What You Can Tell About A Guy’s Feelings For You By How Long It Takes Him To Reply To Your Text

It’s not just what a guy says in his texts to you that’s important — you can tell a lot about what he wants from you by paying attention to the time it takes him to reply to your messages. Obviously, this isn’t a one-text game – you can’t assume that just because he took a long time to reply to one of your texts that he’s not into you. It’s best to focus on his texting patterns. Here’s how to tell where he’s at.

  1. He texts you while you’re typing a text. It’s always cool when it happens. You’re busy texting him something and he’s already started texting you! You’re clearly very excited to chat with each other and this shows you’re both thinking of each other. Aww. You might encounter this if you’ve just met or gone on a first date and are both still high on the sparks.
  2. He texts you within minutes. You send off a text, start doing something else, and then hear your phone beep a few minutes later. Cool! If this happens sometimes, you might think he’s just close to his phone, but if it happens regularly then the guy can’t resist texting you when he sees your name pop up. Okay, maybe he’s always glued to his phone, but that’s not a problem as long as this rapid-fire texting continues, right?
  3. He texts within an hour or two. If he usually texts you within an hour or two, the guy’s definitely interested in what you have to say and wants to talk to you. He’s clearly not glued to his phone (which is good if you were worried about that), but he’s consistent and keen to build something with you, so you can relax a bit and not worry about where his head is at.
  4. He texts between four minutes and four hours. Life sometimes gets in the way of texting, which is why it’s totally normal for the guy to take a few minutes to a few hours to get back to you. It’s really no big deal. If you sent him an urgent text, though, it’s great for him to apologize for not getting back to you right away when he does resurface.
  5. He texts you daily. Whether he takes a few minutes or a few hours to reply to your messages, the guy makes daily contact and that’s a very good sign that he’s interested and wants to have you around. If he wasn’t interested, he wouldn’t act like he is.
  6. He’s quick to reply but doesn’t text daily. What happens if the guy doesn’t take longer than a few hours to reply to your texts but he never sticks to daily texts? This doesn’t have to mean anything. He might not be all that into texting. As long as he’s making regular contact that satisfies your need for communication, then it’s all good.
  7. He texts between four minutes and four days. Woah! If your guy sometimes gets back to you right away and other times leaves you on read for days, that’s a little unsettling. He’s clearly not consistent and you can’t rely on him. Plus, the jury’s still out on whether or not he actually has real feelings for you.
  8. He always texts at the same time. Okay, this is a bit of a weird one, but it’s been known to happen. If the guy always texts you back exactly 34 minutes after you send him a message, he might think that he’s got to be consistent to impress you (yup, he’s been reading up on dating tips) or he’s a little creepy. You might want to ask him about that on one of your dates, though he might ask you why you’ve been timing him!
  9. He replies but never initiates. Let’s throw a spanner in the works! What if the guy always replies to your texts promptly but never texts you first? This is a confusing one. On the one hand, it’s clear that he wants to chat with you, but on the other, it feels like he doesn’t like you enough to want to initiate contact. Is he just going with the flow and letting you take the lead? Ugh. You don’t need a lazy boyfriend.
  10. He texts after two weeks. Now, this one is clear. If the guy can’t get back to your text and leaves you hanging for days or weeks, he’s not interested. He’s the type who’ll climb out of the woodwork and say “hey, stranger” when you thought you’d never hear from him again. Ugh. If you’re looking for something serious, this guy’s not going to give it to you.
Giulia Simolo is a writer from Johannesburg, South Africa with a degree in English Language and Literature. She has been working as a journalist for more than a decade, writing for sites including AskMen, Native Interiors, and Live Eco. You can find out more about her on Facebook and LinkedIn, or follow her on Twitter @GiuliaSimolo.
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