The Biggest Days For Online Dating

It's time for a pop quiz!

The question: What's the biggest time for online dating?

Answer: Did you guess Valentine's Day?

If so, I'm afraid you've earned yourself a big F on this quiz. Better luck next time.

According to HuffPo UK, the biggest time for online dating is actually the days between Boxing Day and New Year's Eve. The site contacted more than a dozen dating sites to get the stats, and all said they experience a noticeable increase in both sign ups and website traffic during the holiday season.

Mark Brooks, a dating analyst and online dating consultant, told HuffPo UK that family pressures are responsible for the holiday spike. Singles often find it tough to face family during the season, knowing they're bound to be pressured with an endless stream of questions about who they're dating, why their last relationship didn't work out, and why they're still single.

Kate Taylor, a relationship expert at Match.com, added that the post-Christmas to pre-New year boom can also be chalked up to the reflection that time of year usually brings. As one year comes to a close and another begins, people look back on what they've accomplished over the past 12 months and set goals for the new year. Love is a perennially popular subject for resolutions.

"We know that top of many people's list this year will be finding a partner, and online dating offers the perfect chance to widen the number of potential partners available to you - and to find a potential date from the comfort of your own living room," Taylor said.

And that's not all.

"Most of our customers are professionals so they will be off from work during the festive period," said Pali Banwait, chief executive of AsianD8. "We're generally a lot busier during weekends (as people have more time to themselves) so it's fair to assume a correlation between spare time and online dating."

Banwait also thinks the weather has something to do with it. When it's cold outside, people spend more time at home and use online dating to pass the time. Singles get swept up in the excitement of the fresh start the new year promises, and long to share the happiness of the holiday season with a partner.

Brandon Wade, founder of SeekingArrangement.com, believes the increase popularity of online dating can be attributed to the fact that it's one of the quietest times of the year in every other sector. Online dating provides entertainment at a time when little else does.

What did you resolve to do for your love life in 2013?