In fact, dating has gotten so expensive that a growing share of Gen Z and millennials are deciding that the cheapest (and calmest) option is to have no partner at all. They call this practice “solo maxxing,” which reframes single life less as a sad holding pattern between relationships and more of a deliberate lifestyle. (Maxxing comes from social media and internet slang for maximizing an action). They argue it’s cheaper, more predictable, and emotionally lower-risk.

The average “all-in” cost of a date in the U.S., including dinner, drinks, transportation, and pre-date grooming, has climbed to $189, up 12.5% from $168 a year earlier, according to Bank of Montreal’s 2026 Real Financial Progress Index report published in February. 

But Gen Z reports spending $205 a date, up from $194 in 2025, while millennials now drop $252 per outing, a 32% jump. Half of Gen Z respondents and 40% of millennials said the cost of dating is getting in the way of their financial goals. That’s, in part, due to restaurant prices rising: Average menu prices rose 31% between February 2020 and April 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s due to inflation straining restaurant operations, according to the National Restaurant Association.

So for a lot of young singles, the relationship math just isn’t mathing, so it can seemingly be more rational, in some cases, to exit the dating pool altogether. How this plays out in practice is actively choosing solo activities, avoiding going on dates, or getting off of dating apps. Even dating app executives have admitted Gen Z can be tough customers.

Traditional dating apps are “highly structured and can be intimidating to a user under 30,” Match Group CEO Spencer Rascoff said during the company’s most recent earnings call earlier this month, and Tinder’s monthly active users in March were down 7% compared to the same period last year. To be sure, many dating apps are going all-in on investing in solutions for younger generations, but it may take time to show real-world improvement.

It also shows in national statistics about relationship status. According to January 2025 data from Pew Research Center, 86% of adults 18 to 24, and 42% of 25-to 39-year-olds are single. Other Pew data shows that in 1990, only 29% of adults aged 25-54 were unpartnered, a statistic that jumped to 38% by 2019.

Single, but at peace

A new global survey of 14,380 adults across the U.S., U.K., Latin America, the EU, Australia, and South Africa, conducted by analytics firm MyIQ and provided to Fortune, found that nearly half of adults aged 18 to 34 say being single feels more peaceful than being in a relationship. 

Another 42% said relationships interfere with personal goals, financial stability (after all, dates cost about $200 a pop), or self-development, and 33% said they’re actively avoiding dating to protect their mental well-being.

So finances and emotions have become the main drivers behind solo maxxing. In the same survey, 51% said independence has become more important to them over the past three years. That time frame also aligns with the post-pandemic affordability squeeze.

“I would be cautious about framing it as either a purely philosophical shift or a purely financial one,” Sarah Meyer, managing director at MyIQ, told Fortune. “The affordability squeeze is clearly part of the context, because dating now sits alongside rent pressure, career instability, subscription costs, social expectations, and the general cost of maintaining an active social life.”

But young adults’ apprehension toward dating wasn’t just about money, she said. 

“Many younger adults are no longer treating relationships as proof of stability,” she said. “They are asking whether a relationship adds to their sense of safety, focus, and self-understanding, or whether it introduces instability they have worked hard to avoid.”

What struck Meyer most was how practical and unromantic the survey’s open-ended responses were. One 28-year-old U.S. respondent described relationships as emotionally disruptive after years of dating-related anxiety, and said being alone felt calmer. 

“They sounded like people describing relief, routine, and control,” Meyer said.

Dating app fatigue

Younger generations have also had a love-hate relationship with dating apps during the past several years. While wildly popular during the pandemic and shortly thereafter, they’ve drawn ire from Gen Z and some millennials who say they don’t give the best chances at growing something real. 

And in the MyIQ survey, 46% of respondents said dating apps have made relationships feel more disposable.

Jason Fierstein, a licensed professional counselor and founder of Phoenix Men’s Counseling, sees the same burnout in his practice. 

“During COVID, people got burned out on dating apps swiping through people because they’re just looking at a profile and appearances instead of forming a meaningful connection,” he told Fortune. “People often say, ‘I don’t want to keep swiping on people or going out on unsuccessful dates that go nowhere.’” 

“That’s understandable,” he added, “but the problem is it tends to glorify this independent type of lifestyle.”

The case against solo maxxing

Not everyone is convinced that protecting your peace is the healthy choice it’s marketed as.

Fierstein argues solo maxxing often “tries to reframe or justify an economic constraint as a lifestyle choice,” and warns that opting out of dating can carry other emotional costs. 

“Studies show loneliness and isolation from not having a partner carry as much health risk and concern as long-term smoking,” he said. “This is avoidance dressed up as self-care.”

Jess Carbino, a sociologist with a Ph.D. from UCLA and the former in-house sociologist for Tinder and Bumble, told Fortune that what’s genuinely new isn’t singleness itself but its branding.

“Although partnership has declined over the last 20 years, especially among younger people, what is unique about [solo] maxxing is the intentional or active endorsement of the state of being intentionally single,” she said. “Solo maxxing represents a significant amount of avoidance to conflict and diminishes our ability to learn about ourselves and others.”

Marisa Ronquillo, a licensed marriage and family therapist and founder of Insightful Roots Therapy, lands in the middle.

“Sometimes ‘I’m protecting my peace’ is empowerment,” she told Fortune. “Sometimes it’s protective armor after burnout, betrayal, or chronic relational stress. Often it’s a mix of both.”

She found the survey’s language about relationships creating “instability” especially revealing: “That speaks to a generation that watched many adults around them struggle emotionally, financially, and relationally while also being told romantic partnership was the ultimate marker of success.”

Dating apps are adapting

Some dating companies are seemingly one step ahead of the solo maxxing trend and are figuring out some solutions to help younger generations who feel emotionally or financially unstable, or both.

BLK, the Match Group-owned app for Black singles, this week launched the third installment of its Break the Bank campaign to help navigate the costs of dating. The dating app is awarding $500 gas gift cards to 10 winners to help offset at least some of the costs of going out.

BLK’s own survey found more than 77% of respondents feel financial anxiety about dating, nearly 88% said they’d date more if money weren’t a factor, and the most common spending for a typical date night lands between $100 and $150.

“Dating should not have to compete with the price of a full tank,” Amber Cooper, BLK’s head of brand said in a statement. 

So whether solo maxxing is a savvy financial commitment or isolation masked as self-care, Meyer suspects the dating economy will bend toward whoever makes connection feel less depleting. 

“The real risk is when self-protection turns into permanent withdrawal,” she said, “not because people do not want relationships, but because the process of finding one feels too costly.”