AIBU to wonder how people afford this??

[Eurghhhhhhh]

I've been out tonight with some friends to the nearest major city. We went for some food and a few drinks, very relaxed, just spending time catching up. I've got home and realised that I've spent almost £50! I'm not skint my any means (although not near the Mumsnet 6 figures) but this feels a lot. How do people afford to do this multiple times a week?!

i think £50 is expensive for a catch up, a special night out fine, did your £50 include transport too and from the venue?.
If i go for a catch up i spend around £25, in a local pub, a few glasses of wine or prosecco, and pub grub. Shanks,s pony home.

@5329871e

So...don't go out for 10 years, so you can have £30k a decade later

what's the point of not enjoying life? You might get run over by a bus next week. Good for you if you think that denying yourself an affordable night out is a good way to live. But I'd rather go out and save some. So in your example, go out every other week, and save every other week.

@ClaireEclair

We go out once a month. No children and both work full time. With dinner and cocktails we easily spend £100 each or more. Cocktails in London are the biggest rip off. They are now served in teeny tiny glasses and come with these long descriptions when really it’s just alcoholic fruit juice.

To be fair... cocktails have always been super expensive and tiny.

[quote 00100001]@5329871e

So...don't go out for 10 years, so you can have £30k a decade later

what's the point of not enjoying life? You might get run over by a bus next week. Good for you if you think that denying yourself an affordable night out is a good way to live. But I'd rather go out and save some. So in your example, go out every other week, and save every other week.[/quote]
Yes, alternate weeks sounds reasonable to me. My sums were just an illustration that £50 per pop is not “cheap” in the grand picture.

I also think it’s very pleasant to catch up with friends in the park (we all have kids anyway) or over tea/coffee. I socialise and have fun in settings that don’t involve paying £50 for drinks - usually involves walking, badminton or classical music - which might sound boring to some, but makes me happy enough

If I get drunk I like to do it at home with DH where I feel safe

I agree with you OP that it's expensive to go out these days. Drinks prices are extortionate. In fact I think the price of everything has shot up over recent years but wages haven't kept up. Thinking back to 20 years ago I remember paying a couple of quid for a pint in my local but it's now nearly double that. I was out several times a week when I was younger and only earned £160 a week but it was affordable.

When I was single I easily spent that once a week and then the odd 20 or 30 quid each time on a couple more nights out in the week having drinks or going to the cinema or theatre. Wouldn’t dream of it now I’m married, not only because I have other priorities (mortgage etc) but mainly because I CBA to go out so much! We do have a roast at our local gastro type pub (ie overpriced) once a fortnight which sets us back over £100 every time so I guess we do spend the cash elsewhere..

It simply depends on your disposable income, £50 for me isn’t a big deal but I also don’t do this several times a week either.

I agree with you OP that it's expensive to go out these days

But it isn't! Op had food, several drinks and transport for 50 quid...other posters are saying they have food and drinks for 25 quid, a poster last week was lamenting having to spend 40 quid on getting blind drunk and buying shots for others.....it's not expensive at all.

I don't go out multiple times a week

I think the price of everything has shot up over recent years but wages haven't kept up

Wages have in some areas.

DH earn at least 50% more now than we earned 6 years ago and our jobs/employers haven't changed, this seems to be the norm among friends working in professional roles in London.

I go out at least twice a week (for meals and drinks, then maybe one more night at the cinema/theatre) and can afford it easily.

People earn different amounts of money.
People pay different living costs.

Not rocket science, surely?

People have different incomes. I'm a SAHM but I spend approximately £400 a month on my hobby. I have zero debt, a little savings and would think nothing of spending £50 on an evening out.

Pre-children we would go out for dinner 2-3 times a week, just because we enjoyed it and we could. We also managed to save for a house deposit during that time.

You'd be surprised how many people use credit cards and are in debt for ££££s if not ££,£££s.

People are at different stages in life, earnings / out goings differ and people have different priorities.

Here I have no debt, no children under 18, lowish out goings (1.5k including food) but earn pretty well.

I was saying that “£50 here and there” is not a small amount of money compared to an average salary

£50 here and there is a small amount compared to £4,200 per month, after tax, outside the south east, as I described.

Disagree all you like, though.

£50 sounds reasonable to me for food and drinks. Suppose it depends how many drinks you had though… I wouldn’t say it’s reasonable if you had a main meal and 2 pints for example but it is if you had 5/6 G&Ts and a starter and main.

People are at different stages in life, earnings / out goings differ and people have different priorities.

Also differences in their need for alcohol and also in the way they socialise.

When I was in my 20s with no responsibilities, I would be 'out' (as in 'not in the house' ) practically every night but it didn't mean I'd be 'going up town and downing 5 drinks and a meal out' every night. I used to belong to all sort of things - quite often, we might nip into the pub for a drink afterwards, but not needing to spend the equivalent of £50 each time we left the house. Through volunteering and hobbies I know there are still lots of people who socialise and see friends and enjoy life without it needing to involve spending £££ every time they see each other.

I went out for dinner/drinks probably 2/3 times a week in London in my 20s.

Didn’t generally spend £50 a pop though - maybe more like £15 on food and 2/3 drinks was probably another £15. Sometimes it would be more, sometimes it would only be a couple of pints. Rarely had starters and desserts (sometimes a starter, but almost never both) and no extra transport costs asi had a monthly travelcard.

I spent probably 3-400 a month but I earned a decent salary, saved more than I spent, and didn’t spend money on any other hobbies, that was my whole social life. And my food bill was obviously less than it would have been if I ate in every day (and probably my heating bill too ha)

To whoever it was that asked how I had the energy - it was a lot less effort to eat out than to cook dinner after a day at work!

£50 would be a reasonable night out where I live.

I am on median income but a cheap night out would be:
Pre drinks = £6
2 glasses of wine = £15
Main course = £15
Starter or dessert = £6
Transport = £8

A Big Night Out could cost £100 or more
Transport =

I met a friend in neatest City centre (NW) last night. I would have been thrilled to have paid £50. In reality I spent:-
Train in £5
Meal (starters, mains, shared bottle of wine, couple of drinks) = £120
Rounds averaged £15. Paid for 3 of these = £45
Taxi home £20
So £130. I do think that prices have increased since Covid and that a lot of people, especially my age, now do more entertaining at home. With certain friends I have though logistically it's easier to meet in city centre

I suppose if you hardly go out it seems a lot but really £50 is nothing. The price of drinks is shocking, large wine £7+, large G&T £8.60, it's eye watering. Our local had opened a small cocktail bar upstairs, price- £11.50 per cocktail, taking the piss there, had one- first and last.
After every night out I'm always "how much?!!!"

@Eurghhhhhhh

To those saying it's really cheap: Train -£5 Main and dessert: £20 5 drinks approx £5 each : £50

That is quite cheap for round here, cocktails are more like £11-12 and you'd be lucky to get a glass of wine that wasn't gross for less than £6-7. I'd say that food is average price for a restaurant.

I feel like that's cheap

Sorry not cheap, but not a lot depending where you live. Drinks can be 8 pound here so with food too you wouldn't get much for 50

@HotPinkTeaSet 😂