You’re officially in the majority if you’ve met your match on Tinder, OKCupid or Instagram. According to our recent 2017 Jewelry & Engagement Study, online dating is now the most popular way people are meeting their future spouses.
To be exact, the comprehensive report surveyed more than 14,000 engaged or recently married brides and grooms across the United States. Of those surveyed, 19 percent of brides reported meeting their significant other through the internet—whether it was online dating (17 percent) or via social media (2 percent). In 2015, this fraction only accounted for 14 percent of those surveyed. Meeting online beat out meeting through friends (17 percent), during college (15 percent) and at work (12 percent).
Interestingly, the dependence on digital extends beyond the dating phase. In fact, a staggering amount of couples continue to rely on digital tools through each step of the wedding planning journey—9 in 10 couples said they used mobile devices for wedding planning in 2016.
This probably comes as no surprise to millennials, the first generation afforded the opportunity to look for love at their fingertips (on iPhones, that is). Between good old-fashioned dating websites and the proliferation of tools and apps that allow you to “swipe right,” there’s no shortage of ways to meet people if you’re single in this day and age. If nothing else, this study further debunks the notion that apps are for “hookups” or people not looking for monogamy—they concretely lead to real, fulfilling relationships and marriages.
