A crisis is unfolding across China as marriage becomes financially impossible for millions of men. The nation’s single population has surpassed 300 million people, roughly equivalent to the entire United States population, with over 250 million choosing to live alone.
Behind these numbers lies a painful reality: young Chinese men are being priced out of relationships entirely.
In rural areas, the situation has reached a breaking point. One young man’s plea to his mother captures the desperation: “They’re asking for a 350,000 yuan bride price, plus a house and a car. I can’t even afford a house, and no girl wants to spend her life with me. Please stop forcing me into blind dates.”
The traditional requirements for marriage have become impossibly expensive. The “three essentials” of gold, a house, and a car represent costs that far exceed what ordinary workers can afford.
In one village in Jiangxi, not a single marriage has occurred in six years, despite men born in the 1980s and 1990s owning cars and houses. A 35-year-old man from rural Jiangxi explained his situation bluntly: “A man who’s 35, hasn’t achieved anything, and comes from a poor family, there’s almost no chance for me anymore.”
The gender imbalance has made matters worse. Among those aged 20 to 45, there are 34 million more men than women. The single rate for men aged 25 to 49 has surged to 28.4%, an increase of 11.2 percentage points compared to a decade ago. The unmarried rate for those aged 25 to 29 has reached 51%.
Economic pressures have transformed marriage from a life milestone into an unattainable luxury. Working men face impossible choices between survival and family.
One delivery driver was recently filmed with his young daughter sleeping on his electric bike while he worked, unable to afford childcare. Another man, after failing to earn enough money, silently packed his bags to leave for Shanghai while his wife expressed disappointment.
In Shanghai’s marriage market, educated women with stable incomes and property struggle to find suitable partners, separated from rural bachelors by an invisible economic and social divide.
The consequences are already visible in demographic data. China’s birth rate has collapsed, with new births expected to reach just 7.92 million in 2025, compared to 17.5 million in 2017. Projections suggest that by 2043, annual mortality could reach 20 million while births drop below 5 million, creating a net population decrease of 15 million per year.
Government efforts to encourage marriage, including fertility subsidies and crackdowns on excessive bride prices, have met resistance.
This crisis around marriage affordability is also creating a parallel industry that feeds on the same anxieties, especially among women. In recent months, Chinese authorities have cracked down on so-called “socialite” training academies, where influencers promised women they could secure wealthy husbands through scripted charm and expensive mentorship packages.
One high-profile case involved Zhou Yuan, who earned millions selling courses designed to make women “irresistible,” only for many students to report that the training didn’t bring financial security or stable relationships, and in some cases even accelerated breakups.
Men are being priced out by bride prices and housing expectations, while women are sold costly “shortcuts” to attract rich partners in an increasingly strained market.
