---
title: "Green flag: Being a cheap date during inflation  - The Hustle"
description: Dating spend is up 40% in the last decade.
image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/399211625-HS-News-Brief_2023-03-06T002906.076Z.webp
---

# Green flag: Being a cheap date during inflation

![Jacob Cohen](https://thehustle.co/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/IMG_5670-1-modified-768x768.png?width=48&height=48&name=IMG_5670-1-modified-768x768.png) [Jacob Cohen](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/jacob-cohen) [Jacob Cohen Twitter profile ](https://twitter.com/ImJacobCohen)

Published:  March 06, 2023

Updated:  October 11, 2023

TikToker Marin Haugo recently embarked on an experiment of love in New York City: 28 dates in 28 days.

![Green flag: Being a cheap date during inflation](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/399211625-HS-News-Brief_2023-03-06T002906.076Z.webp?width=595&height=400&name=399211625-HS-News-Brief_2023-03-06T002906.076Z.webp)

Throughout the run, one man spent [$1k](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-03/dating-in-new-york-tiktok-challenge-shows-rising-costs-of-being-single?sref=3Ac2yX40) across six dates with Haugo. Another spent $600 on their night out.

While the price tags on some of Haugo’s dates are far from the norm, the experiment surfaced a reminder for many:

#### **Dating has gotten really expensive**

Match Group recently estimated US daters are collectively spending [$117.4B](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/singles-in-america-match-releases-largest-study-on-us-single-population-for-12th-year-301678813.html) annually looking for love, or $1.56k/person per year, up 40% in the last decade.

Match, which is [testing](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-17/match-s-hinge-rolls-out-60-subscription-for-motivated-daters?sref=3Ac2yX40) a $500/mo. Tinder plan, has found that today’s singles’ top three worries aren’t looks, first impressions, or rejection, but the economy, their long-term finances, and the effects of inflation.

Another report from LendingTree found [19%](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nearly-20-of-daters-are-dating-less-due-to-inflation-301635994.html) of daters are going on fewer dates because of inflation. That’s understandable:

- The latest inflation [report](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf) showed the price of eating food away from home was up 8.2% YoY, and the cost of drinking alcohol away from home was up 6.9%.

**Another stat:** MassMutual reported that the average American spends [$121k](https://blog.massmutual.com/post/datingeconomics-2022#:~:text=The%20cost%20of%20dating&text=The%20average%20American%20spends%20roughly,per%20month%2C%20the%20survey%20found) on dating throughout their lifetime.

Topics: [Dating](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/tag/dating)

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