Women Forced To Rent ‘Husbands’ As Nation Faces Major Man Shortage: Report

Latvia is facing a drought but not of rain. The small European nation is struggling with a severe shortage of men, a demographic gap so wide that women are now hiring “husbands for an hour” to handle basic household tasks. What sounds like a quirky trend is actually rooted in a real social imbalance that’s reshaping daily life.

According to Eurostat, Latvia has 15.5% more women than men, a difference more than triple the EU average. And the gap only widens with age. Women over 65 outnumber men nearly two to one, as per World Atlas, making the imbalance visible everywhere from offices and festivals to social circles.

Rise of the ' Husband for an Hour ' Services

With fewer men around, practical needs have sparked creative solutions. Platforms like Komanda24 are booming, offering “Men With Golden Hands” who fix plumbing, assemble furniture, repair appliances, mount TVs, and basically handle all the tasks typically done by a household’s handyman, minus the awkward flirting. Another service, Remontdarbi.lv, lets women order a “husband for an hour” who arrives within 60 minutes to paint walls, install curtains, or tackle quick repairs.

Women Seeking Partners Abroad

For many women, these services fill a daily gap. Dania, who works at festivals, told The New York Post that almost everyone in her workplace is a woman. While the atmosphere is friendly, she admits a more balanced gender ratio would make life more dynamic. Her friend Zane added that the scarcity of men pushes many Latvian women to travel abroad to find partners.

Lifestyle Factors Behind the Imbalance

Experts point to lifestyle factors behind the demographic imbalance. Men in Latvia have lower life expectancy, partly due to higher smoking rates and health issues. About 31% of Latvian men smoke, compared with just 10% of women. Men are also slightly more likely to be overweight or obese.

Interestingly, the concept of renting a husband isn’t unique to Latvia. In 2022, a woman in the UK, Laura Young, went viral for renting out her husband James for odd jobs to earn extra income. Their business, Rent My Handy Husband, became so popular that they had to start turning down requests. James charges $44 an hour or $280 for a full day, taking on tasks such as decorating, DIY, tiling, and carpet laying.

Latvia’s situation may be unusual, but it highlights a growing trend: when life gets out of balance, people create new ways to fill the gaps—sometimes, with a “husband for an hour.”