Everyone’s online dating, but who’s getting the most attention?

As we enter the busiest season for online dating, one of the ultimate questions on the minds of singles is: “Do I have a new message?” It turns out the answer to this question depends on a whole host of things, including your drinking habits, your income, and your religion.

The PlentyOfFish Research team processed the messaging data from over 81,000 user profiles and 1.8 million messages among the 25 to 35 age group to discover the leading indicators that will determine which singles are more or less likely to receive a message. What did they discover? Women are no longer interested in the bad boy who doesn’t want to settle down, and men are increasingly seeking out educated women who are financially independent. But to a large degree, male and female attractions still follow traditional gender roles; Women still place high importance on a man’s income and men still give precedence to a woman’s age and body size.

Here are the PlentyOfFish key findings from the study:

Women between the ages of 25 and 26, receive 14.4% more messages. Women who are 33 years old receive the fewest number of messages

Women who are Catholic receive 20% more messages

Men who earn between $100,000 and $150,000/year receive 42% more messages

Men who want children receive 23% more messages

Those who ‘Prefer Not to Say’ if they want children receive 21% fewer messages, and those who “Don’t want children” receive 42% fewer messages

*compared to the average user on the site within the sample group

How was the PlentyOfFish study conducted?

Two of our leading PhD researchers analyzed over 1.8 million messages and 81,000 heterosexual users over a 7 day period. For the purposes of this post, they focused on US men and women between the ages of 25 and 35 years old. All users must have been members of the site for at least one week. The information in this post is not based on anyone’s opinion or theory. These findings are based on the messaging behaviour of tens of thousands of real American singles sending millions of messages on PlentyOfFish. Here are the study’s results in details:

Who are the most Desirable Singles of 2014?

Women who are 25 years old. Women who are 25 years old receive 14.4% more messages.

Women who have a Post Secondary degree. Women who have a Graduate degree receive 6.45% more messages. Women who have a high school diploma receive 10% fewer messages.

Women who are Catholic. Catholic Women receive 20% more messages.

Women who Drink Often or Socially. Women who Drink receive 4.4% more messages. Women who don’t drink receive 24% fewer messages.

Women who are Thin. Women who describe themselves as ‘Thin’ receive 41% more messages than the average user.

Women who have been in a Relationship for at least 3 years but not more than 8 years. Women who have been in a relationship for less than one year receive 31% fewer messages.

Men who make between $100,000 and $150,000/year. This group of men receive 42% more messages.

Men who want to be in a Relationship. Men who want a relationship receive 38% more messages. Men who are looking for something casual receive 52% fewer messages.

Men who are Christian. Christian men receive 20% more messages.

Men who have a Doctorate degree. This group of single men receive 33% more messages.

Men who have Brown hair. Brown haired men receive 20% more messages.

By combining the leading indicators above, PlentyOfFish has come up with the characteristics that make up the most desirable singles of 2014:

The Ideal Woman of 2014:

Catholic

Thin

25 years old

Post secondary degree

Dog Owner

Has been in a relationship for at least 3 years but not longer than 8 years

Drinks Often or Socially

The Ideal Man of 2014:

Christian

Doctorate Degree

Wants a Relationship

Makes between $100,000 and $150,000

Brown Hair

Athletic build

(Research Credit: Thomas Levi and Steven Oldridge) (Design Credit: Kelsey Bowman)