Couples are turning to kinky sex to save their relationships: survey

Is there a kink in your relationship? You’re not alone.

Couples are exploring kinky sex in a bid to salvage their relationships, according to a new survey.

In a new 2024 State of Intimacy Report from Arya, a personalized erotic concierge site for partners, 35% of its users revealed they want to explore kink.

As people are increasingly becoming open to expanding beyond missionary, the top three things that couples want to get into under the sheets are sensory play, bondage and oral sex.

But it isn’t just the chains and whips that excite them.

Many of the 100,000 respondents noted that they want to pair kink with more romantic and sensual play styles, blending passion with experimentation.

And it seems to be hitting the spot.

Couples who experimented with new sexual experiences, including kink, reported higher levels of satisfaction in their relationships.

About 73% of users said they felt closer to their partner after exploring eroticism.

And while the app is available to all couples, there is one group that’s rushing to spice things up.

Millennial women in heterosexual relationships make up the largest demographic of Arya registrations, but their male partners are more likely to continue to engage with the app.

“It may be that curated erotic play is the bridge that women need between empowerment and communication of their needs,” Dr. Laurie Mintz, author of “Becoming Cliterate: Why Orgasm Equality Matters — And How to Get It,” explained in a statement.

“We know that women’s pleasure is important to most men but, given the longstanding ‘orgasm gap’ and higher rates of sexual dissatisfaction among women, it’s clear that men have been misguided by societal assumptions about what ‘good sex’ looks like for women.

“The truth is that men want directions and information on how to be better lovers.”

But it’s not just couples who are getting kinky. Singletons are also increasingly getting into it.

Feeld, a dating app “for open-minded individuals,” has seen monthly active users rise 190% and paid memberships surge 550%, Fast Company reported earlier this year.

However, fetish familiars are now complaining the app has become too mainstream as it’s being infiltrated by heterosexual “vanilla” men seeking casual, basic sex — and putting more women in harm’s way.