• Coffee Meets Bagel released its Dating Realness Report 2026: Love & Money on 10 November 2026, saying 86% of surveyed US users would rather date a $70,000 saver than a $250,000 spender.
  • The survey covered 3,388 CMB US users between 18 September and 8 October 2026, weighted to an equal gender split.
  • Spending beyond one's means was the top red flag at 63%; 50% would choose a strong emotional connection despite very different finances.
  • CMB says rising costs have affected the dating lives of 51% of singles.

Coffee Meets Bagel (CMB) said in a press release on 10 November that 86% of surveyed US members would rather date someone earning $70,000 a year who budgets and saves than someone earning $250,000 who spends irresponsibly and saves little. The figure headlines its Dating Realness Report 2026: Love & Money.

The caveats sit in the methodology. CMB surveyed 3,388 of its own users, so this is not a general population sample, and the 86% answers a hypothetical choice between two partners.

The DII Take

Offer anyone a prudent earner or a reckless one and most will pick prudence, so 86% tells operators little on its own. The more useful finding is that only 14% would put financial compatibility ahead of a somewhat weaker connection, while 50% would choose connection despite very different finances. Singles say they want a budgeter. Whether they swipe that way is a separate question this survey does not answer.

Two 86% figures, one of them about dating less

The release carries a second 86%, which is easy to misread. One measures the saver-or-spender preference; the other counts cost-hit singles who are cutting back on dating.

That second number is a subset. CMB says rising costs have affected 51% of singles; among them, 86% are going on fewer dates or being more selective, 75% choose cheaper activities and 55% have postponed or deprioritised dating. CMB also says 60% typically spend under $50 per person on a date. BMO's February index put the average all-in cost of a US date at $189, up 12.5% from $168 in 2025, though the two surveys measure different things.

What operators should take from it

The etiquette data is the practical part. According to CMB, 54% say whoever initiated the date should pay, and just 7% think asking about salary on or before the first date is appropriate. Spending habits (60%) top the list of topics singles expect to discuss before getting serious.

Quincy Yang, CEO of Coffee Meets Bagel US, said: 'What stands out in this year's report is how grounded singles are.' Comparisons with earlier work are not like-for-like: CMB's 2025 US Dating Realness Report ran with YouGov among 1,048 respondents aged 21-35. Separately, a Match Group (MTCH) spokesperson told CNBC in April that the vast majority of its users use free versions of its apps.

One measures the saver-or-spender preference; the other counts cost-hit singles who are cutting back on dating.

What to watch

DII has not reviewed the full report, which CMB's press page links to. Watch whether rivals publish comparable money-and-dating data from their own members, and whether cost-cutting behaviour shows up in engagement figures rather than surveys.

  • Coffee Meets Bagel's 86% headline rests on a hypothetical question put to its own 3,388 US members, so it measures stated preference, not behaviour.
  • The cost-pressure figures, with 51% of singles affected and 60% spending under $50 per person, are more relevant to product and pricing teams than the saver-versus-spender result.

Sources: 86% of singles would choose a $70K saver over a $250K spender, new Coffee Meets Bagel report finds (Coffee Meets Bagel); Dating Realness Report 2025: 9 in 10 US daters still seek marriage and long-term relationships (Coffee Meets Bagel); 'Date-flation' Hits Hard: BMO Real Financial Progress Index (BMO Financial Group); Some young Americans scale back dating as costs and apps add pressure, survey shows (CNBC); CMB Report: 86% of Singles Prefer Financial Responsibility Over High Income (Online Personals Watch)