies, more than half of single young adults ages 22 to 35 cite financial struggles as their biggest obstacle to dating.\u00a0<\/p>\n The survey, released earlier this year, found that only about 30% of young adults are dating at all, and just 31% say they date at least once a month. Nearly three-quarters of young women (74%) and almost two-thirds of young men (64%) reported they hadn\u2019t dated or had dated only a few times in the past year.<\/p>\n For a generation just starting out, financial reality can interfere with plans to meet people and connect. Dating feels almost impossible when confronted with a lackluster job market and rising costs of living, according to a recent New York Times<\/em><\/a> report.\u00a0<\/p>\n In cities like New York, that pressure intensifies. A high cost of living can cause an expensive dinner date to break the bank. A survey from BMO Financial Group<\/a> found that Gen Z spends more than $200 on an average date night, including the cost of transportation and getting ready.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gen Z has expressed interest in relationships but is disillusioned with the current expensive dating landscape.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI definitely do want to get married and have kids,\u201d Grace Sakellariou, 27, a single woman who lives in Astoria, New York, told the Times<\/em>. \u201cBut that just feels so unattainable. I can\u2019t even think about affording a wedding.\u201d<\/p>\n She added that it was \u201cdiscouraging\u201d to encounter men who asked to split the bill on early dates. \u201cI think it\u2019s stunted our growth that everything\u2019s so expensive,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Josh Timmins, a 25-year-old who intends to go to law school next year, is choosing not to date because of the high price of going out. He characterized dating apps as a \u201cbit soulless.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s hard to find actual connection,\u201d he told the Times<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to the Times<\/em>, Gen Z increasingly faces a problem: They need a partner to survive the economy, but they can\u2019t afford the cost of finding one.\u00a0<\/p>\n In Manhattan, the priciest New York City borough, sharing a one-bedroom with a partner can cut rent by more than $25,000 a year. It\u2019s the biggest savings gap in the country, according to StreetEasy\u2019s 2025 analysis<\/a> of median asking rents.<\/p>\n When couples split the rent check, it gets easier for them to pay down student loans and save up for a down payment. They can also take a chance on a big career move, like switching jobs, starting a business or going back to school.\u00a0<\/p>\n Benjamin Goldman<\/a>, a labor and public economist at Cornell University, posed the following question to the Times<\/em>: Could the drop in dating and marriage be part of why so many people in their 20s and 30s feel so economically stuck in New York and other big cities? \u201cIt\u2019s one piece of this that\u2019s been under-discussed,\u201d he told the outlet.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Gen Z is increasingly choosing not to date because of the high cost of going out.\u00a0<\/p>\nGen Z isn\u2019t willing to pay the price<\/h2>\n
Couples can save on rent<\/h2>\n
Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n
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