Bumble’s 2025 Global Dating Trends reveals a shifting landscape in how singles approach love, connection, and companionship, spotlighting evolving relationship dynamics across key trends. According to the findings, the resurgence of romance is strong, with “micro-mance” becoming the new norm—where small gestures, like sending memes or sharing morning coffee, hold significant meaning.
Social media is also shaping modern dating culture with “Date With Me” content, creating a reality-show feel as people share authentic dating highs and lows. Shared passions and niche interests are becoming attractive, with over half of Singaporean singles saying unique hobbies are now essential for connection.
Bumble, the women-first dating app, released its latest report to help singles transfer their connection from virtual to real life. Research from more than 40,000 Gen Z and millennial Bumble members around the world and in Singapore revealed that dating is evolving with people feeling positive about finding the right relationship.
Single people haven’t given up on finding a relationship, they are more determined, with 4 in 5 (80%) Singaporean singles looking to find a long-term partner in the next year. However, the level of tolerance has shifted, with nearly 2 in 3 women (64%) globally saying they are no longer making compromises.
Over the last year, the majority (87%) of people on Bumble around the world experienced the many positives of dating in 2024: the excitement of meeting somebody new, building their confidence, and exploring new attributes in what they want.
As we move into 2025, Bumble research shows singles are clear about their desire for romance, total transparency, shared community values, and leaning into platonic male friendship at pivotal moments.
Bumble’s dating hot-takes for 2025:
Micro-mance: Romance is making a comeback in 2025: over half (52%) of women globally are self-proclaimed romantics who love love and specifically for 1 in 3 (39%) women in Singapore, a lack of romance harmed their dating lives.
The desire for romance is clear, but instead of grand gestures, people are embracing romance in a new way – through micro-mance – a term to describe expressing your feelings through smaller gestures, with big impact. The majority (89%) of Singaporean singles agree that how we show love and affection now includes behaviors like sending memes, a playlist, or sharing inside jokes or morning coffee walks. On Bumble, ‘The quickest way to my heart is’ is one of the top prompts globally, highlighting that micro-mance is already alive and well on the app.
DWM (Date With Me): Dating has become our new favorite reality show. Bumble predicts this growing social media bubble of embracing a new real-ness will be even more relevant in 2025: 1 in 2 (50%) singles in Singapore are celebrating more authentic dating and relationship content showing not only the highs but also the lows, serving as a ‘window’ to the broader dating experience.
This shift towards more transparent, shared dating experiences is having a positive impact with 47% of women polled locally feeling less self-conscious and lonely as a result. Seeing others openly discuss these experiences inspires healthier relationship goals, helping people spot potential red flags, and have big conversations earlier. 2 in 5 singles (41%) state that realistic, positive dating content leads to optimism about their own love lives.
On The Same (Fan) Page: The rise of micro-communities (book clubs and run clubs), fandom (hello Taylor and Lisa), and niche interests (thrifting and blind boxes) are taking over. It’s also changing who and how we date, with more than half (60%) of Singaporean singles stating that unique and quirky interests are now key to attraction.
Participating in activities and social communities can make you more attractive, and for 1 in 2 women (54%) showing up authentically while dating means leaning into their passions and interests. Not only does this help start conversations but more than half (56%) of Gen Z singles agree that geeking out on something together is a form of intimacy.
Male-Casting: Male archetypes have exploded in pop culture with a wider conversation on how we identify ideal characteristics. Globally, 1 in 3 (33%) agree that this year, more than ever, there have been more conversations on male stereotypes.
Much like the experience of women, 1 in 4 (27%) men say these tropes can create false assumptions about their character and intentions. As we head into 2025, over half of women (53%) agree that the conversation on masculinity needs to evolve to allow men to define what positive masculinity looks like individually.
Future-Proofing: The overwhelming majority of singles in Singapore (96%) say their worries about the future are impacting who and how they date. For a majority (65%) of women polled locally, increasing concerns about the future are leading them to place more value on stability – looking for a partner who is emotionally consistent, reliable, and has clear goals when it comes to their life.
Looking ahead, singles can expect these conversations to be more top of mind from the get-go, with 1 in 4 (27%) women around the globe pushing these topics to be discussed earlier than before, leading to candid conversations about budgeting, housing, climate change, and job ambitions.
Guys That Get It: There is a new friend filter ascending, the rise of the male best friend. Nearly a third (31%) of single women around the world say they are more open with their male friends than they used to be about their dating lives, indicating a shift towards men healthily engaging with their friends and becoming a more significant part of their support network.
Amongst women, 1 in 5 (22%) now ask male friends to filter potential dates, and specifically in Singapore, the majority of women (59%) also rely on the men in their lives to help explain men’s dating behavior.
“Every year we ask our global community for their views on dating, the new behaviors they are seeing, and what they want and need in the year to come,” said Chen Meihui, APAC Communications Lead at Bumble.
“2025 is going to be a transitional year for dating and we can see this in how single people, especially women, are getting very clear about what they want and need, and what they are no longer willing to tolerate when it comes to dating and relationships.
“What we’re seeing is a big shift towards real-ness, people are being increasingly more transparent, future-proofing themselves, and taking the time to find somebody to support their unique interests, before committing to a relationship. ”
Research was conducted by Bumble using internal polling between September 19 – 23 2024 with a sample of 41,294 Bumble members between 18-35 around the world, including Singapore.
