Key Takeaways
- Over half of singles say riding a bike to work is a green flag for a potential date.
- Using a reusable water bottle is ranked as the most attractive eco-friendly behavior.
- Eco-conscious men have more sex than men who don't care about the environment.
- According to women, the best eco-friendly date idea is a bike ride.
All That Glitters Is Green
Does biking to work make you more attractive to potential partners? How can a reusable water bottle indicate a more fulfilled sex life? Is dinner and a movie getting replaced by a bike ride in the park? Being eco-conscious has never been more alluring.
Velotric Bike surveyed over 1,000 Americans about their environmental choices and how they relate to dating. The goal was to see if environmentally harmful habits are considered red flags in a relationship and how green habits can benefit an individual's romantic relationship. Read on to find out how living sustainably impacts stress, fighting, sex life, and more.
Green and Red Flags
Take a look at the best and worst behaviors people notice when checking out a potential partner or dating. Have you seen any of these before?
Commuting in an eco-friendly way clues people into your lifestyle choices and environmental beliefs. Biking to work was the biggest green flag for most people (56.7%), closely followed by driving a hybrid car (54.4%). Men and women both listed these alternative modes of transportation among their top five green flags to watch for when dating, along with using reusable grocery bags. Drinking from reusable water bottles also pointed to eco-friendly behavior, according to nearly half of our respondents.
As for dating red flags, almost 45% said you should be concerned if a person doesn’t believe in global warming. It’s no surprise that this key factor can make or break a relationship. Men and women both listed “disbelief in global warming” as the No. 1 red flag, and both genders were also likely to be concerned by someone littering or wasting food.
As for the most attractive behaviors, they ranked using reusable water bottles at the top of the list. And even just mentioning you’re eco-conscious on your dating profile can make a match more likely, especially according to Gen Zers.
Green Is Good for Your Relationship
We next explored how certain mindsets could cause or resolve intimacy and communication issues. How might your environmental choices affect your romantic relationships?
A more eco-friendly lifestyle might just fire up your sex life. Our eco-conscious respondents reported having more sex and more satisfying sex lives compared to those who care less about the environment. Eco-conscious men, in particular, turned out to have sex three times more often than other men. Homeowners might want to consider going solar, too — those who reported the most frequent sex had home solar panels.
But what happens when your lifestyle doesn’t align with your partner’s? More than 8 in 10 respondents said differences in environmental ideology resulted in fights with a significant other. Over 60% have been dumped because of habits that weren’t eco-friendly, and more than half had broken up with someone over it. Whether they were dumped for caring about the environment or their lack of concern is unknown, but either way, singles looking for a date may want to make their stance on the matter clear early on.
It wasn’t all bad news, though, for couples with differing opinions on caring for the environment. They also reported more frequent sex than other couples. But that didn’t mean they were more sexually satisfied than their like-minded counterparts. Despite having sex more often, couples who disagreed on the issue were just as satisfied with their sex lives as those who shared environmental views. Having the same outlook on environmental responsibility did, however, mean greater intimacy, better communication, less fighting, and more quality time together for a small number of couples.
Eco-Friendly Activities
Once you’ve found a match who shares your views on preserving the planet, where should you have your first date? According to our survey, these are the activities people viewed as the most engaging and eco-friendly.
Bike rides, picnics, and camping trips were the top three choices for romantic outings among men and women. Going on a picnic made the top spot overall as the most enjoyable and environmentally friendly date, with camping coming in at a close second. Bike riding was the third-most enjoyable eco-friendly date, especially among the ladies — more than 50% of women said a bike ride would be the best date of all.
Old mainstays like hiking or a visit to the museum were also counted among the most enjoyable and environmentally sound dates. And gardening held a place in most respondents’ hearts, right up there with a walk on the beach. But women were about 27% more likely than men to say they’d enjoy a date at a sustainable winery or brewery. We also found the female-focused dating platform Bumble to be the app with the most eco-conscious daters.
Engineering the Perfect Date
Most singles looking to mingle found green habits attractive. Biking to work was one of the most charming activities, showing that you value your health and the planet as well. Once you’re in someone’s DMs, you might suggest a date that includes a picnic — an activity that expresses a love for nature and involves quality time so you can get to know them better.
Here are some other suggestions that are sure to check all the boxes for your potential match: Ride your bikes to a camping spot on the beach or a nearby museum, or hike out to a picnic spot where you can plant a tree. Wherever you go together, don’t forget your reusable water bottle!
Methodology
Velotric Bike surveyed 1,003 Americans about the environment and dating. Of these, 600 were Men, 390 were women, 7 were nonbinary, and 3 chose to identify as something else. Respondents ranged in ages from 19 to 78, with a mean age of 29.
About Velotric Bike
Velotric believes ebikes should be stylish, high performing, reliable, safe, and affordable. Our vision is a carefree ebike experience for riders who want the exhilaration of the open road.
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