What is the best way to text a new love interest?

Research has revealed lovebirds in a new relationship spend an average of 41 minutes on the phone a day during the “honeymoon period” – which slumps to just 19 minutes, within two years.

A study of 1,000 UK adults aged 18-44 in a relationship found most are highly responsive in the early stages of a romance.

Are you a no-shame quick replier, or do you “play it cool” when it comes to texting a new love interest? Try this quiz to find out.

Love-struck daters will reply to a text within 16 minutes and 50 seconds during the early days – but this drops to 24 minutes over time.

Bond Zhang, CEO of global tech brand HONOR UK, which commissioned the research, said: “Staying connected via your phone plays a key role in modern-day dating.

“As the research shows, many agree the first two days of messaging someone are crucial when it comes to cementing a relationship.

“And a quarter admit if they didn’t receive a reply two days after the first date, they wouldn’t even think about a second date, which shows how make-or-break that period can be.

“Forming those bonds – whether it’s through a call, texting, or sharing your favourite meme – can help a budding relationship blossom.”

The different ways in which couples interact over the phone appears to fall over time, too, as in the early days people send 15 messages and an additional seven social media posts day.

However, two years into the relationship, this dropped to 12 messages and six social media messages and tags.

As relationships progress, people noticed the amount of time they spent chatting to their partner on the phone dipped around 11-and-a-half months in.

While 59 per cent think they spent more time connecting with their partner over the phone during the early days of their relationship than they do now.

Maintaining contact during those first few months was also important, with a third admitting they were obsessed with checking their phone in the early stages of a relationship.

Enjoying messaging and talking to them (64 per cent) and reassurance their new partner was interested (56 per cent) were the main reasons for this.

It also gave half of those polled the comfort of knowing their relationship was heading in the right direction.

The research, carried out via OnePoll, also found people felt loved (27 per cent) and appreciated (21 per cent) when their partner sent them several messages in a row before replying in the early days.

Bond added: “Most of us are on our phones for the majority of our day, and it’s important to make that screen time worth our while, such as keeping in touch with those who matter to us.

“As the research shows, sending a text to your loved one can really put a smile on their face.

“Whether it’s through WhatsApp, a phone call or via social media, expressing ourselves through our phones has become a love language we’ve all been accustomed to communicating in.

“Nothing is worse than realising your phone has run out of charge when going to send a message.

“Making sure you have a phone which won’t run out of battery life is one way of making sure you don’t have to worry about keeping connected with loved ones, or miss out on a second date.”