We all know the clichés: California loves a six-pack, New York swoons for a sharp jawline, and Florida can’t resist a tan. But what if the real deal-breakers in dating are subtler than we think?

We ran a survey of over 3,000 respondents on overlooked physical traits across the U.S. reveals something far more interesting: attraction is often unconscious, and often surprisingly regional.

Below are our favorite state-by-state takeaways, along with some quietly powerful trends that might just change the way you see your next date:

Key Findings

There’s a Posture Belt running through the South and Midwest.

Alabama, Colorado, Mississippi, and North Dakota are just a few of the states where posture ranked as the top subtle turn-on. Not in a military-drill kind of way - more in the sense of confidence, ease, and how a person holds space.

Apparently, slouching your way through life might cost you dates in more than half a dozen states.

If you're expressive, you're in luck.

From Arkansas to Arizona and on through New York, more than ten states singled out facial expressiveness as the most attractive subtle trait.

That raised eyebrow, the unfiltered grin, the scrunch-nosed laugh? Turns out those are doing way more than your Bumble bio ever could.

The Midwest loves to laugh.

Indiana, Illinois, Minnesota, and Michigan all picked laughter as their quiet MVP. But not just any laugh - it’s got to be genuine, distinctive, and maybe even a little weird.

In the land of polite conversation and Midwestern nice, a bold, sincere laugh cuts through the noise.

The South speaks in tones.

Voice tone or resonance topped the list in places like Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, and Tennessee. It’s not about what you say - it’s how you say it.

If you’ve got a soothing voice or a bit of southern drawl, you're probably already ahead.

Virginia and Kentucky are leading with their noses.

These two states both chose scent as the most attractive subtle trait - specifically, the natural, barely-there kind. It’s less about perfume and more about presence.

The takeaway? Smelling like yourself (clean, calm, human) might actually be more alluring than dousing yourself in designer fragrance.

Hands matter more than you think.

In Kansas, hand shape and movement beat out more traditional features. This wasn’t about manicures or muscle tone - it was about how a person gestures, holds a coffee cup, or plays with their sleeve.

If hands are the new window to the soul, Kansans are ahead of the curve.

Alaska chose eyebrows.

We repeat: eyebrows. Not hair, not eyes - brows. And it’s not just about grooming. Alaskans love the story eyebrows tell - curious lifts, playful arches, and everything in between. Maybe in a land of long winters, you get good at reading faces for warmth.

New Jersey broke up with eye color.

The Garden State rejected the traditional blue vs. brown debate entirely, instead focusing on eye shape and gaze. This is underlined by sales data from lens.me as per which the traditional preference for blue colored contacts has been replaced by a trend towards more natural brown or hazel colored contacts that make up 57% of colored contacts sold in NY state.

A confident look, a soft stare, or just the right amount of blink seems to carry more romantic weight here than your iris shade ever could.

West Virginia is watching how you walk.

Walking style or gait came out on top - proof that how you move through the world says just as much as what you say.

A natural, relaxed stride might get more attention than you'd think, especially in the Appalachian hills.

Vermont went straight for the heart.

The only state to choose crow’s feet - those soft, smiling lines near the eyes - Vermont seems to value emotional depth over perfection. It’s the kind of detail that suggests someone laughs often, and honestly.

Final Thoughts

What stood out most about our survey isn’t just the diversity of preferences - it’s what those preferences say about how people want to feel.

Posture speaks to presence. Laughter signals comfort. A soft gaze can communicate connection before a single word is said.

These aren’t superficial details; they’re emotional shortcuts. They're how we figure out, often subconsciously, whether someone feels safe, intriguing, or just… right.

So, if your dating app profile has all the flashy surface stuff, maybe it’s time to lean into the subtle. Show up with ease. Laugh without filtering it. And please - let those crow’s feet live.

Methodology

Online panel survey of 3,014 respondents based on age, gender, and geography. Internal data sources are used to obtain population data sets. We used a two-step process to ensure representativeness through stratified sampling and post-stratification weighting.

Respondents are carefully chosen from a geographically representative online panel of double opt-in members. This selection is further tailored to meet the precise criteria required for each unique survey. Throughout the survey, we design questions to carefully screen and authenticate respondents, guaranteeing the alignment of the survey with the ideal participants.

To ensure the integrity of our data collection, we employ an array of data quality methods. Alongside conventional measures like digital fingerprinting, bot checks, geo-verification, and speeding detection, etc. each response undergoes a thorough review by a dedicated team member to ensure quality and contextual accuracy. Our commitment extends to open-ended responses, subjecting them to scrutiny for gibberish answers and plagiarism detection.