I used to be in a friend group chat called “Tinder Spinsters,” a group of girls offering support as we navigated the tumultuous dating world. Faith Hill’s chat is named “Lonely Hearts Club,” but are these groups becoming a thing of the past? Are people even still trying?
In a 2025 YouGov poll, 69 percent of single respondents said they “rarely” or “never” go on dates. Nowadays, it’s complicated. On the positive side, a relationship is no longer seen as essential for a happy life—women’s interest in men, in particular, has dimmed as their financial independence has grown.
But many people would still love to find a partner; they are just finding that modern romance requires a toll “paid in energy, in sanity, in cash, in hours—and not everyone can afford it.” > The hug was the last round, though, and then real life resumed. We mingled, but the intimacy had disappeared. One man told me that he had high emotional intelligence and could tell that I did too—then he suggested that we travel together someday, handed me his business card, and walked away.
I gave a few people my phone number, including one man who sent me a picture of his face the very next morning and another who texted me so much (even after a polite rebuff) that I had to block him. One date with another guy resulted, but I wasn’t interested in a second. The perception of abundance had, once again, evaporated into nothing.
I Spent a Year Dating Conservative Men to Find Out’ Vera Papisova | Cosmopolitan | 27 February, 2025 | 3,786 words “There’s no question that we’re living — and looking for love — in contentious times, where extreme political ideologies have all but divided parts of the dating pool.” “Dating apps destroyed in-person romance. Now they’re trying to revive it.” “How the NDA became the defining legal document of our time.” Desiree Browne | Midnight & Indigo | January 5, 2023 | 3,976 words “I didn’t know what he was looking for, but what he saw kept him focused on me in a way I wasn’t sure could or should exist.” ‘This Is Small Talk Purgatory’: What Tinder Taught Me About Love Just when she is about to give up on finding real human connection on a dating app, C.J. Hauser meets a mate —who stays in her life for a while.
On the brink of 50, Sarah Miller makes peace with being 10 years older than her boyfriend, and stops wasting time wishing she were younger.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
