People are facing a cost-of-loving crisis as the price of a date night has soared in the last year. A good night out with a potential partner - including a new outfit, transport, meal, drinks and a visit to the cinema will cost around £295 per couple this January, compared to £268 this time last year, according to research by household finances app Nous.co.
Nous’ research found that almost two in five are concerned about how the cost increases will affect their love life and one in three have already noticed the cost of dating going up. And 72% of people say they have found that the cost of taking a date out for a meal has soared.
How much has a date increased?
Meal – If a nice meal for two costs £90 and given meal prices went up around 6.6% in the last year, you would be paying nearly £6 more now for the same food and drink.
Drinks – Four beers each for you and a date after the meal has risen from £31.68 to £34.
Taxi – A 2-mile trip in the capital which could cost around £14.30 could rise another £1.50 if increased tariff proposals are given the green light.
Cinema trip - Cineworld and Picturehouse cinemas increased the average ticket price by more than 40% after screens opened again following Covid-19 restrictions. Cineworld now charges between £10.30 and £13 for an adult ticket after 5pm meaning prices have gone up more than £4.50.
Condoms - A pack of 12 has gone from £9.99 in January 2022 to £13.99 in a year.
Clothes – If you wanted a new outfit for the date too including new shoes, jeans, a shirt and a coat costing say £123. In July 2022, fashion items at Next climbed 6.5% so you would be paying nearly £8 more than previously.
Josh Graves, 21, said: "It's becoming harder and harder to afford to go out on a proper date. The price of a meal out seems almost to have doubled over the past 18 months. When you factor in the costs of drinks, maybe the cinema, and then an Uber home, it's not hard to blow £200 in a night. I'm sure that last year it was more like £150."
Single Josh, a researcher, added: "It's not just the nights out. I don't have a steady partner so I'm on Tinder and even the cost of that has gone up. It feels like that as well as soaring bills for everything else, I'm now being priced out of finding love."
Consumer champion Greg Marsh, founder and CEO of Nous.co, said: “People in Britain are feeling the pinch of the cost-of-living crisis in most areas of life and the cost of dating is no different. Fortunately falling in love is less about how much you spend and more about how much you share. So perhaps the cost-of-living crisis can be a good opportunity to find love after all.”
