The State of Dating in America, 2026
Every figure below is sourced and confidence-flagged, aggregated from the same 124-metro dataset behind the rest of this site, plus Census, Pew, Gallup, and FTC data. No number here is invented; see sources & methodology for the full bibliography.
- The partnered share of adults across 124 U.S. metros ranges from 43% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates in New Orleans to 72.2% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates in Provo.
- Nationally, 10% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. of couples who recently married or moved in together met online, and 53% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. call their online dating experience positive overall.
- New York’s dating-age singles pool (4,292,340 singles ages 22–50 American Community Survey, 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates) is the largest of the 124 metros tracked; Cheyenne has the smallest.
The singles map
New York has the largest dating-age singles pool of any market The Dating Gazette tracks, at 4,292,340 singles ages 22–50 American Community Survey, 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates, followed by Los Angeles and Chicago. At the other end, Cheyenne’s pool is barely 13,765 singles ages 22–50 American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates — smaller than New York’s by more than two orders of magnitude.
Gender balance varies more than most people assume. Colorado Springs and Cheyenne are the most male-skewed metros tracked, both at 60% male American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates. Washington, DC is the most female-skewed, at 46% male American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates.
Who's coupled up, and where
New Orleans has the lowest partnered share of any metro tracked, at 43% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates of adults, followed by Shreveport and Memphis. Provo sits at the opposite end, at 72.2% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates. The average across all 124 metros is 54.1% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, computed directly from the per-metro figures above.
Cohabitation (living with an unmarried partner) tells a different story. Las Cruces leads at 20.8% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, with Eugene and Burlington close behind, all well above the 13.6% American Community Survey, 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates national-metro average.
Dating went digital, mostly
10% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. of recently-partnered U.S. couples met online, per Pew Research, up from a much smaller share a decade ago. Experiences are mixed: 53% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. describe their online dating experience as positive overall, while 25% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. name being ignored after messaging someone as a top frustration.
The safety reality
48% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. of online daters report experiencing some form of harassment, and 52% From Looking for Love to Swiping the Field: Online Dating in the U.S. report encountering a scam attempt. Separately, the FTC estimates $1 billion (2023, reported losses) FTC Data Spotlight: Romance Scams, 2023 in U.S. romance-scam losses nationally, a figure that almost certainly undercounts unreported cases.
Identity, briefly
7.6% LGBTQ+ Identification in the U.S., 2024 of U.S. adults identify as LGBTQ+ overall, per Gallup, rising sharply to 22.3% LGBTQ+ Identification in the U.S., 2024 among Gen Z adults — the clearest generational shift in this dataset.
Frequently asked
Which U.S. city has the largest pool of single people?
Greater New York, with an estimated 4.29M singles ages 22–50, the largest of the 124 metros The Dating Gazette tracks.
What percentage of Americans met their current partner online?
About 10% of U.S. couples who married or moved in together in the past year met online, per Pew Research.
What share of American adults are in a committed partnership?
Across the 124 metros The Dating Gazette tracks, the partnered share of adults averages 54.1%, ranging from 43.0% in New Orleans to 72.2% in Provo, per Census ACS 5-year estimates.
Is online dating safe?
It's mixed. Pew Research finds 53% of online daters call their experience positive overall, but 48% report some form of harassment and 52% report encountering a scam attempt. The FTC separately estimates $1.3 billion in reported U.S. romance-scam losses.
What percentage of the U.S. population identifies as LGBTQ+?
Gallup put U.S. LGBTQ+ identification at 7.6% overall in its most recent survey, rising to 22.3% among Gen Z adults.
Which metro has the most cohabiting couples?
Las Cruces leads at 20.8% of adults living with an unmarried partner, per Census ACS 5-year estimates, well above the 13.6% average across the 124 metros tracked.
Go deeper
See the full rankings board for every metro, the modern dating glossary for the language behind the data, or browse all 124 markets.