A woman on a sex dating website began her message to a male stranger with the comment that at the age of 43 she assumed he was older than most of the women who used the facility. He went on to ask what he guessed the average age of the women using the website was. It is possible that some reassurance was obtained with an answer that conveys the impression that the perceived average age was around 37/38, which places the querent only a few years above the average. The woman in question expressed surprise, as she assumed that most of the women using the website were 20 years old. This conversation stimulated interest in looking up some statistical data to give a better idea of ​​the actual age distribution.

In a random sample of 240 women who used the website, the following age distribution was revealed:

From 18 to 25 – 52 (21.5%)

From 26 to 30 – 41 (17.0%)

From 31 to 35 – 30 (12.5%)

From 36 to 40 – 23 (9.5%)

From 41 to 45 – 26 (11.0%)

From 46 to 50 – 23 (9.5%)

From 51 to 55 – 16 (6.5%)

56 to 60 – 16 (6.5%)

From 61 to 65 – 10 (4.0%)

65 to 80 – 3 (1.0%)

Unsurprisingly, the largest groups of women seeking sex were under 30, but perhaps more surprising that a substantial number were in their 30s and 40s, and even in their 50s, even some over 65. The oldest woman in the sample was 76 years old. The mean age of the sample was 37.5 years.

Women of different age groups were found to have somewhat different characteristics, although all, young and old, referred to previous sexual experiences. Most of the women in the younger age groups cited a broken relationship as a reason for using the website. A breakup with a boyfriend was frequently mentioned, but women under 30 did not mention broken marriages. However, with women in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, a recent divorce was often seen as the need to find a new sexual partner. Among older women, some said that premature widowhood had left them in need of a new partner.

Although for most of the women a relationship had recently ended, the majority of the women on the website were not in an ongoing relationship. However, some openly admitted that they tried to deceive their boyfriends or husbands that they were inappropriate sexual partners. Very few claimed to be looking outside with the permission of their partner and another small group claimed to be looking for a ‘menage a trois’ with the participation of their partner. An almost universal characteristic was the belief that a perfect sexual experience had so far eluded the complainer, but was still possible if the right partner was found. The age distribution of the sample suggested that this hope lasted for many women throughout their working lives and even into retirement.