For many people, dating and drinking go hand in hand; whether it’s first-meeting cocktails or a pre-date tipple to calm your nerves. However, for some people, drinking in general is off the cards and they much prefer to stay sober. 

The question is, who makes the more desirable date - someone who drinks, or someone who doesn’t?  

So, we have undertaken a social experiment to understand the relationship between drinking and dating. The experiment focuses on dating apps like Tinder, Hinge and Plenty Of Fish to understand whether people prefer a drinker or a teetotaler at their first date table.

Does Drinking Get You More Dating App Matches?

Well, the verdict is in and… if you’re a man that enjoys a boozy beverage, then you’re in luck; while females that like an alcoholic drink are not as lucky when it comes to finding love. 

So, let’s dig a little deeper into our findings.

The team took to Tinder to swipe right on 100 girls and 100 boys, had active profiles on Hinge for 72 hours and on Plenty Of Fish for 24 hours to evaluate whether casual drinkers or openly sober profiles received more matches.

Our Female Profile...

On Tinder, it emerged that the teetotal female profile received 29.1% more matches from men, highlighting that men preferred to date a woman that doesn’t drink.  

Meanwhile, the drinking female profile received 300% more matches from other women, showing that women preferred to date other women that like to let their hair down and enjoy a tipple.  

On the dating platform Hinge, we found that the sober profile had the most success in the search for finding love, as men had liked the female profile without alcohol 23.6% more times.

Interestingly, the women on Hinge differed to the women on Tinder, as they preferred the alcohol-free female profile which received 31.6% more likes. 

When it came to our last dating app Plenty Of Fish, it’s no surprise that, once again, men liked the alcohol friendly female profile an astounding 255% more times.

Our Male Profile...

On Tinder, our male profile that drank alcohol received 173% more likes from men and 150% more likes from women, confirming that a man who drinks is seen to be more desirable to date. 

The men and women on the dating app Hinge also both found the male profile that enjoyed a drink more attractive, with 140% more likes from men and 50% more likes from women than the sober profile.  

Our third dating app that we explored was Plenty Of Fish, which after 24 hours showed that 62.50% more women preferred a man that likes alcoholic beverages.

How many people have alcohol in their dating profiles?

Looking at the popular dating site Tinder, we observed the relationship between alcohol and dating profiles, looking at how many featured or mentioned drinking alcohol at all. 

We found that on Tinder, 52 female profiles we had swiped had alcohol present in their photos and 60 profiles displayed interests in alcohol. 

Men were even more likely to have alcohol in their profiles, with 62 men having drinks featured in their selected photos and 77 males showing an interest in alcohol on their profile. 

Has drinking and dating culture gone too far?

Across all dating apps, it emerged that men preferred women they were going to date to not drink, with the teetotal female profile receiving an influx of messages, ranging from ‘Wifey Material’, to ‘Biggest green flag I’ve ever seen’ and ‘I have a lot of respect for that’. 

So, how does this reflect society’s attitudes towards drinking?

Chris Pleines, Dating Expert from Datingscout.com “This can be due to social prejudice against women drinking. If a woman uploads a picture showing her having a merry time with others over a glass of alcoholic beverage, she might be perceived as a drunk, or someone who lacks poise. But then again the attitude towards women who socially drink are slowly becoming acceptable in modern cultures especially in younger generations.”

Differently, women and men both preferred a male partner to drink and the male profile that featured alcohol had more likes and matches across all three dating apps. But why is this?

Chris Pleines, Dating Expert from Datingscout.com “In contrast, men who drink are seen as masculine, social beings who know how to keep company.”

With a total of 60% of female profiles and 77% of male profiles mentioning alcohol, or having it appear in their photos, we wanted to understand why drinking is such an inherent part of dating culture.

Laura Buckley, Founder & Matchmaker at Secret Alchemy explains “In terms of dating, there are many reasons. From what my clients say, and my own dating experiences, I would say that the main thing is confidence. A glass of wine or two lowers inhibitions and helps people to combat nerves. It makes us more chatty and open. When we’re on a date, we want to show the fun side of us as we think that’s what will attract the other person to us. If you’re someone who gets nervous or who is an introvert, alcohol can help.”

 

For those that think dating and drinking go hand in hand and aren’t looking to go on a sober date in a hurry, the dating experts both agree on one piece of vital dating advice - shots are never a good idea.