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Study

Only 2% of Americans Rank Wealth as the Most Important Partner Quality

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.


Money makes the world go ‘round, but how much does it drive our romantic lives? According to DatingAdvice.com’s latest study, not very much.

After surveying more than 1,000 Americans, only 2 percent said money is the most important quality they look for in a partner on a first date. This was out of choices like a sense of humor, good looks and morality.

While only a small portion of the participants admitted as such, the findings from the ones who did are quite compelling.

For instance, men in the sample were twice as likely to watch for wealth compared to women.

However, it was younger Americans, African-Americans and high-wage earners that were the most likely to look for money on a first date.

Three percent of men and women aged 25 to 44 chose money as the number one quality versus just 1 percent of men and women aged 54 and older.

African-Americans had the highest response at 5 percent, while only 1 percent of Caucasians answered in the affirmative.

“Two percent said money is the most

important quality they look for on a first date.”

Those earning between $100,000 and $124,999 per year were three times as likely to rank money as the highest trait than those earning between $75,000 and $99,999 annually.

Gina Stewart, DatingAdvice.com expert, said daters generally pair up with someone whose status mirrors their own.

“High-wage earners are statistically more likely to choose wealth as an important factor because wealth plays a great role in their lives,” she said.

Regionally, the practice was found to be twice as popular in Southern and Western states than in Northeastern and Midwestern states.

Perhaps surprisingly, gay men and women were found just as likely as straight respondents to rank wealth as a top partner quality, with 2 percent of each group admitting as such.

There was also no difference detected between participants of varying marital statuses.

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 Look for Money on a First Date

By gender:

  • Male: 2%
  • Female: 1%

By sexuality:

  • Straight: 2%
  • Gay: 2%

By marital status:

  • Single, Never Married: 2%
  • Married: 2%
  • Divorced: 2%

By age:

  • 18 to 24: 1%
  • 25 to 34: 3%
  • 35 to 44: 3%
  • 45 to 54: 2%
  • 54 to 64: 1%
  • 65 and older: 1%

By race:

  • White: 1%
  • African-American: 5%
  • Hispanic: 4%
  • Asian: 3%

By income:

  • Under $25,000: 2%
  • $25,000 to $49,999: 2%
  • $50,000 to $74,999: 2%
  • $75,000 to $99,999: 0%
  • $100,000 to $124,999: 3%
  • $125,000 or higher: 1%

By region:

  • Northeast: 1%
  • Midwest: 1%
  • South: 2%
  • West: 2%

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

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