What Aussies want in a romantic partner: How Zoosk users value looks and Hinge users seek values
How important are qualities like physical attractiveness, shared hobbies and food choices, common values and spiritual beliefs in a romantic partner to daters in Australia?
In Part 3 of our three-part study on Dating app usage in Australia: Popularity, Concerns, Aspirations, we review the top factors that Aussies most look out for in a romantic relationship – and how these vary across users of different dating apps.
What do Aussies most look out for in a romantic partner?
Latest research from YouGov Surveys shows that among attributes that Australian residents think are important in a romantic relationship, sharing similar values and outlook in life emerged as the most widely prized quality.
Over nine in ten (94%) say they consider this “very important” or “fairly important”, and this proportion was comparable across dating app users and non-users.
Sharing similar hobbies and interests (79%) and being attracted to each other’s physical appearance (73%) are the next qualities most widely judged to be important, ahead of having similar food choices (62%) and similar religious views (61%).
While a similar proportion of dating apps users and non-users felt that sharing similar values and outlook in life are important in a romantic relationship, a significantly larger proportion of dating app users held that the other four qualities were very or fairly important compared to non-users.
Do users of different dating apps vary in what they look out for in a romantic partner?
Across most major dating apps, more than nine in ten users say that having similar values and outlook in life is important when looking for a romantic partner, except for Zoosk (84%) and Happn (87%) where a slightly smaller proportion of users think this is important.
Sharing similar hobbies and interests are most widely prized among users of OkCupid (97%), Happn (95%) and Coffee Meets Bagel (93%), but significantly less prized among users of Grindr (71%).
Physical appearance and attractiveness are most widely prized among users of Coffee Meets Bagel (93%), followed at a distance by Zoosk (88%) and Bumble (87%), but is significantly less prized among users of eHarmony (77%).
Having similar food choices and eating habits are important to the largest proportion of users on of Coffee Meets Bagel (96%) and Happn (86%), but the smallest percentage of Zoosk (58%) and Grindr (65%) users.
Finally, sharing similar religious views or spiritual beliefs are most widely prized among users of Happn (100%) and Coffee Meets Bagel (93%), but least among users of Grindr (62%), Tinder (68%) and eHarmony (69%).
This article is part of our three-part study on Dating app usage in Australia: Popularity, Concerns, Aspirations, which explores the dating apps most popularly used by Aussies, the kinds of relationships and qualities that various dating app users look out for, plus top reasons why other singles are hesitant to try out dating apps. Explore the full series below:
Methodology: YouGov Surveys: Serviced provides quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. This study was conducted online in January 2024, with a national sample of 1,029 Australian residents, using a questionnaire designed by YouGov. Data figures have been weighted by age, gender, and region to be representative of all adults in Australia (18 years or older) and reflect the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) population estimates. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Serviced.
Cover image by PeopleImages
