Why do some couples dress alike?

There are many ways to show the world you’re in love. You can make a proclamation in front of family and friends, as at a wedding. You can move halfway across the world to be with the object of your affection. Or you can dress alike. Some couples, such as David and Victoria Beckham, do it deliberately. Some celebrities even do it without a hint of irony. Remember Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake in their matching Canadian tuxedos? Or Brad Pitt, whose chameleon ways inspired headlines such as “16 times Brad Pitt dressed exactly like his girlfriend”.

Dressing like your partner sends a message to the world that you’re a team, like the Insta-famous Japanese couple “Bonpon511″ – real names Tsuyoshi and Tomi Seki – who document their matching outfits for their 900,000 followers. It also communicates that fashion is a fun activity couples can “do” together.

But dressing alike, or “twinning”, doesn’t always equate to happily ever after. Actor Jonah Hill and his former girlfriend, surfer and activist Sarah Brady, went from matching Gucci suits in 2021 (pictured, right) to airing their dirty linen on social media after their break-up last year. And Kanye West’s attempts to mould the style of his partners – including Kim Kardashian – to match his own are arguably more creepy than cute.

Still, dressing alike can be good for our relationships, argues Professor Carolyn Mair, author of The Psychology of Fashion. She says mimicking the style of people we love boosts our self-esteem and our connection with them. It’s also why humans often seek out partners who share similar physical features.

“Researchers found spouses looked more similar over time and the more similar they became, the greater the relationship quality,” Mair says. “The reason for this was the empathy the couple had for each other, resulting in similar emotions and similar facial expressions, which leads to similar facial musculature [over time].”

In my own relationship, accidental twinning has almost become an in-joke (having a shared love of neutrals helps). Quite often, one of us will get dressed first, only to have the other emerge later wearing the same colour combination or similar styles of top/pants/shoes. Even though I boast the larger wardrobe, my husband – we got married last month wearing complementary outfits, no less – almost always offers to change. If that’s not true love, I’m not sure what is.

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