Match Group Partners with Research Firm Ipsos to Release Comprehensive Dating Study

Match Group announced that it partnered with research firm Ipsos to conduct a comprehensive study of daters in major markets, and found that overall daters feel positive about online dating.

Sixty-six percent of respondents said that online dating results were “as good or better” than meeting offline according to the study's press release, and 60 percent of respondents said that their online dating efforts have resulted in dates or developed into a relationship.

The report also found that people tend to prefer larger platforms with more people, with the idea that they have more choices when it comes to finding the right person. In fact, online dating is gaining more popularity around the world, with almost half (49 percent) of singles saying they have tried dating apps and websites. India and Turkey lead the way in usage, thanks to changing attitudes about dating, as well as parents using technology to find partners for their children, according to Ipsos.

Ipsos surveyed 17,621 individuals across five countries – Germany, India, Japan, Turkey and the U.S. Respondents included people with and without online dating experience to get a clearer picture of perceptions regarding dating app usage.

A majority of 52 percent felt that online dating had become an important way to meet people since the pandemic began. Sixty-two percent felt that dating apps and websites allowed them to meet people outside of their race or religion, as well as meeting people with different views and backgrounds overall. However, in markets with more racial and ethnic diversity, like Germany and the U.S., daters were more likely to appreciate the ability to meet others of different backgrounds.

According to Ipsos, safety and security were important considerations for singles. A majority of daters (70 percent) said they had positive experiences on apps in terms of safety and security, even though less than half of the general population (40 percent), including those who have never used dating apps, felt that they were safe. The attitudes change among those who have actually used dating apps – 57 percent of respondents who have used dating apps said they felt safe on them, and 75 percent of respondents who found a relationship via a dating app felt they were safe.

Ipsos also surveyed participants about safety measures that were important to them, and found that 73 percent felt that member ID verification would make things safer, 72 percent felt that reporting tools within the app for inappropriate behavior would help, and 70 percent felt that access to emergency services and safety products within the app would help improve their experiences with dating apps.

The complete Match Group Relationship Report can be found here and downloaded from here.