What are the trends that have shaped romantic encounters in 2024 and which will influence those of 2025? Tinder, one of the most fashionable cupids, has revealed its essentials. We dissect everything with experts.
Posted yesterday at 7:00 p.m.
Search loud and clear
The most popular terms in Tinder bios in 2024? « Looking for… » (« I’m looking for…”) According to the application, singles are more frank and say their intentions and desires straight away. More than half of the singles surveyed by Tinder say they set their limits from the start.
The Dre Jessica O’Reilly, Canada’s Tinder relationship expert, sees the trend positively. “You can’t really attract what you want if you’re not clear with yourself, which can be a challenge, especially for people who, for example, like to please others,” explains- She.
On the other hand, you should avoid making a grocery list, warns sexologist Laurence Desjardins. Unlike some who took the words of the parody song literally I’m Looking for a Man in Financewhich went viral on TikTok in 2024: « I am looking for a man in finance, trust fund, 6’5, blue eyes » (free translation: I’m looking for a man who works in finance with a family fortune, who is 6’5″, with blue eyes). “These are all characteristics that are extremely superficial, it makes you wonder where the value of human connection is,” asks Laurence Desjardins. What is healthy, according to the sexologist, is to express life goals: “I don’t want children or I want to get married,” she gives as an example.
Not (too) planned
Dating apps often take away the spontaneous side of dating. Singles are looking to move away from conventional dating to find that spark of the unexpected. According to Tinder, hiking, pottery classes, and trips to vintage stores are the activities at the top of singles’ lists for dates in 2025.
“These are less stressful dates,” says Jessica O’Reilly. “You can read a lot about the person’s behavior, values and character in action, rather than them telling you what they are like over a drink. »
For Laurence Desjardins, it reflects a certain romanticism of dates, of the “spontaneous date, where it will click like in romantic comedies”. The sexologist believes that it is linked to a certain fatigue with dating applications. Although they remain popular for those under 30, although Tinder has admitted to having difficulty attracting Gen Z (born between the end of the 1990s and the beginning of the 2010s), the craze is less strong than a few years ago.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Laurence Desjardins, sexologist
Maybe we are at a moment where we want to have the opportunity to meet in another way, but above all to meet for real.
Laurence Desjardins, sexologist
In 2024, Spaniards started a phenomenon in grocery stores: single people went there in the evening and put an upside-down pineapple in their basket to indicate that they were ready to meet. The coming year will perhaps have other surprises of this kind in store for us…
Microrelationships
Whether it’s a glance exchanged with a stranger on the subway or a conversation while ordering coffee, every little moment can be meaningful and lead us to a potential partner. “I think that every microconnection is important and that these moments are not insignificant,” says the relationship expert from Tinder in Canada, who believes that many singles want to enrich their relationships with meaning.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY JESSICA O’REILLY
Jessica O’Reilly, Tinder relationship expert in Canada
We need more connections, more community, and I think these microconnections are the starting point.
The Dre Jessica O’Reilly, Tinder relations expert in Canada
Sexologist Laurence Desjardins also believes that many singles want to connect more with others. “People are looking to hold on to something,” she believes. There is as much loneliness and emotional lack as there is a fear of investment, which means that everyone stays on their own, but each wants the other. »
Trust and reliability
What do single people prioritize above all in their futures? matches ? Trust and reliability, says Tinder, then come physical attraction, shared values and emotional availability.
No less than 45% of singles surveyed by the application are looking for a « Golden Retriever type »a loyal, friendly, energetic and optimistic person. For Jessica O’Reilly, it means someone “who is there when you need them.”
“Are you looking for an uncomplicated person who won’t cause you problems, who is in a good mood all the time and who will follow you around? wonders Laurence Desjardins. There is something very utopian, egocentric and a little individualistic there,” she believes. The sexologist instead guides us towards other, healthier expectations: “I want a partner who wants to be happy in life, who wants to invest in me, who listens to my needs and who will also communicate his own . We are more in the exchange here,” she explains.
