Brand new relationships will cost you £245 a month more than settling down

15 May 2019, 15:27

By Mared Parry

@maredparry

The "honeymoon phase" of a new relationship can actually be pretty pricey

Research has found that dating someone new can cost as much as £370 a month because of expenses such as eating out at restaurants and surprise gifts, a stark contrast from a settled down couple's spending.

What's even worse, the average honeymoon phase lasts around eight months which has the possibility to set you back almost £3,000.

The number of dates reduce from two to three a week to once or twice a month once a couple is settled down.

The team behind codes.co.uk ran a study into the cost of dating someone new versus the cost of being settled down in a long-term relationship, finding that Britons spend £245 a month more during the honeymoon phase than they do when they settle down.

More than 2,000 people were polled, all of whom had been in the same relationship for at least three years.

When initially asked how long the honeymoon phase (described as the initial period in a new relationship when everything is lovely and exciting) had lasted in their relationship, the average response was revealed as eight months, but three fifths (62%) admitted that they much preferred the settled phase that came after.

Asked what they liked about the honeymoon phase with their current other half, the favourite aspects were found to be ‘going out and visiting new places’ (36%), ‘eating and drinking out regularly’ (35%) and ‘getting to know each other’ (28%).

The average monthly spend during the honeymoon phase was found to be £370, with the biggest monthly costs found to be ‘eating and drinking out’ (45%), ‘surprise gifts for the other person’ (25%) and ‘days out’ (19%).

With the average honeymoon phase lasting eight months, the cost of the new relationship amounts to £2,960.

In comparison, the average monthly spend on the relationship (outside of the normal rent and bills – e.g. dates, days outs, gifts, etc.) was found to be £125 for those settled down, after the honeymoon phase.

The biggest relationship costs each month for those settled down were revealed to be ‘takeaways’ (67%) and ‘eating and drinking out’ (20%).

Surprise gifts were revealed to be far less commonplace in this phase, with only 3% claiming to spend money on this.

It was found that those in the honeymoon phase typically go out two to three times a week together, whilst those in a settled relationships go out together just once or a twice a month, preferring to have nights in (58%).

What’s more, Britons in the honeymoon phase were revealed to purchase their new partner at least one surprise gift each month, whilst those settled were likely to go as long as nine months without purchasing any gifts for their other half at all.

The average spend per gift during the honeymoon phase was uncovered as £45; significantly higher than the £6 per gift price tag during the settled phase.

Dilusha Hettiralalage, Consumer Savings Expert at codes.co.uk, commented on the findings: “We understandably make more of an effort when we’re dating someone new, as we want to show them our best qualities, make them feel special and as though we’re definitely the right person for them.

"In order to impress, money ends up being spent".