Online dating: half of users found a committed relationship – but women are wary
According to a survey, 37% of US adults have looked for a partner online. But more than half of women consider the first in-person meeting unsafe.
Symbolic image · Photo: Alice Donovan Rouse (@alicekat) / Wikimedia Commons, CC0 (cropped and resized)
Online dating has long been part of everyday life for many people, and it often leads to more than a flirt. According to a survey of 2,012 adults by US research firm SSRS (conducted in January 2026 and published in February), 37% of adults in the United States have used a dating site or app at some point, and 6% currently do. Among 18- to 49-year-olds, it is about half (51% of 18- to 29-year-olds and 53% of 30- to 49-year-olds); among those over 50, 20%. Half of everyone who has tried it has been in a committed relationship with someone they met online.
Most are looking for commitment: 58% of users said their main reason was to find an exclusive partner. According to SSRS, shared family values matter most when choosing a partner (51% "very important"); only 9% consider it very important that the other person earns as much as they do. Overall, 58% of respondents believe relationships that start online are just as successful as others.
Views on safety differ: 55% of women consider meeting someone from an online platform not too safe or not at all safe, compared with 30% of men. So-called chatfishing, in which AI writes messages or conducts entire conversations, raises new questions. The FBI warned as early as December 2024 that criminals are using generative AI for fraud; security experts advise switching to a phone or video call early on.
This article is for information only and is not legal, tax, financial or medical advice. Figures as of the date stated.