Having sex seven times a month, never going to bed on a bad note and admitting when you’re wrong have been revealed as some of the best ways to keep the romance alive in a long-term relationship.

New research found that regularly getting it on, being able to laugh at each other and continuing to say ‘I love you’ are some of the tried and tested methods for staying close as a couple.

Researchers surveyed 2,000 British couples who have been together for 10 years or longer to uncover the secrets to a happy relationship.

Turns out how often you get intimate is considered quite important to long-term coupledom, with respondents sharing that seven is the magic figure in terms of the number of times they do it each month. The top route to relationship success, however, is having fun together, with 64% citing this as a major plus point.

Other tips include having no secrets (43%), a similar sense of humour (41%) and never going to sleep on an argument (31%). Equality also proved important, with over a quarter (26%) of the couples polled, saying a 50/50 division of household chores was essential to keeping things amicable.

Trying not to change each other (36%) and having an open phone policy (10%) also featured in the list.

Almost half (44%) of those couples surveyed, claim they are very happy in their relationship, while a further 29% said they were generally happy.

When it comes to knowing you’ve found the one, a romantic fifth (19%) said they realised on their first date, while a more practical 46% said they knew after a few months.

Despite generally being content in their relationships, it seems there’s a limit to how long that giddy-in-love phase lasts with the survey revealing the honeymoon period ends after approximately nine months of being together.

It seems that the path to true love doesn’t always run smoothly, however, as despite 48% believing they have found their soulmate, one in five admit to being unfaithful.

Surprisingly 85% of couples experiencing infidelity have managed to work things out, with 38% saying an affair actually made their relationship stronger.

Researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder found some interesting patterns in romantic relationships. Contrary to the idea that opposites attract, their study showed that for around 80% of the traits they examined, couples tended to be quite similar.

These traits included things like political views, education levels, and some aspects of intelligence. So, it seems like people with shared characteristics are more likely to pair up than those with stark differences.

However, it’s not a complete copy-and-paste situation. Some traits, such as height, weight, medical issues, and personality, didn’t always align between partners. In these cases, the idea of opposites attracting did hold to some extent, but the correlations were often weak.

What’s intriguing is that even when we think we’re consciously choosing our partners, there might be subconscious factors at play. Similarities in shared values, beliefs, and hobbies could be driving these patterns.

So, while the notion of opposites attracting isn’t entirely debunked, it’s safe to say that similarities in many aspects of life play a significant role in romantic relationships. Whether it’s common interests, values, or experiences, these shared traits seem to bring people together, even if there are a few differences along the way.