Frugal Dating Etiquette Guide

Setting up and planning a cheap date shouldn’t feel like pulling teeth. While almost anyone would love to go out on a lavish night on the town, not everyone is made of money.

Going out with a cheap date idea in mind may be easy on the wallet and the bank account, but may be a thorny issue surrounding your value as an attractive date when you’re on a tight budget.  During these times, all you have are your resourcefulness and sparkling personality to make your date a success – along with the help of CheapDateIdeas!

The dating game has changed and will continue to change, as will the etiquette. Hopefully these guidelines will help you navigate the tricky waters of the dating game and allow you to have a great time with your date and go easy on your wallet as well.  Keep in mind that these guidelines aren’t set in stone and may vary from one situation to another.

While this is written from the perspective of a man in terms of planning dates, some may apply for women. The rule of thumb here is to choose what works for you and drop what doesn’t.  Dating isn’t a science – it’s an art.

Take initiative

• If you’re going to ask someone out on a date be prepared to TAKE THE LEAD. Oftentimes I’d hear female friends complaining about men who don’t take charge when going out on dates.  There’s a fine line between being considerate and being a total pushover. When you’re asking someone out on a date, it’s pretty much expected that you already know what the two of you will be doing during the time you spend together.

Money Talks

• When taking someone out on a date, go in with the assumption that you’ll be footing the bill or at least a substantial portion of it. You’re the person inviting the person out and they’re your guest – as such you should treat them that way.  However if your date is insisting that they pay for their portion because they’re uncomfortable with it let it slide so you can get past the thorny issue of money and onto enjoying each other’s company.

• Don’t bring up the fact of how cheap your day is going to be or even talk about the contentious issue of money. It’s crass and uncomfortable topic of conversation especially if you’re going on a first date! As thorny as the issue is, save it for later when you’ve gotten to know each other or when you’re married. You’ll have plenty of time to talk about that aspect of your life later on ; )

• NEVER EVER bring coupons on a first date.  I know the urge to save money can be irresistible sometimes, but when you’re on a date.  Don’t.  Just.  Don’t.  While it’s great that you’re taking initiative to save money, being seen as cheap or thrify is not an attractive trait and will definitely put you a few steps backwards rather than neutral. If you’ve dated for a while and both of you are frugally conscious, then it should be okay.  However, having a gift certificate is permissible as it is a cash equivalent and if you got a discount on the gift certificate, your date won’t even know ; )

Have Backup Plans

• Have backup plans in case a plan falls through.  The last thing you’d want is to have the date go down the drain because you put all your eggs in one basket with the night being ‘ruined’ because the original plan did go as scheduled. It only reflects positively upon you when you’ve made backup plans and taking decisive action to have your go off without a hitch.

• If the place you want to take your date is popular, try and make reservations in advance.  You probably want to avoid putting you and your date through is waiting for close to an hour just to get SEATED. Like making backup plans, it shows that you’ve put the effort in to make arrangements beforehand to ensure the date go as smooth and seamless as possible.

Have fun!

• While this may be common sense, the focus should not be on the how great your frugal date idea is, but on getting to know each other and ultimately having fun!

Hopefully you can find some value in these guidelines help you out in planning your next frugal date.

Let me know how your date went with a Cheap Date Idea that you found here (even if it went horribly! ; ) in the comments!

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Link Love:

How to Start a Discussion about Finances with your Significant Other

Common Money Mistakes for Couples

Who Pays? The Delicate Balance of Dating and Money

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