Daters are being warned not to choose their own profile picture if they want to find romance online.

New research has found that strangers are far better at picking the most flattering images to give a more favourable first impression to prospective suitors.

The findings appear to contradict previous research which showed that people tend to portray themselves more favorably than others.

"Our findings suggest that people make poor choices when selecting flattering images of themselves for online profile pictures, which affects other people's perception of them,” said Dr David White, lead author from the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

“This effect is likely to have a substantial impact on online interactions, the impressions people form and the decisions they base on them, including whether to employ, date, befriend or even vote for someone."