If you’re having zero luck with dating, then it might be because you’re a big old litter bug.

Online dating site and app Zoosk carried out a survey of 5,100 of its members and analysed 123,257 dating profiles, finding that being environmentally conscious was a big turn-on.

In fact, 78% of those questioned said that they’re looking to date someone who cares about the environment, with 33% of those revealing that it’s very important.

Women tend to care a bit more, with 85% of them requiring an eco-friendly date.


58% of singles say that caring about the environment is an attractive quality, and 91% of those questioned considered themselves an environmentally friendly person.

Top 10 environmentally annoying things that bug single people Littering – 81% Unnecessarily wasting food – 54% Leaving the lights on – 54% Not recycling – 37% Driving places you can walk to – 20% Brushing teeth with tap on – 18% Driving a gas-guzzling car – 18% Taking really long showers – 15% Always drinking bottled water – 14% Eating meat at every meal – 10%

Littering was a top bug bear – with 81% of daters finding it annoying, and 74% citing it as a dealbreaker.



So, consider that before you leave your empty tinny in the park in front of your date.

32% of singles find unnecessarily wasting food a dealbreaker, so instead of trying to impress them by ordering a shedload of takeaway dishes during Netflix and chill, why not just get what you’ll eat?

Make sure your house is set up for recycling before they come round, because 37% of people find it irritating when their date doesn’t recycle, and it’s a dealbreaker for 17%.

*moves recycling bin to a prominent position*

Top 10 environmental dealbreakers for single people Littering – 74% Unnecessarily wasting food – 32% Leaving the lights on – 17% Not recycling – 17% Driving places you can walk to – 10% Driving a gas-guzzling car – 8.2% Eating meat at every meal – 7.6% Taking really long showers – 6.5% Always drinking bottled water – 6.2% Brushing teeth with tap on – 6%

This could be us at the local farmers market but you playin’ (Picture: Getty)

64% women and 57% men find picking up litter attractive, so make sure you bend over and do some litter picking on your next stroll.

31% women and 21% men find it sexy when their date whipped out a reusable water bottle, so ditch that plastic and get choosing a good one.

For some reason, farmers’ markets are a turn-on, with 41% of men loving it when their potential partner shops there. It’s an even bigger deal for women, with 58% of them finding it hot when a date gets their groceries at the market.

In fact, mentioning ‘farmers’ market’ in your profile gets you 41% more inbound messages.

The most attractive eco-friendly traits to men Picking up litter – 57% Being energy efficient at home – 50% Recycling – 50% Gardening – 47% Shopping at local farmers’ market – 41% Planting a tree – 38% Using reusable grocery bags – 28% Using reusable water bottles – 21% Wearing used items or clothing – 19% Composting – 16% Driving an electric car – 8.2% Being a vegetarian – 6.2%

The biggest word to use to get more inbound messages though?

‘Reuse’.

Yup, writing ‘reuse’ in your profile will get you a whopping 82% increase in messages, but we’re struggling to see in what context you’d put that in your bio.

‘I love strolling to the farmers market to reuse my shopping bags’? ‘I would like to reuse all of my emotional baggage in a new relationship’? ‘I care about the earth so I reuse condoms’? (Obviously don’t do this.)

Writing ‘organic’ got users 56% more messages, so harp on about your love for organic coffee/clothing/skincare and impress your future bae/s.

The most attractive eco-friendly traits to women Picking up litter – 64% Recycling – 58% Shopping at local farmers’ market – 58% Gardening – 54% Being energy efficient at home – 54% Planting a tree – 47% Using reusable grocery bags – 44% Using reusable water bottles – 31% Wearing used items or clothing – 23% Composting – 20% Driving an electric car – 7.9% Being a vegetarian – 7.6%

The top three eco-friendly dates men long for are going to the beach (51%), having a picnic (50%) and hiking (48%).

You can show off your eco credentials by leaving no trace of your food wrappers, and picking up litter as you stroll.

Women, on the other hand, love a picnic (60%), visiting the farmer’s market (58.4%) and hitting the beach (58.3%).

How about hitting the farmers’ market before having a picnic on the beach? Boom.



If preserving the world isn’t a good enough reason to recycle, surely getting more dates is?

Get your thirsty lips around the full Zoosk data here.

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