Think marriage is expensive? Singletons spend more than £3 billion a year looking for love

By Sadie Whitelocks
Updated: 08:45 EST, 27 January 2012

Singletons spend more than £3 billion every year looking for love, research suggests.

A study, which investigated the cost of dating, found Brits collectively go on 37 million dates, spending on average £47 each time.

Most splash the cash on entertainment, with a national spend of £1.3 billion on food and drink.

Singletons spend more than £3 billion every year looking for love

Singletons spend more than £3 billion every year looking for love

While around £1 billion is spent on clothing and cosmetics, as people strive to impress a potential partner with their groomed appearance and sharp sense of style.

Commenting on the findings Karl Gregory, managing director of Match.com, a dating website which commissioned the survey, said: 'Dating is a major contributor to the UK economy and the growth in popularity of online dating has played a massive role in stimulating this.

THE COST OF DATING

INDIVIDUAL SPEND PER YEAR

  • Entertainment, Restaurants and Bars £413.60
  • New clothes £274.22
  • Transport £133.57
  • Hairdressers £103
  • Cosmetics £119.62
  • Gifts £63.36

Total spend per date £46.14

TOTAL SPEND: £1107.44

NATIONAL SPEND PER YEAR

  • Entertainment, Restaurants and Bars £1.3bn
  • New clothes £864m
  • Transport £421m
  • Cosmetics £377m
  • Hairdressers £324m
  • Gifts £199m

TOTAL SPEND:  £3.3bn

'This is the first time dating spend has been analysed by sector and it's impressive to see the huge knock-on benefit to the wider economy - especially at a time when every penny counts.'

The study of 2,000 adults also revealed that £421 million goes on transport, while hairdressers benefit to the tune of £324 as people get their locks trimmed in a bid to look their best.

A spokesperson from the Centre of Economic Business Research, which produced the report said: 'The research shows that dating provides a multi-billion pound windfall for the UK, directly benefiting a range of industries like retail, food & drink and entertainment.

'With over 10,000 dates taking place every day, the dating economy provides some comfort to high street businesses at a time of weak consumer spending.'

The figures came from a poll of 2,000 singletons in Britain's major cities.

Mr Gregory highlighted that online dating is now the third most popular way to find a partner, just behind bars and clubs and meeting through friends.

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