Bumble reveals 50% of its users are now seeking long term relationships

Online dating has never had more longevity…

Today, dating app Bumble, has released new survey results about how its users in the UK are feeling about relationships during COVID-19 and what online dating will look like after lockdown.

Research was conducted using an internal poll which took place from the 15th to18th of May 2020, with a sample of 726 men and women. The women-first social app, with over 95 million users worldwide, has found that people are continuing to have a positive experience of dating, despite lockdown. 82% of Bumble respondents claim to be interested in dating, compared to 75% two weeks ago (a rise of 7%). 

With limited physical connections, people are seeking out new ways to interact and engage. Dating apps are key, with 42% of people saying they are more important now compared to pre-COVID-19 times. 

However, the data also shows that this period of lockdown has left many people feeling very lonely. As a result, stats from Bumble show that 55% of users are seeking more meaningful relationships after experiencing loneliness during this time. This is presumably driven by not wanting to go through another lockdown, or something similar, alone again.  

Naomi Walkland, Bumble’s Associate Director of Marketing said, “Social distancing has drastically changed the way we are dating. Whether it’s using Bumble for the first time to video date or planning your first meet post-lockdown, we’re seeing that people are slowing down and looking for more meaningful connections.”

Courtship habits have also changed online. Throughout this period, Bumble has seen a significant rise in the use of in-app video and voice calling features. In the UK alone, there has been a 42% increase of in-app video calls since mid-March, when lockdown began.

The survey also found that these video ‘Pre-Dates’ are here to stay, with a third (29%) of users planning to continue to use video dating as a way to get to know matches better before meeting after lockdown.