'I'd Rather Regret Not Having Kids Than Regret Having Them': Single, Child-Free Women Are Getting RicherForgoing marriage and kids comes with some additional benefits as well, according to a new report.

The cost of raising children in the U.S. has reachedstaggering heights— leading more people to reconsider that life-altering step.

But the financial payoff is even greater for single, child-free women than it is for their male counterparts, according to new research reported byBloomberg, and it comes with additional benefits as well.

Related:Is Your Marriage to an Entrepreneur Doomed?

Per the research from theFederal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, single women without kids had an average of $65,000 in wealth in 2019 while single, child-free men had an average of $57,000. Single mothers had just $7,000 in reserve.

The general fertility rate in the U.S. was already at a record low before the pandemic began, according to thePew Research Center, and many speculated that Covid-19-induced quarantines would result in a baby boom — but, in fact, it's been more of a baby bust.

Not only does being child-free leave single women with significantly more in their bank accounts, but it also gives them the freedom to livea life of their own design. For some, like 43-year-old Ashley Marrero of New York, that means investing in beachfront properties or traveling the world.

“没有孩子应该w无关ith your happiness," Marrero told Bloomberg. "You can be so happy going this route, too."

Related:Give Working Parents What They Really Want: More Time

Anna Dickenson, 41, who is also child-free and travels with many of the same mutual friends that Marrero does, agrees wholeheartedly.

"I'd rather regret not having kids than regret having them," she told the outlet.