Original Saucy Dates research · 20,238 respondents
Sex at work: statistics on what people get up to
17% of respondents reported having sex at work, while 28% had kissed a colleague. Our international survey of 20,238 people explored a subject that rarely comes up around the meeting table: consensual sexual activity in the workplace.
From office kisses to intimate encounters, the findings reveal a side of working life that colleagues may never discuss openly. We asked people across our dating network what they had done, where it happened and what they thought about the experience. The answers included workplace relationships, casual encounters and the thrill of doing something out of the ordinary.
Our message remains the same: attraction does not disappear when people arrive at work. Spending time together can lead to relationships, and our respondents shared some eye opening experiences. This research concerns reported consensual behaviour; harassment is a separate and serious issue.
Key findings · Infographic · Country statistics · Locations · Survey method · FAQs
20,238 people
An international audience across our mainstream and casual dating network.
28% had kissed
More than one in four respondents reported kissing a work colleague.
17% reported sex
Intercourse at work was reported by approximately one in six respondents.
What did people report doing at work?
Kissing was the most commonly reported activity in the published global breakdown. Beyond that, the results challenge the idea that interest in sexual activity at work is confined to men. Both men and women reported watching pornography and masturbating, although the percentages differed.
Kissing a colleague: 28%
More than a quarter of respondents had kissed a colleague. Outside was the leading location in the kissing breakdown, followed by an office and a store room. A workplace connection does not necessarily begin at a desk: the surrounding spaces also featured in people’s answers.
Watching pornography: 21% of men and 18% of women
The gap between men and women was three percentage points in the global results. An office led the location breakdown, followed by toilets and outside. These figures describe what respondents said they had done, rather than how often they did it or whether their employer knew.
Masturbation: 20% of men and 16% of women
Toilets accounted for 69.6% in the published location breakdown for masturbation, well ahead of offices at 13.1%. The overall figures were close to those for viewing pornography, but the survey does not establish that the same people reported both activities.
Oral sex and other sexual contact
15% reported oral sex at work. The original questions also recorded 14% for receiving a hand job among men and 15% for being fingered among women. Toilets led these location categories, followed by offices. The full tables below preserve the original labels and percentages.
Sexual intercourse: 17%
For intercourse, the location pattern changed. Offices led at 25.6%, followed by store rooms at 14.5% and outside at 13.5%. These are shares within the location breakdown for that activity: they do not mean that 25.6% of everyone surveyed had intercourse in an office.
Sex at work infographic: the original findings
Embed this infographic on your website
Please credit Saucy Dates and link to this report so readers can see the survey context.
Sex at work statistics by country
The published results compare the global sample with the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, India and Germany. For intercourse, the country figures shown range from 16% to 18%. Kissing varies more, from 25% in India to 30% in the UK.
These are comparisons within our respondent sample. Country sample sizes and statistical significance are not supplied in the original report, so a small difference should not be treated as proof that one country’s workers are more sexually active than another’s.
| Activity | Global | UK | US | CA | AU | IN | DE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kissed | 28% | 30% | 28% | 28% | 26% | 25% | 29% |
| Porn (male) | 21% | 19% | 20% | 19% | 21% | 27% | 25% |
| Porn (female) | 18% | 14% | 19% | 14% | 10% | 25% | 10% |
| Masturbated (male) | 20% | 21% | 19% | 20% | 21% | 22% | 26% |
| Masturbated (female) | 16% | 16% | 20% | 18% | 12% | 20% | 16% |
| Oral sex | 15% | 15% | 16% | 14% | 17% | 13% | 17% |
| Hand job | 14% | 15% | 14% | 11% | 16% | 12% | 15% |
| Fingered | 15% | 21% | 14% | 16% | 12% | 17% | 6% |
| Sex | 17% | 17% | 18% | 17% | 17% | 16% | 17% |
| None | 13% | 14% | 14% | 17% | 14% | 7% | 11% |
UK: United Kingdom; US: United States; CA: Canada; AU: Australia; IN: India; DE: Germany. “Global” refers to the international survey sample. The original report also offered further regional data for France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa and other regions; contact us about availability.
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13% selected “none of the above”
Only 13% selected none of the listed activities. That was one of the original story’s most striking findings, but it needs the question alongside it: the list included kissing and solitary activities as well as intercourse.
It would therefore be wrong to turn this into “87% had sex with a colleague”. It also does not tell you what the people in your own office have done. It describes the answers of people who took part in this dating network survey.
Where did workplace sexual activity happen?
The location results show that different activities had different patterns. Outside led for kissing, offices for pornography and intercourse, and toilets for masturbation and oral sex. Stairs, lifts and kitchens also appeared in the answers.
| Location | Kissed | Porn | Masturbated | Oral | Hand/Finger | Sex |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office | 21.7% | 37.4% | 13.1% | 23.0% | 17.0% | 25.6% |
| Outside | 29.5% | 16.4% | 4.7% | 9.8% | 13.2% | 13.5% |
| Store room | 12.3% | 6.3% | 6.1% | 9.8% | 11.3% | 14.5% |
| Toilets | 5.8% | 26.9% | 69.6% | 26.3% | 24.5% | 13.0% |
| Other room | 2.7% | 3.4% | 2.3% | 4.9% | 11.3% | 9.2% |
| Lift | 8.8% | 2.5% | 1.0% | 4.9% | 5.7% | 5.8% |
| Stairs | 11.2% | 3.8% | 2.3% | 13.1% | 11.3% | 9.7% |
| Kitchen | 8.0% | 3.3% | 0.9% | 8.2% | 5.7% | 8.7% |
These are the original published location percentages for each activity, not percentages of all 20,238 respondents. The categories reflect a typical office environment; factories, shops, bars and other workplaces may have different spaces.
The table records reported behaviour, rather than recommending places to try it. Other people sharing a workplace have their own boundaries, and a private relationship does not make a shared space private.
Does sex at work vary with age?
The original analysis suggested younger respondents were more sexually active at work. However, the question asked whether something had happened, rather than how regularly it happened. Someone with decades of employment has had more time in which to report an experience than someone starting their first job.
That makes age an interesting part of the story, but not a simple ranking of who does what most often. The results do not establish frequency, when an encounter took place or whether behaviour changed as people grew older.
What respondents said about workplace encounters
The comments add context to the numbers. Some described relationships, others casual encounters, and several highlighted excitement about the possibility of being discovered. These are individual accounts from the original survey, reproduced in the respondents’ own words.
The recurring theme was excitement, although these comments cannot show how typical that feeling was across the whole sample. A reported consensual encounter also tells us nothing about how colleagues, partners or employers felt about it.
How we conducted the sex at work survey
We surveyed an international audience of 20,238 people across our dating network, covering mainstream dating and casual dating. The main question was: “Have you done any of the following at work (select all that apply)?”
- Kissed
- Watched pornography
- Masturbated
- Oral sex
- Received a hand job, asked of men
- Been fingered, asked of women
- Sexual intercourse
- None of the above
Two follow up questions asked where it happened and invited comments about sex at work. Because respondents could select several activities, the activity percentages are not intended to add up to 100%.
This is historical, self reported research from our dating network audience, not a new survey of today’s workforce or a representative census of employees. The article has been expanded for clarity while keeping the original figures. The original report does not give fieldwork dates, country sample sizes or a detailed weighting method.
Questions about sex at work statistics
What percentage of people reported having sex at work?
17% of respondents in the Saucy Dates survey reported intercourse at work. That figure describes our survey sample, not every workplace or the general population.
How many people had kissed a colleague?
28% of the international sample reported kissing a colleague. In the UK breakdown it was 30%, and in the US and Canada it was 28%.
What was the most common location for intercourse?
Offices led the published intercourse location breakdown at 25.6%, followed by store rooms at 14.5% and outside at 13.5%.
Was this a survey of sexual harassment?
No. The research asked about consensual sexual activity. It should not be used to minimise harassment or assume someone welcomes attention because of their workplace or another person’s answers.
Are these new statistics?
No. This is the original Saucy Dates survey, presented with expanded explanation. The figures and infographic have been preserved rather than presented as newly collected data.
The story behind the statistics
People spend a substantial part of their lives at work, so it is unsurprising that relationships and attraction can develop there. What made our research eye opening was the detail people were willing to share about a subject that usually stays out of everyday office conversation.
The original message is about that contrast between public working life and private experiences. Mutual interest still matters, and professional authority should never be mistaken for personal consent.
Press coverage, sharing and citing the research
This story received coverage in The Sun online. The original research was also reported by Outrage Magazine. Journalists and bloggers can reference the figures and infographic with credit to Saucy Dates and a link to this original report.
A useful source description is: “An international Saucy Dates survey of 20,238 respondents across its dating network.” Please keep the survey context with the figures and distinguish intercourse from the wider list of activities. For interviews, regional data or a commissioned survey, get in touch or visit our press page.
Explore more Saucy Dates research
For a broader look beyond the workplace, read our research into relationship lies and cheating. It covers a different sample and helps distinguish general relationship questions from this workplace survey.
Read our research into where connections begin outside dating apps, explore the sex and relationships report, or compare the findings in how long does sex last? Find more original stories on the Saucy Dates blog.