The average American could spend over $20,000 on dating before settling down and getting married.
On average it takes men & women five and a half years of dating before getting married, a new study has found.
And in that time, singles will spend an average of $43.50 on each date, which when totalled up over five years equates to around $20,200 of spending before settling down.
And of the 1,000 people that event planners Paint Nite surveyed, they found that men often spent more on dating, with the highest average amount they had spent on a date standing at $224, compared to $93 for women.
Interestingly, another study recently arrived at a similar total with regards to the expense of single life, with research by ConvergEx finding that singles might spend as much as $23,660.
The company said: “At a conservative estimate of one date per week and a cost of $130 per date — $100 for a meal and drinks at a nice restaurant, plus $30 for two movie tickets and popcorn — the dating phase prior to an offline marriage runs up a $23,660 tab.
“The average dating site customer spends just $239 a year for online memberships, which more than pays for itself to the tune of $12,803 in cost savings from fewer dates.”
The same study even found that online dating is actually more cost effective than traditional ways of finding your significant other.
According to the research, singles could save around $6,400 from using online dating, because couples that meet online generally date for a shorter period of time than couples who meet offline.
Read more about the study here.