When you’re in a relationship, it’s almost certain you’ll get this question in one form or another, whether it’s from your parents, siblings, friends, or even co-workers.
For many, the answer is a dating site or app.
Nearly a quarter of people have used or are currently using online dating services. For young and middle aged adults (18-44 years old), this number increases to a third.
Given the widespread adoption of dating sites and apps, we wanted to learn how people feel about them. To get answers, we asked more than 4,000 adults—out of the more than 3 million people who take surveys on SurveyMonkey every day—about their perception and use of these services.
Don’t worry if your knowledge of some dating sites and apps "dates you." Hopefully, some of our points still resonate.
Different generations have different views on their purpose
Online dating services aim to help you meet someone. But “meet” carries different interpretations across demographics.
More than half of young adults (18-24 years old) see dating sites and apps as platforms for casual hookups. Older adults are more likely to see them as a means to helping them develop short and long-term relationships.
These different perspectives are reflected in the popularity of the dating services people choose to use:
- 75% of young adults (18-24 years old) use Tinder, an app known for hookups. Bumble, a dating app that gives women sole power of initiating conversations, is at a distant second (31%)
[/*]- Adults between 25-34 years old begin to transition to Match.com (36%)—the top dating site for creating serious, long-term relationships
[/*]- 58% of older adults (45-54 years old) embrace Match.com, more than doubling the percent who use Tinder
[/*]
So dating sites are popular. But does that mean people like them?