17 Signs Your Relationship Is Serious, According To Dating Experts

“You don't need to pretend to be a different person in order to please your mate," love and life mentor Susan Winter previously told Elite Daily. When you’re not embarrassed to throw on your comfy old toothpaste-stained t-shirt (you know the one) or sing Beyoncé songs out loud in the shower, you know you’re super comfortable around your SO. "Your partner has seen your best moments and moments you wish you could delete,” Winter said. “At the end of the day, you feel safe being the real you.”

According to behavioral scientist Clarissa Silva, you know you’re on solid ground when you start openly considering your future together. “You begin discussing what your life goals are and begin evaluating the other person’s fitness in your life,” she explains. Whereas early relationships are usually focused on the present moment, serious relationships require thought about how you’ll work together in the long run. Do you catch yourself evaluating your compatibility often? And are you and your partner talking about it regularly? There’s definitely a future on your mind.

If you find yourself running big decisions by your partner, or when they come to you for help with work or friendship struggles, it’s evident that you trust one another’s opinion. “[If your partner] regularly asks for your suggestions on advice and includes you in important decisions in their life,” that means you’re in a good place, intuitive dating coach Diana Dorell previously told Elite Daily. Trust is essential for a relationship to grow and thrive, and if you’re each other’s go-to source of advice, it means you really value one another’s perspective.

Silva explains that when you've gotten to know your partner's closest friends (and vice versa), it's a sign that your relationship has really progressed. It's a way to have more shared experiences together through your mutual friendships, which "show the level of commitment the person has for you," Silva says. And if their friends have welcomed you into their lives, it's pretty likely they're on board with your love.

When you’re comfortable sharing your relationship with friends and family on your social networks, Silva explains that you’re in a good place. “Instagram is all about celebrating you,” she says, and your willingness to post about each other reveals that you’re proud to show each other off.

“Sharing a Netflix account is a strong indicator of trust and future planning,” Silva explains. It’s a way for couples to plan date nights together and bond over shows they both love. “Having and watching your show together indicates that you want to experience novelty with your partner,” Silva says. Sharing a TV show will build up your bank of inside jokes and give you something to geek out over together while you wait for the next episode.

Fighting is never fun, but it’s part of any serious relationship. No couple is going to experience smooth sailing through every moment of every day. "All couples argue and have differences of opinion," Winter previously. "You and your partner are able to weather the storm and come out on the other side. This is essential for having a healthy relationship and maintaining a future together." The more you learn to work through conflict in a healthy way, the better you’ll get at navigating arguments and coming out stronger.

When you’ve met your partner’s parents, and they start treating you like a member of the fam, it probably means your SO has told them how important you are. This also goes for how your parents treat your partner. “When your parents start buying your partner gifts, that usually means you have their approval and you’ve been the topic of conversation,” Silva explains. So when your partner’s mom sends you a birthday gift, you can rest assured she knows you're someone special.

This goes back to those feelings of trust you’ve developed together. When you’re in a healthy partnership, "you're not wondering where your partner is at night, if you're being played or if they'll be there in the morning," Winter previously explained. You trust each other — it’s that simple. And you can have independent lives and priorities without worrying where your relationship stands.

When your daily communication becomes almost like a shared language, you know you’re in it for the long haul. You’ve become so in tune with each other’s emotions that you can sense when your partner is upset, worried, or angry. "The two of you have found your own communication style," explained Winter. "You know how to read your partner and they know how to read you." Your open dialogue allows you to be vulnerable with one another, which in turn deepens the bond you share.

Having certain experiences set aside for when you and your partner have your alone time might suggest that your relationship is meaningful and sincere. Eileen Conroy, former therapist and current mental health expert, says your partnership is going down a more dedicated route when you develop your own private, special rituals. “This might mean making homemade pizza and wings every Friday night or going for a hike every Sunday morning,” Conroy tells Elite Daily. So, establish your favorite Chinese restaurant together and order in every Tuesday night. These are little sneak peeks of your committed future together.

Let’s be honest, sharing both your financial successes and struggles can be very difficult, because it’s easy to feel judged or attacked when talking about such a sensitive topic. Relationship expert Ian Lang tells Elite Daily that if you feel comfortable sharing your spending tendencies with your partner, you’re definitely classified as being in a committed relationship. By understanding each other’s individual financial situation, you’ll create a strong foundation of trust.

“There is no need to spend your money buying expensive gifts or going to high-end restaurants if you cannot afford them — because aside from the fact that you do not need to, your partner already knows that it does not matter as long as you’re together,” Lang says.

Of course sex can be a pure form of intimacy between you and your partner. However, if you recognize that you both can feel intimate during other experiences and encounters together, this could be a sign of a serious relationship. Laura Doyle, relationship coach, says there’s an intense difference between intimacy and sex, and finding the balance is key.

“When you are willing to be vulnerable with one another without the risk of feeling embarrassed, true intimacy starts to form,” Doyle tells Elite Daily. “It's a deeper, more meaningful connection that illustrates that you are open and trusting of one another.”

Having accounts on dating apps is a regular occurrence for today’s dating community, so when you’re able to delete them without hesitation (if you’ve chosen to be monogamous with each other), you’re definitely in a serious relationship. “Often, many singles tend to hold onto those dating apps for the ‘just in case’ factor. But when things are getting serious, there is no need for that additional option,” relationship expert and certified matchmaker Jaida Pervis previously told Elite Daily.

Finding a plus one can make a wedding or family gathering very stressful. If you get an invite to an event and automatically assume your partner will be there as your plus one, relationship expert Nicole Moore says this is a sure sign that your relationship is serious.

“If it’s just a shared assumption that you’ll be together for the event, or at minimum run plans by each other first, your relationship is serious,” Moore says, “Single people typically consider only themselves when making future plans, and in non-serious relationships, there is no assumption that the person you’re dating will be your date to future events. Once the only possibility in both partners’ minds is that the other person will be their plus one as a given is there, it’s safe to say that the relationship is serious.”

Being your partner’s screen saver might seem like a small gesture, but in the grand scheme of things, Pervis says it can mean more than you think. “When your partner intentionally sets a photo of you on their phone, it's because they want to be reminded of you daily, and quite frankly, they do not care who sees it,” Pervis tells Elite Daily.

Who’s the first person you call when something happens? Big or small, who do you call? If it’s your partner, Amber Lee, certified matchmaker, says your relationship is definitely serious. “When you find yourself reaching out to your partner before anyone else, your relationship is solid. Your partner becomes your go-to person to share life's highs and lows with,” Lee tells Elite Daily.