Young Americans are 47% less inclined to date — but the reason has nothing to do with 'love'

For a growing number of young Americans, dating is no longer being ruined by bad matches or dating fatigue. It is being squeezed out by the cost of simply staying afloat. As inflation continues to reshape everyday life in the U.S., many young adults are slowly stepping away from romance altogether. According to a report by Newsweek on April 29, 2026, rising living costs are making modern dating feel financially unsustainable, with many singles choosing to pause dating apps and avoid relationships because they simply cannot afford them right now.

Inflation is taking a toll on romance

We've already been hearing about the younger generations swaying away from dating due to other reasons, but as it turns out, the biggest one of them is money. According to data released by the BMO Real Financial Progress Index, almost half of the singles (47%) across the country believe that dating is no longer within their reach. This comes as a result of the average cost of a date in the United States seeing a steep increase from $168 to $189. This is a 12.5% jump in just a short span of time. However, that's not all.

There are several other studies that further provide solid proof that this is actually the case. However, the question is, why does this matter? Well, as Gen Zs and millennials bear the pressure of the global macroeconomics, experts believe that this "dating recession" won't just impact individuals. On the contrary, it could change how society interacts with itself and even "depress future marriage rates." This completely makes sense, given that the more people date and interact, the less chance they will have of finding their partner. 

Less dating means more problems

This decrease in dating won't just affect marriage rates but will also increase loneliness, depression, and even affect health and birth rates across the United States. "When people date less, the social effects are fairly direct: more loneliness, and the health impacts that tend to follow from it. The economic picture takes longer to play out but is no less significant," Sean Murphy, VP of Digital Marketing at JG Wentworth, told Newsweek. "Fewer relationships forming means fewer households being set up, less spending, and, over time, pressure on birth rates."

Why can't people date?

Nonetheless, what's interesting is that the majority of the people aged 18 to 34 do want to get into a romantic relationship, with nearly 53% of men and 68% of women confirming the same out of the 8,000 participants who spread across the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Canada. However, in contrast, almost 91% of men and 94% of women also confirmed that today's dating scene is worse than ever before, as per Forbes. Of course, amongst the biggest reasons for them thinking so was the fact that dating has become too expensive, especially for younger people who are just starting.

That's why in the comment section of a video recently uploaded by CNBC regarding why dating has become so expensive, people vented out their frustrations. @demetris101 wrote, "You know dating is cooked when they mention Wall Street and dating in the same sentence." Meanwhile, @chibacat1234 drew a parallel between dating and friendship as he/she commented, "Same with friendships. I don't have the finances to go out to dinner with friends to maintain or build new friendships."

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