DOVER is now under coverage.
Local dating, modeled. Every signal in Dover, converted into a tactical roadmap.
Greater Dover is open as a field office. The headline numbers, each sourced and confidence-flagged:
- $1,200 per month Zumper Rent Research, June 2026
- $39,691 per year Census ACS 5-yr, 2019–2023
- 52% Census ACS 5-yr, 2019–2023
By the numbers
11 sourced, confidence-flagged metrics for Dover — gender, money, neighborhoods, and political lean. The deep dive, with charts, is in the console below.
- Singles, 22 to 50
31,003
- Gender balance
52%
- Male skew
52%
- Median income
$39,691
- 1-bedroom rent
$1,200
- Living wage
$47,715
- Transit fare
$2
- Rent trend
$1,200
- Most female-leaning zone
39%
- Unaffiliated
37%
- Democratic
37%
The shape of the market
Felton is the most female-leaning zone, at about 39% men to 61% women.
Dover runs about 52% male, sharpest in Harrington (66%) and Camden (62%).
How dating actually happens
Only about 14% of matches on curated apps like Hinge turn into a first date.
Roughly 1 in 10 partnered adults met their partner online, and the share climbs sharply for younger and LGB couples.
One in four matches never gets a reply.
53% of online daters say their overall experience has been positive.
Dating safety in Dover
78% of active dating-app users report burnout: 80% of women (driven by message volume) and 74% of men (driven by a lack of responses).
60% of Americans support requiring a background check before someone can create a dating profile.
An estimated 26% of men have received unsolicited explicit content, far below the rate for women.
56% of women under 50 have been sent unsolicited explicit images while dating online.
48% of online daters have faced at least one form of harassing behavior on a dating platform.
43% of women under 50 say a match kept contacting them after they said no.
52% of online daters say a scammer or bot has contacted them.
63% of men under 50 say a scammer or bot has contacted them, the highest of any group.
11% of women under 50 have been physically threatened on a dating platform.
40% of daters say platforms do a bad job removing fake and bot accounts; only 20% say they do well.
The LGBTQ+ landscape
53% of LGB adults have used a dating app, far more than straight adults.
About 24% of LGB couples met online, roughly three times the straight rate.
About 70% of LGB adults under 30 have used a dating app, the highest-adoption cohort anywhere.
7.6% of U.S. adults now identify as LGBTQ+, up from 3.5% in 2012.
22.3% of adults aged 18 to 34 identify as LGBTQ+.
Political alignment
24% of Americans say they could never date someone who disagrees with them on abortion.
Delaware registers voters by party, and Kent County (Dover) splits almost evenly three ways — Democrats and unaffiliated voters are tied at about 37% each, with Republicans at 26%.
47% of single daters would not seriously date a Trump voter; among Democratic women that rises to 79%.
Unaffiliated voters match the Democrats at about 37%, so politics is a weak filter — Kent County’s dating pool splits almost evenly three ways.
69% of Americans would not date someone who is unemployed, rising to 81% of women.
The cost of dating
A single adult in Kent County needs about $47,700 a year just to cover the basics.
Dover’s one-bedroom rents sit around $1,200, modest for the mid-Atlantic.
Americans reported $1.3 billion in romance-scam losses in a single year, a tax on every crowded market.
A DART First State bus fare in Dover is $2.00 one way.
Neighborhood intelligence
| Neighborhood | Singles | M / F | Income | 1BR rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown Dover | 8,178 | 49 / 51 | $31,559 | $1,398 |
| West Dover | 7,651 | 52 / 48 | $39,122 | $1,370 |
| Smyrna | 4,760 | 53 / 47 | $45,305 | $1,468 |
| Milford | 3,032 | 53 / 47 | $40,481 | $1,254 |
| Camden | 1,868 | 62 / 38 | $42,690 | $1,659 |
| Magnolia | 1,811 | 60 / 40 | $44,388 | $1,467 |
| Felton | 1,719 | 39 / 61 | $39,508 | $1,184 |
| Harrington | 1,683 | 66 / 34 | $45,390 | $1,260 |
Local date spots
Real venues across Dover, scraped from Google Maps and filterable by neighborhood. Ratings and review counts are live Google data — never paid placement.
- West Dover
Bally's Dover Casino Resort
- Harrington
Harrington Raceway & Casino
- Camden
Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen
- Camden
Texas Roadhouse
- Smyrna
Smyrna Diner
- Harrington
Rudy's Family Restaurant
- Harrington
Stargate Diner
- Milford
Surf & Turf Bar & Grill
- Downtown Dover
McGlynns Pub - Dover
- Harrington
Derby's Bar & Restaurant
- Downtown Dover
The Countrie Eatery
- Downtown Dover
The Greene Turtle Sports Bar & Grille
- Camden
Applebee's Grill + Bar
- Magnolia
JP's on the Wharf
- West Dover
Restaurant 55
- Felton
Franco's Pizza & Pasta
- Smyrna
Brick Works Brewing and Eats - Smyrna
- Downtown Dover
Piazza Mia Italian Bar & Grill
- Milford
Arena's Milford
- Milford
My Sister’s Fault - Milford
- Downtown Dover
Dover Hollywood Diner
- Downtown Dover
The Grey Fox Grille
- Smyrna
Boondocks Restaurant & Package Store
- Felton
Little Goat Coffee Roasting Co.
- Magnolia
Magnolia Restaurant
- West Dover
La Baguette French Bakery
- West Dover
Touchdown
- Smyrna
The Celtic Pub
- Camden
The House of Coffi
- Harrington
Dunkin'