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Study

61% of Americans Say They’ve Never Faked an Orgasm

C. Price

Written by: C. Price

C. Price

C. Price is part of DatingAdvice.com's content team. She writes advice articles, how-to guides, and studies — all relating to dating, relationships, love, sex, and more.

Edited by: Lillian Castro

Lillian Castro

Lillian Guevara-Castro brings more than 30 years of journalism experience to ensure DatingAdvice articles have been edited for overall clarity, accuracy, and reader engagement. She has worked at The Atlanta Journal and Constitution, The Gwinnett Daily News, and The Gainesville Sun covering lifestyle topics.

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This is an exclusive study conducted by DatingAdvice.com, which surveyed respondents over the course of three weeks to reflect an accurate representation of the U.S. population.


Meg Ryan knows how to fake it. Her infamous diner scene with Billy Crystal in “When Harry Met Sally” immortalized how some of us are capable of faking an orgasm, if only to protect someone else’s feelings.

But just how common is the practice?

DatingAdvice.com’s latest study found slightly more than six in 10 Americans say they have never faked the big “O.”

Out of every demographic, men were the most likely to have never pretended to reach sexual climax at 78 percent. This compares to 44 percent of women who have not faked it.

Following closely behind the men was younger Americans and singles.

Those aged 18 to 24 were 44 percent more likely to not fake an orgasm than those aged 45 to 54, while singles were 35 percent more likely than divorcees.

“Six in 10 Americans have

never faked the big ‘O.'”

In terms of sexual orientation, 68 percent of gay men and lesbian women answered in the affirmative versus 60 percent of straight men and women.

Besides women, African-Americans, middle-income earners and Southerners were some of the least likely groups to admit that they’ve never lied about reaching orgasm.

Slightly more than half of African-American respondents answered no to the question, “Have you ever faked an orgasm?” but almost three-fourths of Hispanics answered no to the same question.

At 53 percent, those earning between $50,000 and $74,999 annually had some of the lowest responses. On the flip side, those earning less than $25,000 a year had some of the highest responses with 67 percent.

Perhaps in keeping with traditional Southern courtesy, 60 percent of men and women living in states like Georgia and South Carolina said they have not lied to a partner about their sexual pleasure compared to 63 percent of men and women living in states like California and Arizona.

The study surveyed 1,080 respondents over the course of three weeks, balancing responses by age, gender, income, race, sexuality and other factors in order to accurately represent the U.S. population. The study has a margin of error of +/- 2.8%.

The Breakdown: Americans Who Haven’t Faked an Orgasm

By gender:

  • Men: 78%
  • Women: 44%

By sexuality:

  • Straight: 60%
  • Gay: 68%

By marital status:

  • Single, Never Married: 70%
  • Married: 57%
  • Divorced: 52%

By age:

  • 18 to 24: 75%
  • 25 to 34: 55%
  • 35 to 44: 54%
  • 45 to 54: 52%
  • 54 to 64: 68%
  • 65 and older: 68%

By race:

  • White: 60%
  • African-American: 56%
  • Hispanic: 68%
  • Asian: 63%

By income:

  • Under $25,000: 67%
  • $25,000 to $49,999: 61%
  • $50,000 to $74,999: 53%
  • $75,000 to $99,999: 64%
  • $100,000 to $124,999: 61%
  • $125,000 or higher: 57%

By region:

  • Northeast: 60%
  • Midwest: 61%
  • South: 60%
  • West: 63%

Visit DatingAdvice.com/Studies for more research on dating and relationship topics. 

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