What Makes a Match? Evaluating Visual and Textual Information in Dating Apps' Profiles

Online dating platforms require users to evaluate potential partners based on sparse, highly curated information, typically profile pictures and short self-descriptions. The present study examined how characteristics of visual and textual cues in dating profiles shape overall desirability (i.e., dateability), focusing on physical attractiveness (for photos) or interest (for bios), alongside likability, trustworthiness, and self-confidence. Participants evaluated photos and bios from simulated Tinder profiles, rating these dimensions together with their willingness to date the target. Linear mixed-effects models revealed that, although physical attractiveness and perceived interest were the strongest predictors of willingness to date the target for photos and bios, respectively, other dimensions also played an important role. Crucially, observed associations varied with participants’ gender and prior dating app experience. Gender differences in photo-based evaluations were largely concentrated among experienced users, suggesting that evaluative strategies may differ more with familiarity with dating platforms’ dynamics than by gender alone. Experience was also related to differences in the evaluation of bios, with inexperienced users placing more importance on perceived trustworthiness and self-confidence. Beyond these substantive findings, the study provides an openly available set of ecologically grounded dating-profile stimuli, both visual and textual, empirically characterized across multiple dimensions relevant to social and romantic evaluation. These materials may provide a useful resource for future research on online dating and the integration of visual and textual social information in digital profiles.