Dating credit score: What’s not to love?

If you’re looking for a date, what would your minimum credit score requirement be?

Unless you’re taking the unadvisable step of lending this person some money, it’s a fairly arbitrary question. But in the world of online dating, it turns out a healthy credit score has real pulling power.

The trend started last year when an accountant in Boston added a screenshot of her excellent credit score to her Hinge profile.

“All I needed to see — drinks next Thursday?” replied one potential suitor. One TikTok post and a million views later, other Gen Z and millennial daters followed her lead. It became a thing.

On Valentine’s Day, it is set to become an even bigger thing with the launch of Score, a new United States dating app for those who can prove they have a good to excellent credit rating.

If you once forgot to pay your gas bill, prepare to be benched. But what — other than your ability to borrow at competitive rates — does a good credit score actually signify?

Much depends on the kind of relationship you seek.

You’re not going to insist on sight of a gold Amex card if a quick fling is all you desire. But if you’re looking for long-term love, a high credit score could be a proxy for stability (you’re able to pay your bills) and reliability (you pay them on time). In a week where US consumer debt hit record levels, it’s also a sign of responsibility (you haven’t taken on more debt than you can handle).

It is not a proxy for wealth — though I suspect many people will incorrectly surmise that a high credit score equals a high bank balance.

A spendthrift with a bunch of cards who manages them carefully could score highly, yet a multimillionaire living an entirely debt-free existence could have what’s known as a “thin file” and, hence, a low score. The same goes for prudent folks still living with their parents who lack utility bills in their own name.

Could a high score signify that your date is ready to settle down? A Federal Reserve study in 2015 recognised that individuals with high credit scores were more inclined to establish committed relationships.