As a woman, when I stop replying during the talking stage, it probably isn't about you.

(Don't know how controversial this may be...)

I [28F] see a lot of guys on here asking why a woman they've been speaking to on Hinge or any dating app has stopped replying. I've been on and off dating apps for a few years now.

As a caveat, I've had guys on dating apps stop replying to me. I might be confused, but I don't take it personally because of the below:

Usually I'm very good at replying to people I know or have already met in person. I feel an obligation to maintain that contact. But I don't feel the same obligation for a stranger online.

If I do stop replying, it'll be nothing to do with the guy. It'll usually be because I have stuff going on in my personal life distracting me so a stranger online is very much on the back-burner.

Also, I've discovered that when a chat online seems amazing, 9/10 it's disappointing in person, so I'm pretty jaded with online chats. I can appreciate that if you've not had much online dating experience, that you'd put a lot of hope onto the chat with that person online.

So yeah, just speaking from my own experience - if I stop replying when we've not met, it's probably nothing to do with anything the guy has said or done. It's probably because I've been distracted by something in my personal life and a stranger online isn't a priority for me.

(Also this only refers to the talking stage. I wouldn't just stop replying if I've already met the guy, that's just rude).