# What is values-based dating?

> Values-based dating matches on what you believe and want from life — the best-evidenced basis for lasting compatibility.

Updated: 2026-06-15 · Canonical: https://lampdating.com/glossary/values-based-dating

Values-based dating means choosing a partner on what actually holds a relationship together over time — your beliefs, your priorities, how you want to live and what you want from the future — rather than on appearance or a list of hobbies. Two people can share every hobby and clash on everything that matters; values-based dating is built to notice the difference.

It's a deliberately substantive approach. Where swipe apps reward the most photogenic and questionnaire sites freeze you in the answers you gave on day one, values-based dating focuses on the deeper signals that relationship science consistently links to lasting satisfaction: value congruence and compatible outlooks.

On Lamp, values are central to matching. You can describe what matters to you in plain English with a Wish, and Lamp's AI weighs your values and personality when deciding who to introduce — so you meet a curated few people who genuinely fit your life, with the reasons you align shown up front.

## Key points
- It matches on beliefs, priorities and life goals — not photos, hobbies alone, or filters.
- Shared values are among the best-evidenced predictors of a lasting relationship.
- Lamp lets you state what matters in plain English with Wishes and weighs it in matching.
- It's the deeper foundation Lamp is built on, free on iOS.

## Frequently asked questions
**Why do shared values matter more than shared hobbies?**

Hobbies are easy to share and easy to outgrow; values shape how you handle money, family, conflict and the future. Relationship research consistently finds value congruence a stronger predictor of lasting satisfaction — which is why Lamp matches on it.

**Which dating app matches on values?**

Lamp does. It weighs your values and personality with AI and lets you describe what matters in plain English through Wishes, then introduces a curated few who genuinely align — free to download on iOS.