Over 60 and single? This city is your best shot at finding love!
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Almost everyone will be on the lookout for love at some point in their lives. Whether that’s the first, cringe-worthy steps into dating in your youth, or making more serious commitments when you’re older, finding love is high on most people's agenda.
With more and more people living to see their 100th birthday, it’s never too late to start the search for the love of your life.
But love can be tricky to find, and tricky to keep. This can be especially true for the more mature ones among us. Our elderly care experts wanted to know just where in the UK is the best place for people over 60 years old to find love.
We used Match.com and population censuses to find out just how many older people are living in these cities—and what percentage of them are looking for love.
We’ve compiled a list of the top 10 cities for anyone over 60 looking for romance, as well as the top five each for men and women. We’ve also sourced some quirky date ideas to get you started. Let’s see where your new beau might be hiding.
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The top 10 cities for over 60s to find love
1. Manchester - 9.2
At the top of our list of the best cities for anyone aged 60 and over to find love is Manchester. There are over 70,000 people aged 60+ in the city, with over 1,200 of them on Match.com. Known for producing musical legends, Manchester is home to a range of musical venues—the perfect place to chat with a potential beau about how music has changed over the decades.
2. Liverpool - 8.9
Given how often The Beatles sang about it, it’s no surprise that Liverpool is full of love—or, at least, the potential for love. With over 100,000 people aged over 60, 885 of them are turning to Match.com to find The One.
They say the fastest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, so why not take him to Duke Street Food Market, where six in-house kitchens whip up a range of international cuisines.
3. Glasgow - 8.7
Glasgow is the third best city for over 60s looking for love. There are almost 120,000 Glaswegians over the age of 60, with 849 of them actively seeking to make a connection. It’s a pretty even split between men and women—427 and 422 respectively—so that must mean there’s someone for everyone.
Glasgow sits on the famous Clyde River and there are many boat rides available in the city. Whether you want to travel at super speeds on a power boat or take a leisurely cruise and learn about the city’s history, there’s an option for everyone.
4. Bristol - 8.3
Historically known for seafarers, sailors, and pirates, Bristol is fourth on our list of potential love hotspots. There are almost 80,000 residents of Bristol aged 60 or over, and of those 643 are looking for love. There are significantly more men looking for love than women, 380 to 263, so it might be a good spot for senior ladies' night.
Film buffs who are looking for love might want to take their beau to 20th Century Flicks—a tiny cinema operated by one of the few remaining independent video stores—that will play any film you like (as long as they have it!)
5. Newcastle upon Tyne - 7.9
The over-60s population in Newcastle is just shy of 60,000 people, which is one of the lower scores in our top 10. However, 570 of these over-60s are actively on Match.com and looking for love. Newcastle might not be the warmest city in the UK, but there are 321 men and 249 women on the Match.com market looking for someone to snuggle up with.
For a quirky date in Newcastle upon Tyne, there’s the Victoria Tunnel Guided Tour. This tunnel runs for two miles under the city and has a fascinating history.
6. Nottingham - 7.8
Deep in the heart of the East Midlands, Nottingham just misses out on the top five. There are only 52,878 people aged 60 or over living within Nottingham, and of these only 585 are on Match.com searching for a soulmate. There are also more men than women seeking a romantic connection, with 353 men compared to only 232 women.
Any mature, single ladies looking to find a date for a romantic cruise down the iconic Trent or an afternoon of boating at Highfields will have a good choice of gents to accompany them.
7. Sheffield - 7.7
Just a short distance from Nottingham is the city of Sheffield. Sheffield has over double the number of people aged 60 or over living there compared to Nottingham (over 120,000), which is second only to Birmingham in our top 10.
Of these 120,000 people, 615 are on Match.com. Following the trend of there being more men than women on the site, Sheffield has 354 male users but only 261 female users. Lovers in this Yorkshire town can make use of the Sheffield Botanical Gardens, famous for their stunning greenhouse and enviable collection of exotic plants.
8. Birmingham - 7.5
Heading back to the Midlands, we have Birmingham. Known for having some of the best walks for elderly people to suit every interest.
Birmingham has the largest population of over 60s in our top 10, with a huge 198,596. But of these, only 802 are looking for love on Match.com. As with our other entries so far, men outnumber women with 487 to 315.
Any bookworm worth their salt will tell you that fantasy legend J.R.R. Tolkien grew up in the city, so if your date fancies themselves as a Hobbit they might enjoy a walking tour which highlights areas where Tolkien drew inspiration for his fantasy tomes.
9. Cardiff - 7.4
Leaving England for the first time in our top 10, we have the city of Cardiff. There may only be 70,440 people over 60 in the city, but 414 are seeking a partner. The ladies are once again cleaning up on this list, with 224 men to 190 women on Match.com. Cardiff also has a wide range of activities to do, from a jaunt around the historic castle or a stroll down to the bay.
=10. Leicester and Edinburgh - 7.2
For our 10th spot, we have a tale of two cities. Leicester and Edinburgh both scored 7.2 in our rankings, but they reveal significant differences.
Leicester is home to only 50,845 people age 60 or over while Edinburgh has 106,916. There are 240 men in Leicester looking for love on Match.com, which beats the number of women once again at 184. However, Edinburgh is notable for being the first and only city in the top 10 to have more women using the site than men, with 271 and 248 respectively.
Leicester is a gold mine for history buffs and a key example of this is the Richard III Visitor centre. You can learn all about royal life in the 15th century and just how this mediaeval monarch ended up beneath a car park. Of course, Edinburgh is positively dripping in history too and has a number of free museums such as The Writer’s Museum and Edinburgh Museum, for a truly cheap date.
Honourable Mentions
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The top 5 cities for ladies over 60 to find love
It’s well known that many differences exist between the sexes, but now geography can be added to that list. Let’s see where each gender will have the best luck in their search for love.
1. Stoke-on-Trent - 8.0
First up is the city of Stoke-on-Trent. While there are 3,000 more ladies than gents in Stoke-on-Trent (30,000 vs 27,000), there are significantly more men than women on Match.com. There are 212 60+ male users within the city, but only 124 female users.
Stoke-on-Trent is home to the famous Portmeirion Pottery factory and if you happen to be a collector there is a factory shop you can visit to find this classy crockery at bargain prices.
=2. Nottingham and Birmingham - 7.6
Second place belongs in the Midlands, but it is a case of East vs. West. While Birmingham is definitely the bigger of the two cities (198,596 people aged over 60 to Nottingham’s 52,878), they are similar in that there are more women in this age range than men. Despite this, there are more men than women in these cities turning to the internet to find love, making it much easier for women to land a date.
Both cities are famous for their canals and waterways with both offering prime date spots. Birmingham has a multitude of bars, restaurants and pubs near the canal in Brindley Place, and Nottingham boasts cruises along the picturesque River Trent.
=4. Hull, Bradford, Wakefield - 7.5
Our final three cities all scored 7.5, landing only a hair behind Nottingham and Birmingham. The cities of Hull, Bradford and Wakefield are similar to previous entries in that there are more women than men living in the cities over the age of 60. There are also more men than women using the dating website Match.com to find love.
These northerly cities each come with their own unrivalled fun. Hull is home to The Deep—a submarium home to a vast array of aquatic life and pretty interesting architecture. Wakefield is home to Yorkshire Sculpture Park, which offers a golden opportunity to step out into the fresh air and admire some artwork. Bradford is famous for Bradford Literature Festival, so if you get your timings right, it would be the perfect place to impress a new beau.
Top 5 cities for gents over 60 to find love
What’s good for the goose really might not be what’s good for the gander, as evidenced by these cities that rank high for the chance of men finding love within them, but not so much for women.
1. Glasgow - 9.6
Glasgow also scored highly on the combined top 10 list but is even better when it comes to men seeking a romantic connection. There are many more women than men aged over 60 living in the city, with 66,502 to men’s 52,987, which gives gentlemen the choice when it comes to finding a lady friend. When it comes to signing up to Match.com the sexes are pretty evenly divided, with 427 men to 422 women.
Those interested in ancient history might enjoy Fossil Grove in Victoria Park. Book a tour around the fossils of ancient, extinct trees before learning all about them and their discovery in the small museum.
2. Edinburgh - 9.2
Edinburgh in Bonnie Scotland is also a prime location for men to find love. There are significantly more women over 60 in the city than men, with 58,553 women to 48,363 men. Of these combined 106,916 over-60s, 271 women are looking online to find a romantic connection on Match.com, versus only 248 men, so the gents have the pick of the litter when it comes to finding someone.
Edinburgh is home to the Fringe festival, which is the perfect chance to take your date to get some laughs at a comedy set or see some live performance art.
3. London - 9.0
London, unsurprisingly, is far and away the biggest and most densely populated city on our list. The capital city boasts 1,504,029 residents aged 60 and over, of which 691,076 are men and 812,953 are women. There are 2,409 people aged 60+ and living in London, with only slightly more men on the site. Altogether this adds up to being a great place for men to find love.
Art lovers will already be aware of London’s plethora of art museums and galleries, but a lesser-known place is the Painted Hall. Located inside The Old Royal Navy Hall, at Greenwich, it is guaranteed to impress.
=4. Cardiff and Belfast - 8.2
Two cities, both alike in population size, Cardiff and Belfast come joint fourth in our ranking. Belfast has 31,109 men over the age of 60, whereas Cardiff has 32,101. The ratio of male to female over 60s residents is similar too, as Belfast has 38,739 women in the age group while Cardiff has 38,339.
Any fans of TV’s Dr Who, and specifically the spinoff Torchwood, will be delighted to find there still stands a shrine to fan favourite Ianto at Cardiff Bay. If Game of Thrones is more your thing, then Belfast is home to a range of tours to show off filming locations of the hit series.
Final thoughts
Whether you’re looking for the love of your life, or just fancy some company to try out new hobbies with, online is the place to do it. Some cities naturally fair better in the rankings than others, whether because of population or online activity. But the potential for romance, and romantic dates, is everywhere.
The experts at Lottie had this to say:
“Having companionship later in life is integral to our mental well-being and this research shows it’s never too late for love. According to a study by Age UK, by 2026 there will be 2 million people over 50 in England who will often experience feelings of isolation. Already, 24% of people aged 50 and over feel lonely some of the time.
With loneliness having an impact both mental and physical health, the importance of having a companion by your side shouldn’t be understated—even when you reach UK retirement age.
Socialising is often the best way to meet people, whether that’s online or offline. If you’re not quite ready to join the dating sites just yet, an ideal place to start looking for love after 60 is to join a club whose members have interests similar to your own.
As well as Match.com, you can also find a partner with sites like eHarmony, while you can also find specialist sites for older singles, like Silver Singles.”
Methodology
- The experts at Lottie were keen to reveal which UK cities are best for the over 60s to find love.
- Firstly, they created two profiles (one male, one female) on the online dating platform, Match.com and set the age range of results to 60 - 99 years. They then searched for the total number of users over 60 looking for love in each city.
- Only cities available on the dating site were included in the study, resulting in 63 cities in total.
- Subsequently, Lottie obtained population data across the UK from ons.gov.uk. This was used to calculate the proportion of over 60s Match.com users to the number of residents over 60 in each city.
- A final ‘senior dating’ score was then calculated based on the three variables (i) Population of over 60s (ii) Number of over 60s Match.com users, and (iii) Proportion of over 60s Match.com users to over 60s population in each city.
- The score was obtained by applying a PERCENTRANK formula across all variables. The higher a city scores, the more ideal it is for single seniors to find love.
- Lottie was also intrigued to investigate the best UK cities for older males and females to find love. Factors taken into account included: (i) Population size of over 60s who are of the opposite sex (ii) Over 60s male:female and female:male population ratio (iii) Number of over 60s Match.com users of the opposite sex, and (iv) Over 60s male:female and female:male user ratio on Match.com.
- They then averaged and applied a PERCENTRANK to all figures to create a final male and female ‘senior dating score’ out of All cities were ranked in descending order, with higher scores suggesting a greater chance of success for the over 60s to find love.
- All data was collected on 31/05/2021 and is correct as of then.
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