When Valentines Love Becomes a Luxury Good: Why Young People Choose to Be Lonely Rather Than Poor

Every Valentine's Day, with sky-high rose prices, we often see couples holding hands on crowded streets, enjoying fine meals at luxury hotels, and going on first dates. But believe it or not, behind this sweet image lies a bitter reality.

When statistics contradict romance, data from the Ministry of Interior clearly shows that in 2024, marriage registrations dropped to about 240,000 couples (down from a previous high of 300,000 per year), while divorces surged to 140,000 couples.

This raises the question: why has love become so difficult today? The answer may not be that young people are indifferent, but that love is now valued as a “Luxury Good” requiring enormous costs to possess.

From “feelings” to “budgets”: when love comes with a price to pay.

In the past, we might have heard that “biting a salt chunk is enough to survive,” but for Gen Z and Millennials, living in an era where living costs rise faster than wages, this saying has become unrealistic. Economic issues have turned love into not just a matter between two people but a question of “cash flow.”

• Real income grows slower than the cost of basil dishes: after adjusting for inflation and urban living expenses, savings barely suffice to “build a family.” Having a partner means sharing rent costs but potentially doubling debt burdens.
• Hidden costs of relationships—dating, traveling, even weddings—are seen as prohibitively expensive “cost burdens.” Many choose to “be ready first,” pushing financial readiness standards ever higher, creating barriers to relationships.
• Child-free is not just a lifestyle but a financial survival strategy: having one child nowadays costs from millions to tens of millions of baht. Choosing to have no children is an economic survival mechanism young people use to maintain their living standards.

“Financial stability” comes before “emotional stability.”

All this leads young people to prioritize saving money over love, while rising divorce rates reflect that “couple life” today is high risk. Financial problems often break relationships first. Data show Thais tend to “fall out of love” more easily, partly due to accumulated economic stress, making living alone a safer option.

• Fear of risk (Risk Aversion): marriage legally binds partners and assets, so separation involves shared burdens and complex property division processes that undermine financial status.
• Changing values of success: the definition of a fulfilled life no longer stops at having a family but includes achieving financial freedom. Young people willingly stay single to focus on income generation because they believe “poverty is scarier than loneliness.”

In a world of growing inequality, we might conclude that “love” is increasingly limited to those financially prepared. This Valentine’s Day may be less sweet than before, reflecting the truth that “the most lasting love is the one grounded in financial stability.”

Sources: Ministry of Interior, finnomena

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