Having spent much of my life traveling extensively and living abroad in many countries, I found it odd the claim that living alone is not as common in the US as it is in Europe. I actually had to go check the statistics for various European countries. The claim about Germany and Northern Europe were not surprising in relation to my own experience and the stats confirmed that. But the EU average is about 16% with France is around 18%, Poland at about 9%, while the US hovers around 27-29% and has been increasing each decade. Actually, foreigners are often quite surprised to find out how common it is for Americans to live alone and that Americans go out a lot and have so many choices and opportunities for things to do, although in the past decade inflation has dictated that more people work more and have less time and money to spend on leisure. The other thing to keep in mind that Northern Europe tends to have the higher rates of living alone and countries in the south tend to have lower rates partly based on religion and family structural traditions. Many people died in the pandemic, particularly the elderly, which left a lot more one person elderly households in the UK and Northern European counties, while in the southern countries, it's not common for elderly family members to live on their own and often live with family. It's actually a confusing time for population stats due to the pandemic and financial and economic upheaval on the back of various crises, but the US is and has been around the top of the middle pack of countries in terms of living alone. What's more is whether we live alone or not, we Americans and our households tend to occupy a lot more space than other households around the world. Americans can be at home [and live an work at home with others or alone] and be far more comfortable for longer lengths of time than people in many other countries.....except American culture is definitely extroverted. Unfortunately, some neighborhoods have lost their communal places such as old greasy spoon diners and coffee shops and barber shops and bunches of benches and inviting town squares where people used to meet other or make new acquaintances. I am grateful that I do live in a very social neighborhood and a vibrant city; I am a natural introvert, but it's common to mistake me for an extrovert. Constructive, friendly social interaction and being a part of community is healthy and rewarding to the individual and the group.