New research says solo isn't a stopgap — it's a strategy.
The headline stat: Show a quarter of single Americans their soulmate tomorrow, and they'd say no thanks. Not "maybe later." No.
The data: Kinsey Institute and Match.com surveyed nearly 5,000 singles (ages 18–93) for the 15th annual Singles in America study. What they found blows up the "everyone secretly wants a relationship" myth.
The numbers that matter:
- 48% went on zero dates last year. Not one.
- 52% say they're happier single than they were in their last relationship
- 55% report less stress since flying solo
- 51% say their confidence went up
- Only 16% are actively looking for a relationship
- 24% say flat-out: they prefer staying unattached
- 33% have been single 5+ years
The perfect-match test:
Researchers asked: your ideal partner walks in tomorrow — what do you do?
- 46% say yes, immediately
- 29% aren't sure
- 25% say no. They'd rather stay single.
But here's the twist:
Independence isn't as clean as the stats suggest. 61% admit they sometimes wish they didn't have to be so independent all the time. Solo living looks confident from the outside — from the inside, it's more complicated.
Romance isn't dead either:
- 76% believe love can last forever
- 62% believe in love at first sight
- 74% believe some relationships are "meant to be"
- 47% say they've felt love at first sight themselves
And people don't follow their own rulebook: 34% keep a mental checklist for a partner — but 46% have fallen for someone who didn't check the boxes.
Biggest dating turn-offs:
- Phone-checking mid-date — 39%
- Ex-talk — 37%
- Trying too hard — 17%
The takeaway:
Being single isn't the waiting room anymore. For a lot of people, it's the destination — chosen on purpose, defended on purpose, and in a quarter of cases, preferred over "perfect."