Dating Apps Common Among Japanese Couples that Quickly Tie the Knot

An online survey on marriage in Japan conducted in October by Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance found that 31.2% of respondents said they first met their spouses as coworkers in the workplace. The next most common way to meet was through being introduced by a friend, at 23.6%, followed by those who were former classmates, at 12.5%. Among couples who got married within a year of first meeting, 25% used a dating app, while another 25% met at work.

The survey targeted married people aged 20 to 79 across Japan. There were 1,620 responses from 810 men and 810 women.

When asked about their motivation for using dating apps, comments from respondents included: “It’s an easy way to meet people”; “Because it’s hard to meet people at work”; “It makes it possible to choose a type of person I like.”

Amid the pandemic, fewer married couples met through the workplace as companies limited outside events and shifted to remote work, but in the current survey the percentage of such couples rose by 10 percentage points compared to the previous survey.

Overall, 15.4% of the respondents have actively engaged in spouse-hunting activities known as konkatsu. Such activities were most common among those in their thirties, with nearly one in five, or 21.1%, taking part before getting married.

The most common spouse-hunting method by age group, according to the survey, was dating apps among respondents in their twenties (51%), matchmaking parties and events among those in their thirties (50.9%), and group dates or gōkon among those in their forties (48.9%), reflecting the different trends among different generations.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)