Relationship Sunday: every little thing you have to know

Relationship Sunday is nearly right here. 

Touchdown within the candy spot between the winter vacation season and Valentine’s Day, Relationship Sunday — sometimes the primary Sunday of the 12 months — is when keen singles emerge from hibernation to swipe on courting apps in droves. The time period traces again to 2016, when apps took discover of the post-New Yr’s Day frenzy. In 2020, Match’s chief courting skilled Rachel DeAlto went as far as to name the day the “Tremendous Bowl of courting apps.”

When is Relationship Sunday this 12 months?

With this sort of advertising, it is simple to have excessive expectations for Relationship Sunday, which falls on Jan. 4, 2026. As a seasoned veteran of each the day and courting apps typically, nevertheless, I am right here to inform you that these hopes might not be met. You could not discover the love of your life on Relationship Sunday — and that is OK.

To the apps’ credit score, there are stats behind the hoopla: OkCupid sometimes sees a 70 % enhance in person exercise on Relationship Sunday. Tinder estimates that 10 % of all January swipes happen on that date as nicely.

The reasoning behind it additionally is smart. Folks could take day without work courting through the holidays to concentrate on household, but the time can remind us of our singleness; December is “proposal season,” in any case. Plus, January is commonly seen as a “contemporary begin,” and daters could have newfound optimism to exit and discover a companion. Throw within the shut proximity to Valentine’s Day, and it’s very logical that our thumbs are a-swiping. 

Someday — or perhaps a month — of swiping will not decide what the remainder of the 12 months can be like. 

Liubomyr Pivtorak, chief product officer at Hily courting app, says Relationship Sunday is not nearly a rise in site visitors to the apps. “We see a pointy enhance in matches and conversations, with individuals replying sooner and sustaining longer exchanges than ordinary,” says Pivtorak. “It is the second when motivation continues to be excessive and everybody’s giving courting an actual attempt, proper earlier than that drop-off kicks in.”

I perceive why Relationship Sunday falls when it does, however I imagine beginning out the 12 months with it could possibly be detrimental. In the event you fail to discover a match on Relationship Sunday, it’s possible you’ll assume it is in some way an indication of what is to return throughout this 12 months, that 2026 is doomed to be like final 12 months and the 12 months earlier than. 

This is not true. Someday — or perhaps a month — of swiping will not decide what the remainder of the 12 months can be like. The preferred apps (like Tinder and Bumble) have hundreds of thousands of customers, and so they’ll be energetic nicely past Relationship Sunday. There can be extra alternatives past the primary two Sundays of the 12 months. Maybe the times in between could also be profitable too! Or the times, weeks, and months afterwards.

The hazard is treating it like a dash, when courting is known as a marathon.

“In the event you’re not cautious, you possibly can burn out earlier than you’ve even began,” says Sylvia Linzalone, courting skilled at UK-based courting app Wisp. “The hazard is treating it like a dash, when courting is known as a marathon.”

“Relationship Sunday isn’t about discovering ‘the one’ in 24 hours,” Linzalone says. “It’s about beginning the 12 months with readability. Use the power of the day to set higher habits – whether or not that’s messaging with extra intention, assembly sooner, or being clearer about what you need.” 

Keep in mind: How Relationship Sunday shakes out will not be a predictor for the remainder of the 12 months. Do not take part in the event you do not wish to; you will discover love one other time. These excited singles will not vanish when Monday rolls round.

You need a potential match that places within the effort, so it is best to accomplish that too.

In the event you do wish to put your finest foot ahead, nevertheless, by all means do it. On Relationship Sunday, specialists advocate that you simply full your bio and embrace not less than three images of your self. You need a potential match that places within the effort, so it is best to accomplish that too.

I am positive I am preaching to the choir by way of managing expectations. Simply bear in mind what Linzalone says: it is a marathon, not a dash.

This text was first revealed in 2022 and republished in 2026.