Solo pleasure isn't replacing sex, but it might be changing what we expect from it

There’s a familiar story about modern sex… People are having less of it, so they must be losing interest. The findings from our 2026 Pleasure Census suggest we might want to rethink that.

The team at HUD App partnered with our friends at Girls Get Off to survey 2,183 adults across 63 countries about how people experience pleasure today. And while the full Pleasure Census covers everything from dating and communication to porn and partnered intimacy, one finding immediately stood out: People are spending a lot of time getting to know their own pleasure.

Seventy-nine percent of respondents said they engage in solo pleasure at least weekly. Almost a third do it every day. Among Gen Z respondents, that weekly figure climbs to 84%. That’s a lot of people who are actively exploring what feels good!

It also challenges the idea that solo pleasure and partnered sex are competing with each other. In many cases, understanding your own body can make it easier to understand what you want from someone else.

The more interesting question might be what happens when people become more informed about their own pleasure, but don’t necessarily have the confidence or language to communicate that knowledge to a partner.

The Pleasure Census found that nearly one in three respondents avoid telling a partner what they want because they don’t want to “ruin the moment”. So we may be living in a strange moment where access to sexual information is everywhere, but talking honestly about our own desires can still feel awkward.

Knowing what you like is useful. Being able to say “I like this,” “I don’t like that,” “Can we try this?” or even “I’m not sure yet” is what turns that knowledge into a shared experience.

It’s also worth remembering that pleasure doesn’t have to follow a particular script. Solo pleasure can be part of a satisfying sex life rather than a substitute for one. It can be a way to experiment, relax, learn, explore, or simply enjoy yourself without having to worry about someone else’s expectations.

The Pleasure Census found that 75% of respondents own a vibrator, toy or other pleasure product, suggesting that pleasure products have become a pretty mainstream part of how people explore themselves.

For us at HUD App, that’s an interesting bit of knowledge. Dating and sexual connection don’t have to begin with knowing exactly what you want; it’s okay if they begin with simple curiosity. The important thing is having enough confidence to keep communicating as you figure it out.

Maybe the future of better sex isn’t about getting people to have more sex – maybe it’s about helping people become more comfortable understanding what they want, and then giving them the confidence to share it.

Image courtesy of our friends at Girls Get Off.