身為單身族，不用花心思取悅另一半，更不用為孩子的吃穿發愁，他們的生活支出應該比已婚（伴侶）族要少。可是，英國最近的一項研究發現，單身族一生的生活支出要比已婚（伴侶）族多出25萬英鎊，而從生活中得到的歡樂卻比已婚（伴侶）族少。該研究顯示，單身族每年承擔的房屋及食物等方面的支出約為1.2萬英鎊，幾乎占到了他們年收入的一半，而那些有伴侶的人們每年在這方面的支出要比單身族少5000英鎊。在生活滿意度方面，有三分之二的已婚（伴侶）族表示兩人一起生活更開心，而單身族中僅有五分之一表示更喜歡一個人生活。該研究指出，隨著物價的不斷上漲，一份薪水已經不足以保證原有的生活質量；在英國想要高質量的生活，一個家庭需要有兩份薪水支持。

Famous singleton Bridget Jones pays out more to maintain her lifestyle.

With no spouse to entertain or children to clothe and feed, those who live alone may think they got off without the most costly responsibilities.

But bachelors and spinsters - or 'freemales' as single women are now often called - might wish to reconsider the price of going it alone.

Those who live by themselves spend ￡250,000 more on basic essentials over a lifetime than those who live with a partner - and they are less happy for it, research suggests.

Almost three in ten households in the UK are formed by a single person and the number is set to rocket to 9.5million in the next ten years.

And with no partner with whom to split the burden of bills, single people spend an average of almost ￡12,000 every year on expenses such as housing costs and food - around half of the ￡23,961 average annual income.

This is almost ￡5,000 more than the amount spent by those living as part of a couple.

And the study of 2,000 adults found that the cost of single life is not just financial - those in couples are happier.

Almost two thirds of those who live with a partner say they are better off as a couple, whereas just one in five single people think they have the better deal.

The findings show it is increasingly difficult to sustain good quality living on a single salary, according to the price comparison service that commissioned the research.

Ann Robinson, director of consumer policy at uSwitch. com, said: 'The huge increase in the number of single-person households is not just a worry in terms of housing stock, it will also have a serious impact on lifestyle and spending.

'Increasingly, we are seeing evidence that to enjoy a good quality of life in Britain, a household needs two incomes.'

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(Agencies)

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen 編輯）