'Coffee Meets Bagel' Data Reveals Online Dating Does Not Threaten Monogamy

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Coffee Meets Bagel, a social dating site that utilizes its members' social graphs to find daily matches, today announced the results of its survey on the effects that online dating has on singles. Findings include what users are looking for out of online dating services, how online dating affects their views on long-term relationships and their outlook on dating in today's society.

Coming off the heels of the recent controversy surrounding online dating's negative effect on monogamy, coupled with a spike in New Years resolutions surrounding dating, Coffee Meets Bagel sought to find out about its users' preferences when it comes to using an online dating service.

Survey results reveal that online dating does not threaten monogamy, and it often times causes users to desire more serious relationships instead of continuous casual dates.

Online Dating Users Are Serious About Relationships:
Nearly 65 percent of Coffee Meets Bagel users said they are primarily looking for a serious relationship from online dating, with an almost even amount of men and women responding accordingly. An additional 13 percent of women and 4 percent of men claimed they are looking for a spouse.

When asked if online dating causes users to seek casual dates with multiple partners instead of serious relationships, 60 percent of men and 50 percent of women said it has no impact. In fact, another 14 percent of men and 40 percent of women said it has the opposite effect – online dating actually causes them to want more serious, monogamous relationships. The main reason mentioned for this was that meeting people via online dating reminded them of "how difficult it is to find the right person."

In a comparison of online and offline dating, the majority said that online dating makes it easier to meet new, interesting people and go on casual dates without causing any difference in their ability to find a serious partner. Only 18 percent of men and women believe that online dating makes it more difficult to find a serious partner.

"The survey findings show us that there's an opportunity for services like ours to help our members find what they're looking for in the dating world without tainting their overall perspective on relationships," said Dawoon Kang, co-founder of Coffee Meets Bagel. "What's interesting is that the majority of our users are fairly young [in their twenties], yet they're still looking for something serious. The survey results also break some of the gender stereotypes about dating – we think it's encouraging to see that an equal number of men and women are looking for serious relationships from online dating and believe that it makes it easier to meet interesting people."

How Do Men and Women Measure Up?
Just about half (49 percent) of men and exactly half of women say that online dating does not make their ability to find a serious partner any harder. The majority of both sexes agree that, in comparison to offline dating, it is much easier to meet new, interesting people via online services.

However, men and women have different opinions when it comes to pickiness. Of the 18 percent of respondents who believe online dating makes finding a serious relationship difficult, more than 50 percent of men believe this is the case because online dating has caused people to become pickier, whereas less than half of women find this to be true.

About Coffee Meets Bagel:
Coffee Meets Bagel is a leader in the new wave of social dating sites that utilize social graphs to find matches for its users. The company brings the social nature of Facebook and the engagement of casual games to the dating space. Coffee Meets Bagel is a "freemium" model that introduces its members to a friend-of-a-friend from their social network every day at noon via email. Members must LIKE or PASS on their match within 24 hours, and mutual LIKE's lead to direct connections via text message. For additional information, please visit http://coffeemeetsbagel.com.

CONTACT:
Jackie Lampugnano
312-626-2574
[email protected]

SOURCE Coffee Meets Bagel