Do People Skim or Read Online Dating Profiles

Do you skim or read online dating profiles?

Maybe you skim a profile and make a decision to contact a woman or not based upon a keyword, a phrase, or a shared interest.

Maybe you read the profile end to end, putting it under a microscope, looking at every word and making a decision based on a detailed analysis.

Maybe you skim and if something catches your eye, you go back and read it.

Or maybe you just look at pictures and don’t read a woman’s profile. Seriously, don’t do that.

I’m a skimmer. I like to skim a profile and see if we have something in common then I will go back and read it if I see things I like.

I was curious if both men and women skim or read online dating profiles. So I put the question to Redditors and here is what they said:

Skim or Read Online Dating Profiles? Redditors Respond!

“I’ll read the whole thing. I don’t see how you can expect results if you’re not willing to put in the bare minimum of effort.”

“I skim, unless I have been talking to the person. That might not make sense, but it is what it is.”

“My intuition scans for feelers first. If it really grabs me, I’ll actually read it.”

“I skim looking for keywords, both good and bad just to see if we’re a potential match. And I completely read the “Message me if…” Then, if I see stuff I like, I’ll read the whole thing.”

“I’ll typically carefully read the sections I actually care about (NOT 6 things I could never do without), and do a skim elsewhere. Occasionally I’ll come across those really well written, funny profiles that make you read them twice, or even three times.”

“I read the whole thing. I dont have many profiles to read because small okcupid population so its not a project to read the profiles. I probably would skim if I was in a bigger population then if I would be interested I would read the whole thing and then send a message.”

“Reader. I can read very fast, and if their profile is long in a good way, that makes me happy.”

“I was a reader when I was writing messages that show that I read it. But that didn’t get me any replies so I’ve moved to skimming because why waste time?”

“If I’m really interested I’ll read the whole thing.”

“I think this is a fairly common way of going about it… If a person is good looking and a high match percentage, I’ll read it thoroughly. If a person is just a high match percentage, I’ll skim. If a person is just good looking, I’ll skim.”

“I only skim the first line.”

“I skim the self summary and message me sections, and if I’m not turned off I’ll go back and read the entire thing.”

“I have a horrible attention span so I just skim everything unless something catches my eyes.”

“I skim. Then if I find something interesting I’ll read the whole thing. Then message.”

“Skim quickly to see if there’s anything with more substance than just the standard “I love to travel and watch Netflix.” If so, I’ll read fully.”

“I used to be a reader. And I’ll still read the whole thing if the person is a serious interest. But for typical browsing I will mostly read the intro paragraph and will read the why should you message m parts. I skim or straight skip the favorite stuff altogether these days.”

“Skim for important stuff (musical taste, mostly), then if I’m interested I’ll do a full read. In-depth read 3-4 times before I send my first message, so that I can make the best possible first impression.”

“I skim down to Movie/Music/TV if they have that part filled out.”

“A pic will get me to read. If there is nothing to read, I’m out. If there is something to read, I skip to “message me if” and act accordingly.”

“Depends how interesting the profile is. If all they have is a generic “I’m sarcastic, on Friday nights I like snuggling up up on the couch with a glass of human blood”, then I back out immediately or skim.”

“I usually read, but if they have a list of a million books, movies, and tv shows, I’m not reading it.”

“Start with the pics, if I like what I see then I skim the profile looking for dealbreakers or eyeroll-worthy phrases that’ll make me pass to the next.”

Ctrl f (red flag word or phrase) then skim to something that is interesting enough to write a 2-3 sentence message.

“If I start reading and don’t come across any of the usual deal breakers, I’ll read their whole profile. Rarely are profiles too long for me, usually they’re much too brief.”

“I would read the whole profile but in a very roundabout way. The first things I looked at are religion, kids, drugs, etc. on the side bar. The next things were the photos, which I look at in a ‘skimming’ sort of fashion by mousing over the main one. If those things were in order, I would read the whole profile start to finish, then look at the questions.”

Final Thoughts

You don’t know if women skim or read online dating profiles. It varies person to person.

Your best bet is to create a dating profile a format that can be accessed by both skimmers and readers. Something like the profile below.

Did you notice how easy it is on the eyes? It flows naturally. The structure is PERFECT.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is the profile below. It’s an eyesore.

It is big and bulky. Cumbersome. It’s not appealing to read. A few women may read it but the idea is to have a profile that appeals to women who skim and read online dating profiles. This one is not that.

Remember, the idea is to have a profile that is easy on the eyes. A profile that flows. A dating profile structure designed to appeal to women who skim and read online dating profiles. You are shooting yourself in the foot if you don’t structure your profile to appeal to both.



Leave your comments below. I would love to hear if you skim or read online dating profiles. Thoughts?