Ever wondered what other people’s Mutual profiles look like? Or what the majority of people on Mutual are interested in? How about how many times people swipe on Mutual within a year, or what the top swiping days of the year are?
We are excited to bring you Mutual’s 2023 Annual Dating Report. The information presented was gathered over the last year of app usage as well as survey results from the Mutual community in December 2022.
Some things may surprise you, some things may disappoint you, and others may excite you. Here’s what we learned about the Mutual community and how you used Mutual this year:
1. Mutual is a safe place to date
We are proud to report that 96.2% of our community feels safe on Mutual! We work hard every day to make Mutual a safe place for you to date and explore potential connections, so we’re happy that the feeling is mutual. 😘We’re committed to continuing to improve in the future.
We have lots of tips on how to keep yourself safe, both in the app and in person, in the safety center of our blog here. Dating safety is essential no matter where you meet someone. We want you to be armed with the knowledge necessary so that you can date with confidence, even in the face of negative situations.
2. Mutual levels the playing field and is growing every day
With hundreds of thousands of new profiles created this year, our community is getting bigger and continues to grow every day! The user base is close to 50/50 male/female with 50.3% males and 49.7% females. (Compare that to Tinder which as of 2019, is 78.1% male and 21.9% female.) The odds of finding a match are much more even on Mutual!
Just like our church, Mutual is worldwide. As you might expect, the geographical layout of where our members live correlates with the geographical layout of where members of the Church live.
The countries with the most people on Mutual are the United States, followed by Brazil, Mexico, the Philippines, Peru, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ecuador, Chile, and Argentina.
The top regions are Utah (USA), Idaho (USA), Arizona (USA), California (USA), Texas (USA), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Washington (USA), Nevada (USA), Florida (USA), Colorado (USA), England (UK), and Lima (Peru).
3. There is someone for everyone
If you think that everyone on Mutual is exactly the same, you couldn’t be more wrong! There were almost 40,000 new interest tags created and added to people’s profiles this year, and the top interests people have listed in their profile are all over the board. This means that there’s a pretty good chance you’ll find someone on Mutual with similar interests as you.
The top interests listed in people’s profiles are Adventurer, Animal Lover, Returned Missionary, Outdoorsy, Introvert, Big Family, Bookworm, Music Enthusiast, Board Game Champ, and Sweet Tooth.
And while 21% of people in our community indicated that they do not care about Harry Potter (literally how?!) those who DO care reported that the majority of them are in Gryffindor, followed by Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin.
4. It’s always swiping season
Out of the near a billion swipes you swiped on Mutual this year, 73.5% of them were swipe downs and 26.5% of them were swipe ups. (How are your thumbs not tired from swiping so much?) This means that for every yes, expect to go through about 3 nos. And you’re not going to necessarily match or hit it off with every yes either, so be patient. This is a normal part of the dating process.
In fact, our members who send us their success stories message an average of 136 people during their search to find their person. That’s not just people they swiped on or people that they match with, but people that they swiped up on, matched with, and then messaged. It definitely takes some time and effort, but in the end it is so worth it.
The top swiping days of the year landed right around General Conference time, with the highest swiping day being October 2nd, followed by April 3rd. Last year in General Conference, President Nelson said, “If it were possible for me to speak one-on-one with every young adult, I would plead with you to seek a companion with whom you can be sealed in the temple. You may wonder what difference this will make in your life. I promise it will make all the difference!” We love to see that you’re taking the prophet’s invitation to find a spouse so literally and so quickly! 🥰
The third highest swiping day was November 27, right after Thanksgiving. Hopefully, Aunt Judith’s remarks about how you’re still not married didn’t hurt too much, but we’re glad to see it motivated you to start looking.
5. There is no lack of matches on Mutual
Out of those swipes came millions of matches. That’s millions of potential love stories that started just this year! With 96.7% of current members of our community having 1 or more matches, that means there’s a good chance your love story could start on Mutual.
In fact, in 2021, the number of people on dating apps in general skyrocketed to 323.9 million users across the world. And as of 2017, 2 in 7 marriages in the United States start with online dating. That makes it the most popular way to meet someone now, surpassing even “meeting through friends.”
THOUSANDS of people indicated that they deleted the app because they met someone. We understand that not all of those people met their person on Mutual, but we’re so excited that so many love stories have started this year.
6. Pineapple belongs on pizza
We said what we said… And so did 61% of people on Mutual.
7. When messaging, a little bit of boldness can go a long way
Millions of messages were sent on Mutual this year. When asked how long it takes to send a message to a new match, 49.7% of people said that they would send a message within the same day while 31.4% of people said that they would send the first message, but it would take them more than a day.
However, when asked how long it takes them to respond to a message once received, 80.4% of people said that they would respond within the same day.
This tells us that the majority of people are more comfortable responding to a message than they are starting a conversation. But the truth is, if you were to send a message first, 80% of people would respond within the same day! So don’t be afraid to send that first message after a match. A little bit of boldness can go a long way.
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8. You love to Netflix and cuddle
We received THOUSANDS of answers for your favorite binge-watched show this year (and now, thanks to you, we don’t have to wonder what to watch next!) The number one binge-watched show this year was Wednesday, followed by Stranger Things and New Girl.
Hopefully, some of that binge-watching time was spent cuddling with a special someone! But, of course, NOT on the first date. Remember, it’s always important to go somewhere public when you’re first meeting up with someone. Read more tips about first dates here.
9. See Who Likes Me is Mutual’s favorite feature
Doesn’t it make it a little bit easier to approach someone if you know there’s already some interest from their side? It’s no surprise that the fan-favorite feature is See Who Likes Me.
We’ll let you in on a little secret: in 2023, See Who Likes Me is getting even better! 🤫
See all the updates with a MutualUp subscription – 10% off for a limited time!
10. You shouldn’t let your insecurities get in the way of your possibilities
One of the complaints we hear all the time is “people only want to date a returned missionary. They won’t even give me a chance.” However, the most commonly used filters were 1. Height, 2. Church Attendance, 3. Temple Recommend, 4. Relationship Plans, and 5. Wants Children.
There is someone for everyone, it’s just about finding them. Of those who met their spouse on the app, 64% were on the app for 6 months or longer. Keep the faith… sometimes all it takes is a little time.
And let’s not forget about our short kings and tall queens. If you were to cap off your search at 6’1” guys or 5’6” girls, you’d potentially be missing out on the Zac Efrons and Taylor Swifts of Mutual. (Zac is 5’8” and Taylor is 5’11”.) Give people a chance!
11. There are people just like you on Mutual
For those who are curious just how the breakdown works out, 76% always attend church, 15% sometimes attend church, 2% never attend church, and 6% marked “get to know me first.”
We know that always doesn’t mean ALWAYS. There’s always going to be a Sunday when you’re sick or traveling or the ox is in the mire and you don’t make it to church.
We also know that just because someone says they go to church every sunday, holds a temple recommend, or served a mission does not automatically mean that they are a good person. In the words of Jacob, “O be wise; what can I say more?” (Jacob 6:12)
There are plenty of people who do not check all of those boxes but are still 100% worth getting to know. Take the time to get to know someone through conversation and spending time with them before making up your mind about them.
12. Most people don’t want NCMOs
Only 9.5% of people on Mutual think that you should have a first kiss before or on the first date. 74.4% said that kissing on the 2nd-4th date is okay, 13.9% said you should wait until the 5th date or more, and 2.2% think your first kiss should be over the wedding altar. Bottom line? The vast majority of people on Mutual don’t want NCMOs. Show a little bit of commitment before trying to get physical.
13. You’re not alone
Everyone struggles with dating. We asked you to describe your dating experience this year in one word. We received some pretty interesting responses, such as “Kosher,” “Sweaty,” “RIP,” and “Iputlesseffortinthanishouldhave.” The most common answers paint an interesting picture about dating as a whole, with the top 4 answers being 1. Good, 2. Disappointing, 3. Meh, and 4. Interesting.
If you felt like your dating life was “meh” this year, you’re not alone! Dating is hard! It’s full of heartbreak, rejection, and oftentimes loneliness. However, notice that the top answers are, 50% positive experience, 50% negative experience. Your experience can completely be changed by the way you look at it.
If you had a bad date, or maybe you didn’t have any dates this year, we know how disappointing that can be. Trust us, we’ve been there. (Some of us are still there in the trenches with you!) But you can choose to look at it as a negative experience, or you can flip the narrative and choose to turn it into a learning experience.
Remember that God will use every experience in your life to teach you and bring you closer to Him. To quote C.S. Lewis, “I am sure that God keeps no one waiting unless He sees that it is good for him to wait.”
14. A hot dog is NOT a sandwich??
71% of people on Mutual said that a hotdog is not a sandwich while 29% said yes. We have to declare that this is one of those cases where the majority is just plain wrong. The Merriam-Webster definition of a sandwich is “two or more slices of bread or a split roll having a filling in between.” If that doesn’t make a hot dog a sandwich, then we don’t know what does.
Overall, we are so happy to see the growth of Mutual this year, both internally (we nearly doubled the size of our company this year!) and externally. We’re so grateful for each and every one of you because you and your stories are what make Mutual great.
Whatever chapter of your love story you’re on, we’re grateful that we got to play a small part (or maybe a big part, for those of you who sent us your success stories, which you can read here) in your love story this year.
Can’t wait to see what our story looks like next year!
Mutual Team
Our team of love experts at Mutual works hard to make sure you have the most helpful dating advice out there. Whether you're still searching for your person or working to move your relationship from the chat bubble to in-person, we've got your back every step of the way.
Eu sou membro do Brasil e eu não entendo uma coisa: O Brasil é o segundo país com maior número de membros no “Mutual App”, certo? Então por que vocês só registrem tanto o acesso de perfis para nós brasileiros? Isso é muito chato! Mesmo fazendo assinatura, vocês continuam nos restringindo, ou seja, por dia só dá pra ver 1 ou no máximo 5 perfis… por que vocês fazem isso com nós brasileiros? Por quê?
¡Hola Jailson!
De hecho, lo hacemos en todas partes del mundo 🙂 ¡No solo en Brasil! ¡Lo que hacemos en la aplicación se aplica a todo el mundo!