At the start of 2020, we decided to investigate exactly what it is that people love and value in a romantic partner in order to discover the answer to the following question: what matters more, personality or looks?
Over 1,000 people took part in the survey, which revealed the following key results:
- Eyes are the number one feature that men and women are attracted to in a partner, regardless of whether they are single or in a relationship
- Women value dependability and reliability in a partner more than you would think
- A washboard stomach is less important than you would think
- Single people rank hair, honesty and trustworthiness as desirable qualities in a partner more highly than people who are in a relationship
Take a look below to discover the full details of our survey results. Alternatively, use the links below to skip to the results you are interested in:
If you have any questions about the results, do not hesitate to get in touch. If you would like to use some or all of these statistics, please credit the data to Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors and include the link: www.cosmeticsurgerysolicitors.co.uk.
The results for everyone
- In total, 1,066 respondents completed the survey
- 787 women and 264 men participated
- 76.9% are in a relationship, 23% are single
When considering a romantic partner, how would you prioritise the following characteristics?
|
Most important characteristic
|
Everyone
|
All Men
|
All Women
|
|
1
|
I like their personality
|
46%
|
45%
|
46.5%
|
|
2
|
I am attracted to them physically
|
27.7%
|
32.8%
|
26.2%
|
|
3
|
I like their sense of humour
|
13.2%
|
8.7%
|
14.9%
|
|
4
|
I like their intelligence
|
6.7%
|
7.6%
|
6.2%
|
|
5
|
We share similar interests
|
6.4%
|
6%
|
6.2%
|
The results for people in a relationship
708 respondents, men and women combined.
Q: Please rank these features in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
A: These features were ranked ‘number one’ as the physical characteristics participants love most about their partner:
|
Physical traits ranked as ‘number one’
|
|
1
|
Eyes
|
59.9%
|
|
2
|
Smile / teeth
|
22.2%
|
|
3
|
Bottom
|
5.2%
|
|
4
|
Hair
|
4.1%
|
|
4
|
Arms
|
4.1%
|
|
6
|
Shoulders
|
3.0%
|
|
7
|
Chest / Breasts
|
2.8%
|
|
8
|
Legs
|
1.8%
|
|
9
|
Ears
|
1.7%
|
|
10
|
Nose
|
1.7%
|
|
11
|
Stomach
|
1.0%
|
|
12
|
Feet
|
0.3%
|
Q: Please rank these personality traits in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
A: The personality traits that were ranked ‘number one’ as the characteristics participants love most about their partner:
|
Personality traits ranked as ‘number one’
|
|
1
|
Their kindness and/or generosity
|
27.7%
|
|
2
|
Their intelligence
|
22.0%
|
|
3
|
Their sense of humour
|
10.3%
|
|
4
|
How dependable and reliable they are
|
9.6%
|
|
5
|
Their honesty and trustworthiness
|
8.8%
|
|
6
|
How they treat other people
|
5.4%
|
|
7
|
How fun-loving and playful they are
|
5.1%
|
|
8
|
Their confidence
|
3.4%
|
|
9
|
How sexy they are
|
2.5%
|
|
10
|
How happy and optimistic they are
|
2.4%
|
|
11
|
How resourceful and practical they are
|
1.8%
|
|
12
|
Their drive and ambition
|
0.6%
|
|
13
|
How brave and courageous they are
|
0.4%
|
Which matters more in a relationship - looks or personality?
- Personality - 94.98%
- Looks - 4.88%
People not in a relationship but looking for one
191 participants, men and women combined
Q: Please rank these features in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
A: The features that were ranked ‘number one’ as the most important physical characteristics participants look for in a partner:
|
Physical traits ranked as ‘number one’ by single people looking for a relationship
|
|
1
|
Eyes
|
58.5%
|
|
2
|
Smile / Teeth
|
24.4%
|
|
3
|
Hair
|
5.7%
|
|
4
|
Arms
|
2.8%
|
|
5
|
Stomach
|
2.3%
|
|
6
|
Nose
|
1.7%
|
|
7
|
Ears
|
1.1%
|
|
8
|
Bottom
|
1.1%
|
|
9
|
Legs
|
1.1%
|
|
10
|
Chest / Breasts
|
0.6%
|
|
11
|
Feet
|
0.6%
|
|
12
|
Shoulders
|
0.0%
|
Q: Please rank these personality traits in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
A: The features that were ranked ‘number one’ as the most important personality traits participants look for in a partner:
|
Personality traits ranked as ‘number one’ by single people looking for a relationship
|
|
1
|
Their kindness and/or generosity
|
25.2%
|
|
2
|
Their intelligence
|
18.1%
|
|
3
|
Their honesty and trustworthiness
|
17.5%
|
|
4
|
Their sense of humour
|
11.7%
|
|
5
|
How dependable and reliable they are
|
8.8%
|
|
6
|
How they treat other people
|
8.2%
|
|
7
|
Their confidence
|
5.3%
|
|
8
|
How fun-loving and playful they are
|
2.3%
|
|
9
|
How sexy they are
|
1.8%
|
|
10
|
How happy and optimistic they are
|
1.2%
|
|
11
|
How resourceful and practical they are
|
0.0%
|
|
12
|
Their drive and ambition
|
0.0%
|
|
13
|
How brave and courageous they are
|
0.0%
|
Which matters more in a relationship - looks or personality?
- Personality - 92.94%
- Looks - 7.06%
Women in a relationship
628 participants
Q: Please rank these features in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
The features that were ranked ‘number one’ as the physical characteristics participants love most about their partner:
|
Physical traits ranked as ‘number one’ by female respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Eyes
|
60.8%
|
|
2
|
Smile / Teeth
|
14.%
|
|
3
|
Arms
|
5.3%
|
|
4
|
Hair
|
4.2%
|
|
5
|
Bottom
|
4%
|
|
6
|
Shoulders
|
3.8%
|
|
7
|
Legs
|
1.8%
|
|
8
|
Ears
|
1.6%
|
|
9
|
Nose
|
1.6%
|
|
10
|
Chest / Breasts
|
1.6%
|
|
11
|
Stomach
|
0.9%
|
|
12
|
Feet
|
0.2%
|
When all the rankings were taken into consideration to give a weighted average, the overall importance of the physical characteristics were ranked in the following order:
|
Physical traits ordered by weighted average by female respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Eyes
|
60.8%
|
|
2
|
Smile / Teeth
|
47%
|
|
3
|
Hair
|
43%
|
|
4
|
Shoulders
|
41.1%
|
|
5
|
Arms
|
40.8%
|
|
6
|
Nose
|
35.2%
|
|
7
|
Bottom
|
34.7%
|
|
8
|
Ears
|
33.8%
|
|
9
|
Chest / Breasts
|
33.7%
|
|
10
|
Legs
|
27%
|
|
11
|
Stomach
|
25%
|
|
12
|
Feet
|
10.1%
|
Q: Please rank these personality traits in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
A: The features that were ranked ‘number one’ as the personality traits female participants love most about their partner:
|
Personality traits ranked as ‘number one’ by female respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Their kindness and/or generosity
|
26.4%
|
|
2
|
Their intelligence
|
20.%
|
|
3
|
How dependable and reliable they are
|
11.3%
|
|
4
|
Their sense of humour
|
10.9%
|
|
5
|
Their honesty and trustworthiness
|
10.4%
|
|
6
|
How fun-loving and playful they are
|
5.5%
|
|
7
|
How they treat other people
|
4.9%
|
|
8
|
Their confidence
|
3.6%
|
|
9
|
How happy and optimistic they are
|
2.2%
|
|
10
|
How resourceful and practical they are
|
2%
|
|
11
|
How sexy they are
|
1.5%
|
|
12
|
Their drive and ambition
|
0.7%
|
|
13
|
How brave and courageous they are
|
0.6%
|
When all the rankings were taken into consideration to give a weighted average, the overall importance of the personality traits were ranked in the following order:
|
Personality traits ordered by weighted average by female respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Their kindness and/or generosity
|
26.4%
|
|
2
|
How dependable and reliable they are
|
23.8%
|
|
3
|
Their intelligence
|
22.1%
|
|
4
|
How fun-loving and playful they are
|
18.9%
|
|
5
|
Their honesty and trustworthiness
|
18.3%
|
|
6
|
How they treat other people
|
18.1%
|
|
7
|
Their confidence
|
17.7%
|
|
8
|
How resourceful and practical they are
|
17.3%
|
|
9
|
Their sense of humour
|
17.3%
|
|
10
|
How happy and optimistic they are
|
15.3%
|
|
11
|
How sexy they are
|
10.6%
|
|
12
|
Their drive and ambition
|
10.7%
|
|
13
|
How brave and courageous they are
|
8.7%
|
Men in a relationship
171 participants
Q: Please rank these features in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
The features that were ranked ‘number one’ as the physical characteristics that male participants love most about their partner:
|
Physical traits ranked as ‘number one’ by male respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Eyes
|
56%
|
|
2
|
Smile / Teeth
|
16%
|
|
3
|
Bottom
|
9.3%
|
|
4
|
Chest / Breasts
|
7.3%
|
|
5
|
Hair
|
3.3%
|
|
6
|
Ears
|
2%
|
|
7
|
Nose
|
2%
|
|
8
|
Legs
|
2%
|
|
9
|
Stomach
|
1.3%
|
|
10
|
Feet
|
0.7%
|
|
11
|
Shoulders
|
0.0%
|
|
12
|
Arms
|
0.0%
|
When all the rankings were taken into consideration to give a weighted average, the overall importance of the physical traits were ranked in the following order:
|
Physical traits ordered by weighted average by male respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Eyes
|
56%
|
|
2
|
Smile / Teeth
|
46.8%
|
|
3
|
Hair
|
43.5%
|
|
4
|
Chest / Breasts
|
41.7%
|
|
5
|
Nose
|
37.3%
|
|
6
|
Ears
|
34.7%
|
|
7
|
Bottom
|
31.8%
|
|
8
|
Shoulders
|
21%
|
|
9
|
Arms
|
25%
|
|
10
|
Legs
|
23.8%
|
|
11
|
Stomach
|
26.5%
|
|
12
|
Feet
|
11.2%
|
Q: Please rank these personality traits in the order you love most about your partner. Number 1 is what you love most, 12 is what you love least
The features that were ranked ‘number one’ as the personality traits male participants love most about their partner:
|
Personality traits ranked as ‘number one’ by male respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Their kindness and/or generosity
|
31.3%
|
|
2
|
Their intelligence
|
29.3%
|
|
3
|
How happy and optimistic they are
|
8.7%
|
|
4
|
How sexy they are
|
6.7%
|
|
5
|
How fun loving and playful they are
|
6.0%
|
|
6
|
How dependable and reliable they are
|
4.0%
|
|
7
|
Their sense of humour
|
4.0%
|
|
8
|
Their confidence
|
3.3%
|
|
9
|
How resourceful and practical they are
|
3.3%
|
|
10
|
Their honesty and trustworthiness
|
2.0%
|
|
11
|
How they treat other people
|
1.3%
|
|
12
|
Their drive and ambition
|
0.0%
|
|
13
|
How brave and courageous they are
|
0.0%
|
When all the rankings were taken into consideration to give a weighted average, the overall importance of the personality traits were ranked in the following order:
|
Personality traits ordered by weighted average by male respondents in a relationship
|
|
1
|
Their kindness and/or generosity
|
26.4%
|
|
2
|
How dependable and reliable they are
|
24.4%
|
|
3
|
Their intelligence
|
22.7%
|
|
4
|
How fun-loving and playful they are
|
19.7%
|
|
5
|
Their honesty and trustworthiness
|
18.6%
|
|
6
|
How they treat other people
|
17.2%
|
|
7
|
Their confidence
|
16.5%
|
|
8
|
How resourceful and practical they are
|
16.3%
|
|
9
|
Their sense of humour
|
15.3%
|
|
10
|
How happy and optimistic they are
|
15.2%
|
|
11
|
How sexy they are
|
15.1%
|
|
12
|
Their drive and ambition
|
10.5%
|
|
13
|
How brave and courageous they are
|
6.7%
|
