The Dating Trends Of 2026 Include Involving The Group Chat & Airing Those Hot Takes

In 2025, we swiped our way into good dates, bad dates, relationships, situationships and everything in between. For better or worse, dating apps continue shape how we meet, flirt and find connection. Next year, people aged 18–30 will be the first cohort to have never known adult life before the apps — a generational milestone that says it all. So what’s on the cards for the year ahead when it comes to dating? Tinder’s Year in Swipe, a questionnaire of thousands of young singles across Australia, the US, UK, Canada, reveals a few clues.

When Tinder quizzed young daters for the key word they'd use to describe dating in 2026, the top answer was 'hopeful'.

"The current dating vibe is simple: say what you mean or get left on read," says Tinder Australia’s dating expert Sera Bozza in a press statement. “For the first time in years, dating looks less like a game and more like a conversation. Young Aussie daters are showing up as themselves: values, quirks, hot takes and all.”

In the words of Justin Bieber, we’re standing on business when it comes to dating in 2026. And according to Sera, the bottom line is this: "hope is back, and it’s no longer embarrassing to admit it."

We love to hear it. Below, we break down five of the dating trends that emerged this year and are set to define the next.

No matter what your 2025 Dating Wrapped looks like, we can all agree on one thing: we’re tired. Perhaps that’s why 64% of daters say that emotional honesty is what dating needs most, and 60% call for clearer communication around intentions. “Gen Z officially tapping out of mind-reading,” says Sera. “When someone tells you upfront what they want, it saves everyone time, energy, and the head noise of overanalysing.” We're going into 2026 with our cards on the table and expecting the same, because there's nothing hotter than someone who knows how to communicate.

The new flirtation is having a point of view — one that extends beyond pineapple-on-pizza discourse (seriously, that’s an instant un-match). Forty-one per cent of people wouldn’t date someone with opposing political views, and that divide is gendered: just 35% of women would consider it, compared to 60% of men.

According to Sera, “Having no stance is now the biggest ick. In dating today, if you stand for nothing, people feel nothing. Being neutral is outdated.” The data backs her up. The top dealbreakers for young daters? Racial justice (37%), family views (36%) and LGBTQ+ rights (32%).

The great AI singularity is here. Has the 2013 movie Her already become prophetic? Well, most of us may not be whispering sweet nothings to Scarlett Johansson–voiced AI companions just yet, but 76% of people say they’d use AI in their dating journey, mostly to suggest date ideas (39%), pick their best photos (28%), and fine-tune their bio prompts.

According to Sera, AI is here to stay, and people are using it with self-awareness and intentionality. “AI works best when it helps you stop getting in your own way,” she says. “Authenticity is still the point, and AI can actually help you reveal that.” For better or for worse, AI will continue to crop up in many aspects of our lives — including dating.

Chalance is replacing nonchalance in 2026. Dating is tough for everyone, and it pays to acknowledge that. In fact, 45% of singles want more empathy after rejection. In essence, we're all going through it — so why not be kinder? Meanwhile, 28% say they enjoy having a crush even if it doesn’t lead anywhere. Proof, perhaps, that we’re still dating for the plot. No matter what your intentions are, Sera says the tides have turned“emotional honesty and a genuine sense of vulnerability isn’t cringe anymore — it’s currency.”

In 2026, we’re turning to the group chat to give our dates the final stamp of approval. In a world where our dates are increasingly disconnected from the people we know IRL, the input of our friends is more important than ever. And if we’re not sharing screenshots, we’re bringing them along to the dates themselves. Women and young daters have embraced Tinder’s Double Date feature, and are three times more likely to like and match with a pair than with an individual.

Tinder's dating expert Sera says involving our friends can be a good thing because it means that we don’t have to go through it alone. “Gen Z love getting a new match in front of their crew because it cuts out the delulu, the projection, and the fantasy that’s easy to build in their head,” Sera says. “Our friends are often better at spotting the red flags than we are, and they're usually right!”