Online dating has been around since 1995 when Gary Kremen and Peng T. Ong launched Match.com. Although online dating was initially viewed with scepticism, with many people seeing it as unconventional and risky, attitudes have changed a lot in the almost 30 years since the launch of Match. Today, most people see online dating as a normal way to meet potential partners amid busy lifestyles that can leave limited time for socialising.

In this article, we look at online dating through statistics. You will find information on the number of people who use online dating, user demographics, and challenges with online dating among other interesting statistics.

Online Dating Statistics for Canadians

  • The first online dating website was Match.com founded in 1995.
  • In 2024, the revenue from online dating is expected to reach over C$86 million in Canada.
  • Online dating penetration rates in Canada vary from under 10% to over 30% depending on the source.
  • Canadians aged 18-34 are more likely to use dating platforms than other age groups.
  • Men represent just over half of Canadians who use online dating.
  • Tinder is the most popular dating app with around 50 million users worldwide.
  • Almost ¼ of online daters seek help from friends with their profiles.
  • Approximately 20% of relationships in Canada start online.
  • Over 50% of men feel they are not receiving enough messages on dating platforms.
  • 55% of people who date online are seeking a serious relationship, while 45% are open to casual relationships.
  • Four out of five people admit to not being entirely truthful when creating their online dating profiles.
  • Over 50% of North Americans using online dating platforms have encountered potential scammers when using dating platforms.

Overview of Online Dating in Canada

The key to the increased popularity of online dating in Canada, and globally, has been people’s changed attitudes towards it. While people might have been sceptical about them initially, today they are seen as a convenient and perfectly normal way to connect with others. Online dating allows users to view potential matches and learn more about them before meeting them in real life.

As technology became more advanced and most people switched to smartphones, it opened more doors for online dating. Mobile dating apps such as Tinder, which was launched in 2012, made online dating even more convenient as people could swipe through potential matches on their phones.

Since then, many online dating apps have become familiar to most people whether they have personal experience of online dating or not. Today’s dating apps cater for various preferences from serious relationships to casual hookups while niche dating apps designed for certain demographics have made online dating accessible for everyone.

The Online Market Revenue is Over C$85 Million

According to Statista, the revenue of the online dating market in Canada will reach C$86.2 million in 2024. The revenue is expected to grow at an annual rate of 1.49% and reach C$92.7 million by 2029.

Since 2010, the revenue has increased by approximately C$6 million per year. The development and popularity of mobile dating apps have been a key driver for the annual growth with Canadians preferring the convenience of smartphones over traditional desktop websites.

Globally, the United States generates the most revenue from online dating. It is expected to reach C$1,914 million in 2024. The United Kingdom is the next with revenues expected to reach C$272.5 million this year.

How Many Canadians Use Online Dating?

According to Statista, the penetration rate of online dating in Canada is 7.5%. However, that does not count for people who have previously used online dating but may not be using them at the present. For example, according to eHarmony, around 36% of Canadians have used or currently using online dating platforms.

Online Dater Demographics

A proportion of Canadians in most age groups say they use or have used dating platforms but the most likely people to use online dating are aged between 18 and 34. However, usage has increased fastest among the 35-54 age groups with people re-entering the dating scene.

Men are more likely to use online dating than women in Canada. 52.4% of users are men and 47.6% are women (when given only two gender options. This is the average across all locations and dating platforms but gender distribution can vary, with some platforms having more balanced ratios than others.

While there are no ratios available for urban and rural users of dating platforms in Canada, those living in urban areas are more likely to access online dating than residents of rural areas. Surveys on online dating have not found major differences between different cultures and races accessing dating apps.

The Most Popular Dating Apps in Canada

The most popular platforms in Canada are Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge. While some reports put Tinder at the top, the latest ranking from Similarweb puts Hinge in the top spot. This variation can be caused by looking at different metrics, for example, some reports may look at the number of new users, while others may look at the number of subscribers or revenue growth.

Tinder has around 80 million global users and according to Priori Data had 10.9 million subscribers in 2022 compared to just 3.7 million subscribers five years earlier. Priori further reports that the global gender split on Tinder is 75% of men and 25% of women. However, in North America and Europe, the ratio is much closer to half each.

Younger people are more likely to use Tinder. 61.2% of users are between 18 and 34 years old. Over 55s are the least likely age group to use Tinder, representing just 10.2% of the dating app’s users.

23% of Users Consult With Friends When Creating a Profile

While the majority of people who date online are happy to go it alone, 23% will consult with friends when creating their online dating profile. Women are more likely to ask friends for advice when creating a profile at 30%, while the portion is 16% among men.

One in Five Relationships in Canada Began Online

According to an eHarmony survey, around 20% of current relationships in Canada began with the couple meeting through an online dating platform. The portion is significantly higher among same-sex couples with approximately 60% of relationships having been initiated through meeting online.

Men More Likely to Feel Insecure About Number of Messages

Men who use online dating platforms are more likely than women to feel insecure about the number of messages they get. 57% of men feel they are not receiving enough messages. Among women, only 24% feel they are not receiving enough.

In contrast, women are more likely than men to feel overwhelmed by the number of messages they receive on dating platforms. 30% of women say they get too many messages while only 6% of men say the same.

Online Dating Intentions in Canada

When online dating first started, users had to pay to use them and most people signed up only because they wanted to find a life partner. Now many online dating platforms offer a free tier where users can, for example, view matches and contact them without having to subscribe to the service.

This has contributed to a change in how the platforms are used. While they used to be used mainly by people looking for long-term relationships, now many people use them to find casual relationships, too. Around 45% of people who use online dating platforms admit to seeking casual relationships. In addition, 16% admit to having sexual encounters with people they met on a dating site.

However, for the majority of people on online dating platforms, the target is still to find someone to share their life with. 55% of users are actively seeking long-term relationships or marriage. Out of the 33% of Canadians who have used online dating services, 23% have entered into a long-term relationship or marriage with someone they met online.

Challenges with Online Dating

Despite many online dating platforms now including ways to verify users’ identities, especially at the subscriber level, there is still dishonest behaviour among online daters. 80% of users admit to stretching the truth to some extent when creating their profiles. This can range from small exaggerations to more serious cheating behaviours, including fake profiles.

Many users have also experienced harassment when using online dating platforms. Around 56% of women between 18 and 50 years of age have experienced sexual harassment when using dating platforms. 43% have experienced unwanted continued contact, while 56% have received unsolicited sexually explicit messages.

Another serious problem is scamming. In North America, over half (52%) of users have encountered possible scammers when using dating platforms. This issue is more common among men, with 63% of users under the age of 50 reporting encounters with potential scammers.

Future of Online Dating

Online dating has definitely become a common way to meet prospective partners and its popularity is predicted to increase further in the future. It is likely that the number and popularity of niche dating platforms that cater for specific groups will increase. Around 30% of online daters are already exploring these sites to get more tailored matchmaking experiences and improve their chances of meeting the perfect match.

Another growing trend is video dating, which became increasingly popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. Around 60% of people who date online say they would be interested in video dating. Platforms that offer video features have reported higher user satisfaction and engagement rates compared to those that do not offer video features.

Since 70% of people who use online dating platforms express concerns over meeting fake or dishonest individuals, platforms may implement stricter verification and security measures in the future.

Finally, the use of AI and machine learning is likely to increase. These technologies can be used to provide more accurate matches and around 40% of online daters have expressed interest in using AI-powered matchmaking services.

Conclusion

In less than thirty years, online dating has gone from marginal to mainstream with more and more people meeting their future partners online. As the number of people using online dating has grown, so has the number of online dating platforms which now range from generic to niche dating sites.

The popularity of online dating is set to continue growing while dating platforms develop new features such as video dating and AI-powered matchmaking. While online dating is not without its challenges and can leave users vulnerable to fake profiles and scammers, online dating platforms are responding by increasing their security measures and carrying out stricter identity checks so that users can focus on finding a companion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Online dating in Canada has become increasingly popular. Approximately 36% of Canadians say they have used or are currently using online dating. This is different from penetration rates which are more likely to focus on current users and some may only include paying users in their metrics.

Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge are the most popular platforms in Canada. Tinder has the most users but Hinge has been growing its revenue fastest during the last couple of years.

It is reported that around 20% of current long-term relationships started online.

Online dating is generally safe although there is always a risk of encountering fake profiles and scammers. Online dating providers are trying to make the platforms safer by introducing enhanced security and identification measures. Most of them also have a system for reporting suspicious or harassing profiles.