Dating is getting too expensive for young Kansas Citians
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Rising costs are changing dating for more than eight in 10 Gen Z and millennial daters, per new data from Zelle, and KC is no cheap date.
The big picture: Young Americans are pushing off milestones under cost pressures, and the milestones themselves — from getting hitched to buying a home — are getting pricier once they get there.
Driving the news: For younger Americans, just planning a date is a costly ordeal, with 17% of active Gen Z and millennial daters saying they've gone into debt trying to maintain the dating lifestyle.
- Nearly a third say they've gone on fewer dates amid rising costs. A smaller share, 11%, say they've stopped dating because they couldn't afford it.
Zoom in: A basic KC night out — dinner for two with wine, a movie, two drinks and a ride home — runs around $190, per a MoneyLion analysis that ranks the city 33rd of the 50 largest in the country.
- Nearly half of that is dinner, around $87 before tip, and the cab home adds another $40.
- That's a real dent for young Kansas Citians. Households headed by someone under 25 earn a median of around $40,800 a year, or about $3,400 a month, so one night out is close to 6% of that. Two dates a month is nearly a third of the city's median rent.
- However, Midwesterners say they're only willing to spend an average of $118.50 on a first date, per a Talker Research survey last year.
💭 Abbey's thought bubble: Cocktails and apps were always my first-date move. An hour-plus dinner locks you in, and what if I hate them? That probably made me a cheaper date, but I'd have to ask my partner.
The intrigue: Half of active daters say financial compatibility has at some point mattered more than romantic chemistry when deciding to keep seeing someone.
- Men are more likely to say so than women (56% versus 45%), as are Gen Zers (53%) than millennials (46%).
- But talking about money too much kills the mood. Complaining about every price or chatting too much about income would each give 47% of daters the "ick."
What's too much to spend on a first date in KC? Email [email protected] and we'll share the best answers.