Among Dutch millionaires — people for whom cost is irrelevant — roughly
50% still spent nothing on outsourcing disliked tasks in a typical
month, and that non-outsourcing group reported measurably lower life
satisfaction than those who did, according to Whillans et al.’s PNAS
study. This well-being gap is the closest available proxy for inaction
regret in this domain: roughly half of those who could easily outsource
cleaning choose not to, and the satisfaction data consistently favors
those who do. On the action side, Whillans et al. surveyed 6,271
working adults across four countries and found that those who spent on
time-saving services reported higher life satisfaction; a field experiment
gave 60 adults $40 to spend on a time-saving purchase one weekend and a
material purchase the next, and the time-saving weekend produced 0.77
points more happiness on a 10-point scale. The effect held across income
levels, and subsequent research found that time-saving spending also
improved relationship satisfaction regardless of whether the specific
purchase was practical or indulgent.
The paradox is that almost nobody acts on this. When 98 working adults were
asked how they would spend a $40 windfall, only 2% chose time-saving.
Among 818 Dutch millionaires — people for whom cost is irrelevant — nearly
half spent nothing on outsourcing disliked tasks in a typical month. Trübner
(2024) catalogued the barriers in a German sample of 1,479 couples: guilt
about perceived laziness, gendered expectations that housework is a domestic
duty, privacy concerns about strangers in the home, and discomfort with
anything resembling “servant culture.” These are psychological barriers, not
economic ones, and they track cleanly with Gilovich’s inaction-dominance
pattern: people forgo a well-documented happiness gain, and the status quo
persists because the cost of inaction is diffuse and invisible.
The caveat worth flagging is that this entry measures well-being, not regret.
People who clean their own homes may report lower life satisfaction on
average, but that does not mean they experience regret — some genuinely
prefer the routine, the exercise, or the sense of control. The rates here
are well-being proxies, not direct survey findings, and the 5.6:1 ratio
between inaction and action should be read as a well-being asymmetry rather
than a regret asymmetry in the strict Gilovich sense. The directional finding
is clear: outsourcing time-draining tasks improves well-being for most people
who try it. Whether not doing so constitutes “regret” depends on how much
you trust revealed preferences over stated ones.
Sources: action
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
Spending on time-saving services (cleaning, cooking, errands) increased happiness by 0.77 on a 10-point scale; effect held across income levels
Excerpt
“"Using large, diverse samples from the United States, Canada, Denmark, and The Netherlands (n = 6,271), we show that individuals who spend money on time-saving services report greater life satisfaction. A field experiment provides causal evidence that working adults report greater happiness after spending money on a time-saving purchase than on a material purchase."
”
Source data from
2017-08-08
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Whillans et al. surveyed 6,271 adults across four countries and ran a field experiment with 60 adults spending $40 on time-saving vs material purchases. Time-saving buyers reported 0.77 higher happiness on a 10-point scale. The 9% action-regret rate is inferred as the complement of the ~91% who reported equal or higher satisfaction from time-saving spending — a conservative well-being proxy, since the study measured happiness gains, not regret directly. The study included cleaning, cooking, and errand outsourcing as time-saving categories.
[2]Harvard Business School Working Knowledge — Why Outsourcing Chores Is Good for Your Relationship
Reference source
Couples who spent money to save time reported greater relationship satisfaction regardless of whether the purchase was practical or fun
Excerpt
“"It didn't matter if they bought products or services or if they paid for a practical service like Instacart or a fun treat like gourmet takeout — they still reported greater relationship satisfaction if they spent money to save time."
”
Source data from
2023-05-15
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
HBS research building on Whillans's earlier work. Extends the finding from individual happiness to relationship satisfaction, strengthening the case that outsourcing domestic tasks produces broad well-being gains. The effect was consistent across income levels and purchase types.
Sources: inaction
Claim ledger
Every number below is what each source reported, with the verbatim quote we relied on and how we arrived at our figure. Click any link to verify directly.
Almost half of 818 surveyed Dutch millionaires spent no money on outsourcing disliked tasks in a typical month; non-outsourcers reported lower life satisfaction
Excerpt
“"We surveyed 818 millionaires in The Netherlands and found that almost half reported spending no money on outsourcing disliked tasks in a typical month. Across all samples, individuals who spent money on time-saving services reported greater life satisfaction than those who did not."
”
Source data from
2017-08-08
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
The 50% inaction rate is derived from the finding that ~50% of Dutch millionaires — people with no financial barrier — still did not outsource, and this group reported measurably lower life satisfaction than those who did. This is a well-being proxy, not a direct regret measure. The true regret rate among all non- outsourcers is likely lower since many genuinely prefer cleaning themselves.
[2]International Journal of Consumer Studies / Trübner — Sociocultural barriers to outsourcing housework: Unraveling the non-use of domestic services
Peer-reviewed
Guilt, perceived laziness, and gendered norms are the primary sociocultural barriers preventing households from outsourcing housework even when they can afford it
Excerpt
“"Demand for paid domestic services is low, even for households with sufficient financial resources. Women are significantly more likely to be personal and complete rejectors of outsourcing than men, confirming expectations about gendered attitudes toward outsourcing."
”
Source data from
2024-01-15
Accessed
2026-04-26
Calculation
Trübner (2024) surveyed 1,479 German cohabiting couples who had not used domestic services. Five distinct barrier profiles were identified, with guilt and perceived laziness as dominant factors. This explains why the inaction rate remains high even among affluent households — the barrier is psychological, not financial.
Caveats
WELL-BEING PROXY WARNING: Neither rate is a direct regret measurement. Both are derived from happiness/life-satisfaction data, which is a different construct from regret. The Whillans PNAS study measured life satisfaction and positive affect from time-saving purchases generally (meal delivery, cleaning, errands), not cleaning in isolation. The 9% action rate is inferred as the complement of ~91% who reported equal or higher satisfaction — not a surveyed regret figure. The 50% inaction rate is derived from the Dutch millionaire non-outsourcing finding combined with the well-being gap — it conflates "chose not to outsource" with "experiences lower well-being," which are not identical to regret. No published survey was found that directly asks "do you regret hiring/ not hiring a cleaner?" Many people genuinely prefer doing their own housework and report no regret. The Trübner barriers study is German, not US, and cultural attitudes toward domestic help vary substantially. Self-selection bias is present on both sides: people who hire cleaners may be dispositionally happier, and people who refuse may value self- reliance in ways that offset any well-being cost. The 5.6:1 ratio should be read as a well-being asymmetry, not a regret asymmetry in the strict Gilovich sense. The primary well-being data are drawn from United States and Western European samples; satisfaction and regret rates in countries with different institutional structures — consumer norms, domestic labour costs, and attitudes toward hired help — may differ substantially.
