The 'singles tax': People who live alone are paying thousands more on rent than their coupled-up counterparts (2024)

• It costs to be single: Americans living alone are facing a "singles tax" that costs thousands.
• A new Zillow analysis finds, on average, a single American living alone pays around $7,000 more a year in rent compared to their cohabitating peers.
• Meanwhile, couples save tens of thousands living together, further dividing economic prospects.

Ice cream isn't the only thing single Americans will spend more on this Valentine's Day — they're also likely paying thousands of dollars in a "singles tax" on housing.

It's yet another economic data point showing that, while more Americans are opting to fly solo, their wallets are feeling the burden.

A recent Zillow analysis compares how much more single Americans are paying to live alone in a one-bedroom place, compared to couples in the same spots. The results: On average, solo Americans are paying a "singles tax" of almost $7,000 every year.

"To find the singles tax, Zillow calculated the annual amount that one person would pay in rent and divided that number in half, which is the additional amount a single person would pay when they do not split that rent with a partner or a roommate," Emily McDonald, a Zillow spokesperson, told Insider.

It makes sense; couples living together can split the cost that one single American takes on solo. Those savings add up.

"That's a sizable chunk of money and could be a big help in paying off student loans or saving for a down payment," McDonald said. "So this analysis really shows if you are on the fence, maybe you are living alone right now but dating somebody, maybe this is your push to say, hey, maybe this year we ought to think about moving in with one another and start saving for our future."

Couples in different areas with different costs of living will see even greater savings, as singles pay an even greater tax. If you're living solo in New York, expect to pay $19,500 more than a couple for a one-bedroom place, according to Zillow. If you're in Manhattan, make that almost $24,000.

The following table shows the top 10 most expensive cities for singles according to Zillow's analysis on the 50 largest cities in the US and based on which ones had the greatest singles tax.

While New York City ranks at the top among these large cities, three California cities follow behind — San Francisco, San Jose, and San Diego. Those three all have singles tax of above $10,000 per Zillow's analysis on one-bedrooms.

When asked about the three cities at the top of the table, McDonald said that "we do see rents higher than some of the other cities on our list."

"And it is where people are sometimes finding those higher-paying jobs and paying more in rent in general," McDonald added. "So, no doubt about it, it's expensive and very competitive in these markets as well."

A press release from Zillow states that "Detroit and Cleveland have the lowest 'singles tax' at $4,483 and $4,387 respectively" among the 50 largest cities in the country.

"These cities are good options if you're looking to go to a new city, try it out, live alone for a while and maybe even eventually get coupled up and be able to save that money." McDonald said. "So those are two great options for singles."

Additionally, rents are still high and climbing higher. According to unadjusted data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of shelter soared 7.5% year-over-year in December, ashousing prices continue to rise. More specifically, rent of primary residenceincreased 8.3% from December 2021 to December 2022. Add on the fact that solo-living singles are not splitting increasingly pricey essentials like food and utilities, and it's not a pretty picture for the Americans navigating it all alone.

It's no secret that it's costly to be single, even as it's on the rise

According to the Census Bureau, nearly half of American adults are unmarried. An analysis from the Pew Research Center found that around 38% of US adults ages 25 to 34 were not married or living with a partner in 2019 — a big jump from previous years.

For the Americans who are married, economic outcomes are more rosy. Their median net worths are higher, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Partnered adults are more likely to be employed, and to have completed a bachelor's degree, Pew finds. They're less financially vulnerable, and earn more than their unpartnered counterparts.

For instance, partnered women in 2019 made a median of $40,000, compared with $32,000 for unpartnered women; meanwhile, unpartnered men made just $35,600, while their partnered counterparts made $57,000.

Rising costs have only divided single and partnered Americans more. As the Wall Street Journal reported in August, inflation was only widening the economic divide between married and unmarried adults. As always, women are particularly impacted, leaving single women shafted yet again by an economy stacked towards marriage.

Silvia Tergas, a financial planner with Prudential, told Insider the singles tax is also reflected in the actual tax system, which largely benefits married couples who file jointly. Tergas said "some of those discrepancies that unfortunately, or fortunately — depending on how you see it — certainly favor that married filing jointly status or married people, as opposed to single people as a whole."

But it's not all economically bleak for single Americans, according to Tergas.

"You can better control your spending and you don't really have to either consult or worry about what somebody else is doing," Tergas said. "It's really up to you to have full control of how you're spending."