Figures from the Hargreaves Lansdown Savings & Resilience Barometer for January 2025 show that, in comparison, just 12% of couples have poor financial resilience.
The research found that single people are forced to spend 22% more on essential housing per person than their coupled-up counterparts – despite living in cheaper accommodation. They also spend more per person on fixed costs like food (28%) and communications (32%).
These findings come after analysis last week that found that people living alone typically spend £3,844 per year more than couples on household expenses.
Higher fixed costs
A major contributor to single people’s financial woes is not having anyone with whom to split household bills – meaning singletons have to cover their costs alone.
The Hargreaves Lansdown Savings & Resilience Barometer found that the essential costs of putting a roof over their heads (rent, mortgage, council tax and fuel) see single people spend an average of £7,974 per year, but it costs couples just £6,215 per person (£12,430 combined). So singles are spending £1,759 more each year.
How life insurance can benefit your health and wellbeing over the decades
Sponsored by Post Office
Communication, including broadband and landlines as well as mobiles, hits single people harder, because in many cases they need the same products as a couple, but shoulder the cost alone.
The barometer calculated that singles spend an average of £828 per year on communications, whereas couples spend £628 per person.
Food costs single people £574 more per year, due to not being able to bulk buy or get through family packs before the food expires. According to Hargreaves Lansdown, a single person spends £2,606 per year on food, while a couple spends £2,032 per person. Singles also spend £95 per year more on alcohol and tobacco, typically spending £447 annually, while couples spend £352 per person.
Reduced earnings
Hargreaves Lansdown also found that singletons typically earn less than people who live as a couple. The average single person living on their own earns £23,708 per year after tax, while a couple earns a combined average of £55,117.
Higher costs and lower earnings mean single people are forced to cut back on all the nicer things in life. According to the research, they spend an average of £689 on clothes, while couples spend £789 per person.
Singletons spend £1,676 on recreation and culture – which includes everything from going out and socialising to staying in and watching Netflix – while their coupled-up counterparts can afford to spend £1,897 each.
They also spend less on eating out and UK hotel stays – at £1,280 compared to £1,614 each for couples – despite the single supplement on hotel rooms.
Less financial resilience
Hargreaves Lansdown found that the average single person living on their own typically has £42 left at the end of the month after normal expenses – a fraction of the £383 a couple has left over. Single people are also more likely to be worried about their debt position – with 17% having concerns, compared to 7% of couples.
With money so tight, it means single people have less to put aside in savings. Financial advisers recommend you have cash to cover 3-6 months’ worth of essential spending in an easy-access account. Almost half (46%) of singles fall short, compared to just 16% of couples.
Singles are also less likely to be on track when it comes to homeownership (18% compared to 43%). Living alone takes a toll over the long term too, with less than a third (31%) on track with their pension savings, compared to almost half (44%) of couples.
The ‘singles tax’
Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The singles tax cuts deep. Despite making less per person than their coupled-up counterparts, they end up spending far more on the essentials, so they have to give up on an awful lot of the fun things in life to make ends meet.
“Even then, it’s not enough, so they’re struggling with everything from debt to saving, buying a home, and pensions. It’s no wonder they’re more than four times as likely to suffer from poor financial resilience.”
