BLK Dating Study Shows Rise in Celibacy Among Black Gen Z Women

A recent survey by BLK, a dating app for the Black community, has revealed a rising trend among Black Gen Z women: celibacy. According to the survey, 64% of Black Gen Z women reported practicing celibacy, with 63% of those making this decision within the last six months.

This hasn’t come from nowhere – 61% of respondents saying they chose celibacy to focus on self-improvement. The survey also found that 66% experienced enhanced emotional well-being after embracing a block on their sex life, and 87% of those surveyed reported that celibacy had either improved or not negatively impacted their dating lives.

Dating and social apps catering to specific communities, such as BLK, are uniquely positioned to recognize and adapt to such shifts in dating behaviors: celibacy, for many Black Gen Z women, is about reclaiming control over their narratives, moving away from societal pressures, and fostering healthier relationships. This, naturally, also puts them in a position to accommodate celibate users to hopefully keep a stronger grip on those sub-communities.

The trend also raises questions about how mainstream dating platforms approach user values. Bumble, for example, faced backlash after launching a billboard campaign that appeared to criticize celibacy. On the other hand, some sites – like Feeld – have already been adding celibacy as a valid “looking for” option for user profiles.

Celibacy and abstinence from sex are both valid choices that are being made by an increasingly large part of the population, with the wider Black community in particular seeing a sharper increase in celibate dating site and social app users. What this means for dating and hookup apps as a whole remains to be seen.