New Survey Finds Majority Of Cheaters Find Their Partners More Attractive Than Their Lovers

Is the ”other woman” or ”other man” always younger and better looking? According to the latest survey released by infidelity website Victoria Milan, no: both cheating men and women overall report that the opposite is true and the dynamics of the affair are more complicated. Don’t believe the hype: cheaters who take a lover aren’t always—or even usually—trading in their partner for a younger, hotter model. A recent survey of 4,538 members of the infidelity site Victoria Milan reveals that the classically assumed reason for taking a lover really isn’t at the bottom of most affairs.

Only 30% of cheating men surveyed choose mistresses who are younger than their wives, with 25% reporting that their mistress is more fit. Not even half—42.8%–think their mistress is prettier than their partner. In fact, almost 74% report that their partner is more interesting to them than their mistress. So…why cheat, then? For the majority of these male survey respondents, their secret lovers are more caring, better listeners, and more passionate.

Think women aren’t as shallow as men? Well, yes and no. The same trends are present among female respondents, but the women were actually more likely to rate their lovers’ fitness higher than their partners’. Approximately 25.8% of the women in the survey stated that their lover is younger than their partner, with about 65.7% stating that their husband or partner is actually more attractive than their lover. Fully 50% of responding women reported that their lover is fitter, a bit different than the men. However, the biggest difference between men and women in this survey is that cheating women value their lovers’ caring, listening and passion even more than do the cheating men. 89.6% of women surveyed have chosen a lover who they feel appreciates them more than their partner. 78.2% report that their lover is a better listener, and 53.7% say that their secret partner is more passionate and wants sex more often than their partner.

Company founder and CEO Sigurd Vedal states, “The tired old idea that cheaters just want a pretty young thing to show off is just not true anymore, if it ever was. Our typical female member isn’t a “cougar” just hunting young “studs.” She has a handsome man at home, but he takes her for granted! Her secret affair makes her feel sexy again, alive. And there’s no question that cheating men focus far less on the age and looks than everyone thinks! In fact, it is our experience at Victoria Milan that men turn to affairs to fulfill their emotional desires, not some shallow desire for good looks or a hot body.”