Looking for love – at a cost of £1,000 a year

The average British singleton will willingly fork out over £1,000 a year in search of love – or perhaps lust – according to new research from MoneyExpert.com.

The independent financial comparison website says the average monthly spend on looking for love is a healthy £88.24 a month, or £1,058 a year. That’s the equivalent to 35 pints of lager, seven dates at the cinema or three trips for two on the London Eye every month.

And chivalry is still alive and well as men claim to spend almost £30 more every month than women. The average man on the pull will fork out around £96.58 from his pay packet whereas typically women are only prepared to spend £68.82 each month in search of the perfect partner.

The MoneyExpert.com figures also reveal that London is the most expensive place to entertain your date. Lovebirds in the capital spend an average of £108.30 on dates, compared to an average monthly spend of just £47.82 in Scotland.

But London is also a land of opportunity for some - one in four people living in the capital claim not to have a partner.

Sean Gardner, Chief Executive of MoneyExpert.com, said: “Gone are the days of a bunch of flowers and a trip to the movies. The modern singleton must be prepared to fork out hundreds of pounds to find love as people get ever more extravagant in their expectations – and their spending.

“But when love is in the air it’s understandably difficult to keep track of costs. It might come as a something of a shock to the system if you sit down and identify exactly how much of your income you spend on dates and nights out.”

The MoneyExpert.com research suggests if you’re looking for a champagne lifestyle and romantic trips to Paris then your best bet is someone aged between 35 and 44. People in this age bracket are the biggest spenders, typically digging deep into their wallets to the tune of £105.88 per month. Single over 55s are most frugal, splashing out a meagre £41.33 a month on the quest for love.

Sean Gardner added: “Whether you splash the cash on helicopter rides and city breaks or scrimp and save for a trip to the cinema, the key is to keep your spending under control.

“There’s nothing wrong with spending to impress. But that first impression won’t count for much if you go overboard and can’t come up trumps next time around.”