KNOXVILLE is now under coverage.
Local dating, modeled. Every signal in Knoxville, converted into a tactical roadmap.
Greater Knoxville is open as a field office. The headline numbers, each sourced and confidence-flagged:
- $1,250 per month Zumper Rent Research, June 2026
- $37,549 per year Census ACS 5-yr, 2019–2023
- 55% Census ACS 5-yr, 2019–2023
By the numbers
11 sourced, confidence-flagged metrics for Knoxville — gender, money, neighborhoods, and political lean. The deep dive, with charts, is in the console below.
- Singles, 22 to 50
144,087
- Gender balance
55%
- Male skew
55%
- Median income
$37,549
- 1-bedroom rent
$1,250
- Living wage
$47,237
- Transit fare
$1
- Rent trend
$1,250
- Most female-leaning zone
45%
- Democratic
40%
- Republican
59%
The shape of the market
Hardin Valley is the most female-leaning zone, at about 45% men to 55% women.
Knoxville runs about 55% male, sharpest in West Knox (58%) and West Hills (57%).
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 Knoxville
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.
Harris still took about 40% of Knox County, lifted by the bluer city of Knoxville itself within the red county.
Tennessee doesn’t register voters by party, so we read the 2024 presidential vote: Knox County backed Trump about 59% to 40%, a red East-Tennessee county.
47% of single daters would not seriously date a Trump voter; among Democratic women that rises to 79%.
69% of Americans would not date someone who is unemployed, rising to 81% of women.
The cost of dating
A single adult in Knox County needs about $47,200 a year just to cover the basics.
Knoxville’s one-bedroom rents have softened to roughly flat year over year after a hot pandemic-era run.
Americans reported $1.3 billion in romance-scam losses in a single year, a tax on every crowded market.
A KAT bus fare in Knoxville is just $1.00 one way.
Neighborhood intelligence
| Neighborhood | Singles | M / F | Income | 1BR rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Knoxville | 12,887 | 55 / 45 | $34,307 | $1,157 |
| Fort Sanders | 8,745 | 51 / 49 | $7,759 | $1,236 |
| Fountain City | 7,640 | 53 / 47 | $39,285 | $1,131 |
| Bearden | 6,348 | 54 / 46 | $44,410 | $1,350 |
| West Hills | 6,116 | 57 / 43 | $43,771 | $1,371 |
| Happy Holler | 5,440 | 51 / 49 | $34,607 | $1,127 |
| West Knox | 3,627 | 58 / 42 | $62,516 | $1,805 |
| Powell | 3,522 | 47 / 53 | $39,115 | $1,205 |
| Hardin Valley | 3,031 | 45 / 55 | $57,291 | $1,590 |
| Farragut | 2,563 | 54 / 46 | $58,475 | $2,012 |
Local date spots
Real venues across Knoxville, scraped from Google Maps and filterable by neighborhood. Ratings and review counts are live Google data — never paid placement.
- Fort Sanders
Calhoun's On The River
- Powell
Wild Wing Cafe
- West Hills
Loco Burro Fresh Mex Cantina and Tequila Bar
- Happy Holler
Stock & Barrel
- South Knoxville
Connors Steak & Seafood
- South Knoxville
Lakeside Tavern
- Fort Sanders
Tupelo Honey Southern Kitchen & Bar
- Happy Holler
Balter Beerworks
- Farragut
Wild Wing Cafe
- South Knoxville
SoKno Taco Cantina
- Bearden
Brazeiros Knoxville - Brazilian Steakhouse
- Fort Sanders
Not Watson's Kitchen + Bar
- West Hills
Corner16
- Powell
Aubrey's Powell
- Fountain City
Litton's
- West Knox
Drake's Knoxville
- Farragut
LongHorn Steakhouse
- Happy Holler
Downtown Grill & Brewery
- Farragut
Condado Tacos
- West Hills
Sticky Rice Cafe
- Hardin Valley
Double Dogs
- Bearden
Calhoun's
- South Knoxville
Mimosas
- Fountain City
Boyd’s Jig and Reel
- Bearden
Walk-On's Sports Bistreaux - Knoxville Restaurant
- Bearden
Copper Cellar West
- West Hills
Tennessee Taphouse
- Bearden
Firebirds Wood Fired Grill
- Happy Holler
The Kennedy
- Happy Holler
Central Flats and Taps