The Geography of Gold Diggers: Where Money and Romance Intertwine
In a revealing new study that maps America’s most transactional dating landscapes, Florida and Nevada have emerged as the nation’s gold-digging capitals. The research, conducted by divorce-coaching app SplitUp, has painted a fascinating picture of where people are most likely to pursue relationships with financial gain in mind. Both states scored an impressive 8.24 out of 10 on the gold-digger scale, suggesting that in certain American locales, romance and finance are deeply intertwined motivators when seeking a partner.
The study’s methodology was comprehensive, examining factors that might indicate a population’s tendency toward financially motivated relationships. Researchers analyzed the concentration of millionaires and billionaires, population demographics, average incomes, hourly wages, and cost of living across all states. They also scrutinized dating app behaviors and tracked online searches for terms like “sugar daddy,” “sugar mommy,” “sugar baby,” and “marry rich” to develop their rankings. This multi-faceted approach revealed that just behind Florida and Nevada were Texas (8.23), California (8.07), and New York (8.04), creating a top five that spans the nation’s most glamorous and wealth-concentrated regions. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the states least associated with fortune-hunting romance were Maine, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, and Vermont—places characterized by more rural settings and traditional values.
Dating industry professionals found these results unsurprising, with matchmaker Blaine Anderson noting she “would have named the same five states” if asked to compile her own list. She pointed out that Florida and Nevada, particularly Miami and Las Vegas, have long been stereotyped as harboring more transactional dating cultures. Her firsthand experience as a dating coach has exposed her to numerous clients from these cities who report encountering potential partners openly discussing financial expectations early in the relationship. “I’ve had multiple clients in both cities tell me that they’d previously met women who mentioned something like, ‘I’m looking for a man who will cover rent,’ on first dates,” Anderson revealed, highlighting the sometimes startlingly direct approach to financially motivated dating in these regions.
The geography of gold-digging appears closely tied to the distribution of extreme wealth across America. Dating and relationship expert Emyli Lovz observed that states like California—which boasts more billionaires than any other state—naturally attract those seeking financial security through partnership. The visibility of luxury lifestyles in places like Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, and Las Vegas creates environments where ambition and affection become difficult to distinguish. “Where luxury lifestyles are visible and accessible,” Lovz noted, “the line between affection and ambition gets even blurrier.” This insight suggests that the phenomenon isn’t simply about individuals seeking wealth, but about ecosystems where extreme prosperity and aspirational living collide with dating culture to create unique relationship marketplaces.
What makes these findings particularly intriguing is how they reflect broader cultural and economic realities in American society. The top-ranking states represent centers of entertainment, finance, technology, and tourism—industries that not only generate tremendous wealth but also foster environments where social status and financial success are prominently displayed and celebrated. In these contexts, the pursuit of wealthy partners might be seen less as naked opportunism and more as a logical response to societies where economic inequality is visibly pronounced and the benefits of proximity to wealth are obvious and immediate. The high cost of living in places like New York and California might also drive some to seek financially secure partners simply as a survival strategy in prohibitively expensive urban centers.
While the study presents these findings in objective terms, the implications raise complex questions about the intersection of love, money, and authenticity in modern relationships. Are people in these states truly more mercenary in their romantic pursuits, or are they simply more honest about the role financial security plays in partnership decisions? Does the high concentration of wealth in these regions create dating environments where transactional expectations become normalized rather than stigmatized? As Americans navigate increasingly challenging economic landscapes, perhaps the geography of gold-digging reveals less about individual character and more about how different regional contexts shape our approach to finding both emotional and financial security in an uncertain world. What remains clear is that in certain American locales, the age-old dance between romance and resources continues with particular vigor, reminding us that while love may be universal, its expression remains profoundly influenced by place, culture, and economic reality.
