Canadians Report High Costs of Relationships

According to recent surveys, the cost of love does not come cheap. In one survey, 61 per cent of Canadians who responded said that they would be celebrating Valentine’s Day. Of those, the average amount people planned to spend while celebrating was $170, with jewellery topping the list of presents people expected to purchase, in terms of dollars spent.

On average, Canadians celebrating this Valentine’s Day anticipate spending these amounts:·       

• Jewelry: $176
• Clothing: $86
• Flowers: $36
• Lingerie: $82
• Chocolate or Candy: $35

According to the survey, by RetailMeNot, people who are in long term relationships may get off a little easier—71 per cent of Canadians responded that they believe the older the relationship, the less people spend on Valentine’s Day. In contrast, almost 70 per cent of Canadians say that the first Valentine’s Day together deserves the biggest celebrations and therefore, the highest spend.

The survey also reported that when dating, Canadians spend an average of $760 on expenses over the course of a year—on clothes and accessories, dining and gifts. Respondents who were single reported the highest spend, as they estimated spending an average of $150 per month on dating adding up to about $1,800 per year.

Given this, it’s not surprising that half of all Canadians (66 per cent), single or not, believe dating can be very expensive and 65 per cent agree it is more expensive than being in a committed relationship.

Factor in wedding costs down the road and the amount gets even higher. According to a recent Cost of Love study from RateSupermarket.ca, the cost of a relationship from the first date right through to the “I do’s” stage is $72,082.57.

The sixth annual study tallied up the average costs anticipated with a one-year dating period, a one-year engagement period and a wedding. Expenses such as fancy dinner dates, casual movie dates, getaways, engagement rings and parties, wedding attire, venues, and of course, the honeymoon were taken into account.

The total figure this year shows an increase of eight per cent from last year’s survey. This growth was mainly impacted by slight surges in the cost of bridal attire as well as rising food costs. The Consumer Price Index (CPI), for example, indicated a 2.5 per cent increase in accessories and jewellery, a 1.7 per cent increase in footwear, and close to a three per cent increase in food prices between 2016 and 2017.