Single in this North Carolina city? You’re probably going to stay that way, study says
If life were an episode of “The Bachelor,” there’d be no rose for one city in North Carolina.
A dearth of economic, recreational and dating opportunities plunged Winston-Salem to the bottom of the pack in a new study measuring the best and worst places for singles in America.
The city of nearly 250,000 people in the Piedmont of North Carolina lagged far behind its neighbors in the state — pulling up in 175th place out of the 182 cities studied by WalletHub.
Winston-Salem and Greensboro also had among the lowest “singles gender balance” in the country, meaning the number of single men outweighs the number of single women, according to WalletHub spokesperson Diana Polk.
Sorry, men.
But things aren’t much better for all of Beyonce’s Single Ladies.
WalletHub compared metrics of “dating friendliness” when compiling the list — including the average price of a cocktail, the number of fitness centers per capita, the cost of a haircut, weather and the most active Tinder users.
But it’s not all bad: USA Today previously reported the average cost of dinner, drinks and a movie ticket in North Carolina is $98.08, which is evidently tied with Utah for the 19th lowest in the country.
Singles are typically an “economic gain” for cities, experts say.
“Local authorities must work to make cities more attractive because singles flock (to) cities more than couples,” Aditi Paul, an assistant professor at Pace University, told WalletHub. “Cities keep single people company.”
How did the rest of North Carolina fare?
| City | Overall Rank | Fun Fact |
| Winston-Salem | 175 | On average, it’s more pricey to get a haircut in Winston-Salem ($23.85) than Raleigh ($16.93). |
| Greensboro | 131 | Greensboro has one of the highest percentages of singles in the state (58.63 percent), followed closely by Durham (57.51 percent) and Raleigh (57.07 percent). |
| Durham | 105 | The unemployment rate in Durham is the lowest of the six cities at 4 percent, boding well for anyone looking to avoid a deadbeat. |
| Fayetteville | 74 | Fayetteville has one of the highest “singles gender balance” in the country, meaning the number of single men and women are close to evenly matched. |
| Charlotte | 70 | The average cost of a monthly fitness membership in Charlotte is $47.43 — the highest of the six cities listed here. |
| Raleigh | 42 | The overall well-being of residents in Raleigh ties for first in the state with Durham at 63.60 percent. |
This story was originally published November 12, 2019 at 3:15 PM with the headline "Single in this North Carolina city? You’re probably going to stay that way, study says."
