Study reveals Brits find lifelong best friends in their teens, but busy schedules are a challenge for most adult friendships
The typical Brit reportedly meets their best friend at the age of 19, with one in ten maintaining the same close friendship since they were just 10 years old. A study involving 2,000 UK adults discovered that a fifth found lifelong friends between the ages of 11 to 15, making school the ultimate place for building friendships.
Classrooms have given rise to 37% of best-friendships, particularly among Gen-Z and millennials, while work has played matchmaker for 17%. Main factors for securing the bond between best friends were identified as trust, support during difficult times, and a shared sense of humour.
However, staying close doesn’t appear as straightforward as it used to be – a third of those polled think it’s harder to maintain adult friendships as they only manage to meet up with their best friends a few times a year.
Merely 13% manage to meet up with their friend on a weekly basis, and 17% leave it as long as a year in between catch ups.
And it seems busy life schedules are to blame, with 46% believing it’s because people are more unavailable now, so it is harder to find time to connect.
The study also uncovered 13% of adults aged over 65 have more than five best friends, whereas only 6% of Gen Z has the same number. Almost half of adults over 65 said they made their best friends after the age of 35, with one in 20 holding onto relationships from six to 10 years old.
According to the study, food continues to be a key ingredient to great friendships and spending time together, as almost half maintain contact by going out for brunch and breakfast with their friends.
Ice cream tops the list as the ultimate friendship dessert; 27% of Brits say it would be their go-to with their best friend, followed by chocolate cake (20%) and cheesecake (16%).
To put a spotlight on National Best Friends Day, Nutella erected an enormous 3.8m tall by 3.5m wide ice cream tub in Potters Field Park as an invitation for friends to snack together.
Chiming in on the occasion, Gemma Mattison, spokesperson for Ferrero UK & Ireland, creators of the beloved spread, commented: “Best friends are the people we laugh with, lean on, and share life’s little moments with – and that’s something worth celebrating.”