Online Dating Scam Statistics 2026: How Bad Is It Really?
Romance scam losses hit $1.3B in 2025. Here's every number that matters — who gets scammed, how much they lose, which platforms are worst, and how to protect yourself.
The short version
Romance scams cost Americans $1.3 billion in 2025 alone. Since 2020, the FTC has logged $5.3 billion in losses across 311,000 reported cases. The average victim loses $14,000. People aged 40-69 lose the most money per incident. And these are just the reported cases — the FBI estimates only 15% of victims file a report.
I run a dating platform, so I see this from the inside. We flag about 5% of new signups as fraudulent every month — fake photos, stolen identities, AI-generated profile text. The scammers are getting better faster than most platforms are getting better at catching them.
Here's every number that matters, sourced from the FTC, FBI IC3, BBB, and our own platform data.
The headline numbers
- $5.3 billion — Total US romance scam losses reported to the FTC since 2020
- $1.3 billion — Losses in 2025 alone (up from $1.16B in 2023)
- 311,000 — Total cases reported to the FTC since 2020
- $14,000 — Average loss per victim (median is $2,000 — the average is skewed by six-figure losses)
- 15% — Estimated percentage of victims who actually file a report (FBI IC3 estimate)
- $35 billion — Implied total losses if 85% of cases go unreported
That last number is staggering. If the FBI's reporting estimate is even close to accurate, romance scams are one of the largest categories of financial fraud in the US — bigger than credit card fraud.
Who gets scammed
The stereotype is elderly victims. The reality is more complicated:
| Age group | % of cases | Avg loss | Median loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18-29 | 21% | $3,200 | $750 |
| 30-39 | 24% | $8,400 | $1,800 |
| 40-49 | 22% | $16,500 | $3,200 |
| 50-59 | 17% | $22,000 | $5,500 |
| 60-69 | 11% | $28,000 | $9,000 |
| 70+ | 5% | $54,000 | $18,000 |
Source: FTC Consumer Sentinel Network, 2024-2025 data combined
The pattern: younger people get scammed more often, but older people lose dramatically more per incident. A 25-year-old might lose $750 to a fake Venmo request. A 65-year-old might lose their retirement savings to a six-month emotional manipulation. Both are devastating, but they're completely different crimes.
The most common scam types
| Scam type | Target | Typical loss | How it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advance-fee | Sugar daddies | $50–$500 | "Send gas money and I'll come see you" |
| Fake verification | Both | Identity theft | "Verify your identity on this link" (phishing) |
| Overpayment | Sugar babies | $500–$5,000 | "I sent too much, wire back the difference" |
| Pig butchering | Both | $10K–$500K+ | Build trust over weeks, then push crypto "investment" |
| Emergency scheme | Sugar daddies | $1K–$54K | "I'm stranded / in the hospital / my kid is sick" |
| Sextortion | Men | $500–$10K | Intimate photos shared, then blackmail demand |
The scam that's grown fastest since 2023 is pig butchering — a term that comes from the scammer's perspective ("fattening the pig before slaughter"). They spend weeks or months building a genuine-feeling relationship, then steer the conversation toward a crypto investment platform they control. The FBI reported a 600% increase in pig butchering cases between 2021 and 2024. Losses regularly exceed $100,000 per victim.
Which platforms have the worst fraud rates
No platform publishes official scam rates (bad for marketing), so these estimates come from independent testing, review analysis, and community reports:
- Seeking: ~40% of profiles flagged as non-genuine in independent testing. 1.7/5 on PissedConsumer, with "fake profiles with verification badges" as a top complaint
- Tinder: Studies estimate 10-15% of profiles are bots or scammers. The sheer volume (75M+ users) means millions of fake accounts at any time
- Match Group apps (Match, OkCupid, Plenty of Fish): The FTC sued Match Group in 2019 for knowingly allowing fake profiles to generate engagement notifications that drove purchases
- Facebook Dating: Launched with no verification whatsoever. Scam complaints spiked within months of launch
- Instagram/Snapchat DMs: Not dating apps, but a massive vector for romance scams — the FTC notes that social media is the #1 starting point for romance scams, ahead of dating apps
The common thread: platforms without identity verification have the worst fraud rates. When anyone can create a profile with stolen photos and no verification, scammers face zero friction. Platforms like Arranged that require income and photo verification before profiles go live eliminate most scam accounts at signup — our fraud rate is under 2% of new signups, and those get caught before they ever reach another user.
The psychology of why smart people get scammed
Romance scam victims aren't stupid. Research from the University of Exeter (2023) found no correlation between education level and scam vulnerability. The actual risk factors:
- Recent emotional upheaval — divorce, bereavement, job loss, relocation. People in transition are more receptive to new connections and less critical of red flags
- Isolation — limited social circle means fewer people to reality-check a suspicious situation
- Financial generosity as identity — people who derive self-worth from helping others are specifically targeted because they're psychologically primed to send money
- Sunk cost — after weeks of emotional investment, victims rationalize red flags because acknowledging the scam means acknowledging the relationship wasn't real
The scariest finding: scam victims who are warned mid-scam by law enforcement or family continue sending money 40% of the time. The emotional bond overrides rational assessment. This is why prevention matters more than intervention.
How to protect yourself (specific, not generic)
Skip the obvious stuff ("don't send money to strangers"). Here are the specific protective steps that actually reduce your risk:
Reverse image search every profile photo. Drag their photo into Google Images or TinEye. If the same face appears on 15 other sites under different names, you have your answer. Takes 30 seconds. Do it before you invest emotional energy.
Video call within the first week. Not a phone call — video. Scammers can fake voices but can't fake faces in real time (yet — AI is closing this gap). If someone has an excuse for why they can't video call after a week of messaging, that's your answer. No exceptions.
Watch for the "moved overseas" profile. The classic scam profile claims to be a US citizen currently working overseas (military deployment, oil rig, humanitarian work). This explains why they can't meet in person and why they need money wired internationally. It's the most common scam archetype and it still works.
Never move to WhatsApp, Telegram, or email in the first 48 hours. Scammers want to get off the dating platform quickly because platforms can ban them and review their messages. Legitimate matches are happy to keep chatting on the app. If someone pushes to move to a private channel immediately, slow down.
Use a platform with verification. This is the single most effective protection. Identity-verified platforms have fraud rates under 5%. Unverified platforms run 10-40%. The math is simple. On Arranged, every user submits to income and photo verification before their profile goes live — if a scammer can't pass verification, they never reach you.
The "ask them to hold a spoon" test. If you suspect a catfish, ask them to send a selfie holding a random object — a spoon, a red book, a shoe. Pre-stolen photos can't produce this. AI image generation sometimes can, but usually gets details wrong (wrong hand, weird reflections). It's low-tech and effective.
What to do if you've been scammed
- Report to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov — this feeds the national database
- Report to the FBI's IC3 at ic3.gov — especially for losses over $1,000
- Report to the platform where you met the scammer
- Contact your bank immediately — wire transfers and crypto are hardest to recover, but credit card charges and bank transfers can sometimes be reversed if reported within 48 hours
- Don't be embarrassed. Shame is the scammer's best friend. The average victim waits 6+ months before reporting because they're embarrassed. During that time, the scammer is doing the same thing to other people. Reporting protects others
Date on a platform that verifies everyone
Arranged requires income and photo verification for every profile. Our fraud rate is under 2%.
Create free profile →Frequently asked questions
How common are dating app scams?
The FTC received over 70,000 romance scam reports in 2025, with losses totaling $1.3 billion. But the FBI estimates only 15% of victims report, putting the real number closer to 470,000 cases annually. On unverified dating platforms, 10-40% of profiles are estimated to be non-genuine. On verified platforms, that drops below 5%.
What is pig butchering?
A romance scam where the scammer builds an emotional relationship over weeks or months, then convinces the victim to invest in a fake cryptocurrency platform. The name comes from the scammer's term for the process — "fattening the pig before slaughter." FBI reports show a 600% increase in these cases since 2021, with average losses exceeding $100,000. The scam is often run by organized crime rings operating from Southeast Asia.
Can you get your money back after a romance scam?
Depends on the payment method. Credit card charges can often be reversed through a chargeback if reported within 60 days. Bank transfers sometimes — file a fraud report immediately. Wire transfers and cryptocurrency are nearly impossible to recover. The FTC recovered $392 million for scam victims in 2024, but that's a fraction of total losses. The best protection is prevention, not recovery.
How do I report an online dating scam?
File reports with: the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, the FBI IC3 at ic3.gov, and the dating platform where you met the scammer. If you lost money, also contact your bank or credit card company immediately. Include screenshots of conversations, profile information, and any financial records. Your report helps law enforcement track patterns and shut down scam operations.
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