Average amount of money a person spends in their lifetime

The experience of dating is various and vast, Goldilocksian: Some love it, some hate it, some are in-between. According to a new poll, quite a pretty penny.

Art event planners Paint Nite surveyed 1, married people about the ins and outs of dating in this country circa now, and came away with a clearer picture of the way we date each other — and how many Benjamins we wind up spending before we get married and continue to spend money on dates, presumably — just not with the deep-down someday goal of marrying the person, or the next person, or the next person we're dating.

Charts from the American Time Use Survey

Here's what Paint Nite which, by the way, seems like a fun way to spend an evening found about the amount of money the average American spends on dating before they "settle down" I've always deeply hated that term — we can't be frisky and excitable and vibrant when we're married??

That is a lot of money!

But overall, you might find yourself coughing up a fifth of a hundred thousand dollars just on dating alone in your existence. From start to finish. From first date ever, as a little gap-toothed year-old or whatever, to first date ever as a married couple, the week after you declare, "Till death do us part," or some such vow.

This is Exactly How Much You Will Earn -- and Spend -- In Your Lifetime • Money After Graduation

But, again — this is average. And the trouble with an averaged statistic is that it can be really problematic to compare it to your own life. For example, 44 of the 1, married people said they dated for plus years before marriage. Were they, by chance, New Yorkers?

Actually, I jest, but according to the region breakdown of these figures, 17 of those people were from the Southeast; 10 from the Northeast; nine from the West; six from the Midwest; and just two from the Southwest.

So I was close, though it looks like Southerners have a track record for long dating careers before marriage, which surprises me. In the end, only 92 people dated for five years before marriage and 56 people dated for six years before marriage, much less than the, say, who only had one year of dating before marriage what!?!

Did these people not understand the question they were being asked?! So — who knows. But if you like averages, you'll enjoy that, on average, we date for about five and a half years before getting hitched. This is across the board, though; predictably, when broken down by gender, men spent a lot more than women per date.

It may be , but of survey respondents, 30 percent of women and 52 percent of men think it's best for the man to pay for a date in a heterosexual couple. Yes, 22 percent of women think it should alternate between the man and the woman in a heterosexual couple, and 12 percent of men thought that too, but the staggering consensus was that men should pay.

How much money does the average American spend in their lifetime

Of the 1, respondents, just over half, or people, said they went on between one and five dates per month during their tour de dating, from start to finish. The exact question was, "Before you were married, how many dates did you go on per month with others and with your eventual partner , on average?

But dates are fuuuun! Though most people spent just under a Grant on dates on the regs, some really could be known to go all out: Sounds like some awesome dates.

23 days a year spent on your phone -

I'd like to go on that date! Who are these cheapskates?! Most often, people meet via scheming little matchmaking friends 35 percent , bars and nightclubs 26 percent and online dating sites and apps 22 percent. People also said they meet via social media 13 percent and visiting churches or synagogues 8 percent. Respondents could choose more than one method in their answer, so perhaps some of these people have met some partners at bars and others at churches.

Or some partners online and others at synagogues. That says to me that people are either a utilizing great communication skills; or b by "figure out," they mean "assume," because one of the two people in their relationship always pays when they go out. Another 24 percent say they figure it out when the bill comes, followed by 22 percent who say, "It varies," 9 percent who figure it out "during the date," and, hysterically, 4 percent who "just ignore the bill when it comes.

By the way, FYI, of the 40 people who say they like to "ignore the bill," 35 were women and five were men. Just say hi, with 65 percent reporting that is the way to go.

You could pick more than one option here, so perhaps some of these respondents are down with, say, a kiss and a hello. Or a hi and a handshake. Or a head-nod and a kiss.

The possibilities are endless! Have fun out there, kids. Want more of Bustle's Sex and Relationships coverage? Homepage News Entertainment Beauty Fashion Lifestyle Books Tech Flowcharts. Company About Us Advertise Apps Labs Terms Privacy DMCA Contact. How Much Money The Average American Spends On Dating In A Lifetime. Dates Can Be Mad Pricey.