You could be forgiven for thinking that being in a relationship is easier on the pocket than being single. The attached among us, you might think, spend less time and money scouting for new love interest out on the town. Co-habiting couples are able to split mortgage or rent costs. And married couples have various means of mitigating all sorts of taxes, including inheritance tax, levied at a penal 40 percent.

A new survey, however, has dispelled the “young, free and skint” myth. Single Britons get the better end of the deal when it comes to forking out for all sorts of living costs and are financially better off than those in a relationship to the tune of a total 3.7 billion pounds, according to personal finance Web site Fool.co.uk. The average single person has 255.42 pounds per month more than their coupled counterparts.

So, how do the figures break down? The footloose and fancy free among us spend 281 pounds per month on rent and bills, compared with the 500 pounds paid out by someone in a relationship. Nights on the town put a 47.80 pound dent in the pockets of those in a relationship every month, more than the 40 pounds spent by singletons. The average singleton spends 22.85 pounds per month on dining with friends, compared to 39.50 pounds for those in a relationship. Single people typically spend 12.06 pounds on take-aways and DVD nights in — almost half the 20.63 pounds forked out by those with a special someone. They spend less, too, on new clothes and their looks in general.

The figures, particularly for Londoners — home to one of the highest concentrations of couples in the country — might seem ludicrously low. But the findings, from a random sample of 1,050 adults aged 18-plus conducted online earlier this month, bring some comfort to those searching for “the one”: singledom might not be easy on the heart, but it seems to be on the wallet. As for those happily attached, they might spend more, but at least they have someone to share the pain as the bills start rolling in and coffers run dry.