Friends/NBCA new study from Barclays has revealed that the average Brit spends a humongous £150,000 on socialising throughout their lifetime.
In an eye-watering set of statistics – which are enough to make your wallet clam up – your average British adult will spend £27, 500 on taxis for the purpose of socialising.
£4,000 will go on friends’ parties, with a steep £7,000 being spent on birthday and Christmas prezzies for your bezzies, averaging around £17.94 per gift.
77 per cent of the 2,000 people interviewed had been away on their jollies with pals, spending up to £555 each time. Each person has on average ticked off six mates holidays…
We Brits also put a lot of time into maintaining our friendships, with the average UK person attending a staggering 3,239 social engagements throughout their adulthood.
This will encompass 159 birthday parties, 1,975 nights out 1,105 work get-togethers.
Just think of all those hangovers added together…
Wikimedia CommonsAccording to savings and investments director at Barclays, Clare Francis:
There is a tendency among Brits to spend a lot of money when they go out with friends, but it’s not always necessary.
There are lots of ways to spend quality time with friends without breaking the bank – why not spend an afternoon in the park – or take a trip to a free museum or an art gallery?
To learn more about the true cost of friendship, check out the following video:
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None of us should feel under pressure to spend more than we can afford on a night out and we all need to be keeping an eye on our finances.
True friends won’t pressure you to splash out at that new fancy restaurant if you are watching the purse strings.
However, lets face it, making memories with your closest friends is still a pretty important way of spending some of your hard earned dosh so don’t feel too guilty about the occasional weekend splurge …
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.