Nearly half of the young find social time too expensive

The Sun -  More young people are saying that the cost of their friendships is putting too much strain on their wallets.  A new survey has found that nearly half of young people have been forced to cut back on social time because of how much it costs.

The greater cost of living is now said to be affecting young people's friendships. A new survey commissioned by Ally Bank shows that 44% of Gen Z and Millennials have skipped a social event to save money.

At the same time, more than half, or 59%, said that their financial goals are impacted by their desire to hang out with friends.  Despite this, only 18% said they budget for activities with friends.

Younger generations are still fighting to see their friends, but data shows that the fear of financial consequences is persistent.

This has caused severe anxiety among Gen-Z and millennials, internally and externally.

One in five people asked say that differences in financial lifestyle compared to their friends have contributed to a falling out.

And nearly a quarter (24%) say that they felt anxious about their financial situation and how it is different to friends..

Roughly one in four believe tariffs and inflation have made the problem worse.

To break this down, there is a notable difference in how financial worry affects different genders.

For example, women are said to feel the burden of expensive friendships more when compared to men. Out of those asked, 30% of women say social budgeting makes building up savings difficult, versus 22% of men.