How do you know if your ex will come back?
Nobody can know for sure, and sometimes your ex doesn't know yet either. But some situations make a comeback a lot more likely than others, and that's what this quiz looks at.
Studies on couples who break up and get back together all point in roughly the same direction: what happens after the breakup matters at least as much as why it happened. Are you still talking? Has your ex met someone? Was their decision final, or did it leave room for doubt? In the quiz, those questions weigh more than the reason for the split.
And it happens more often than people think. In a US study of 792 young people aged 17 to 24, 44% of those who'd been in a relationship over the previous two years had gotten back together with their ex at least once. So it's not rare, but it doesn't happen after just any breakup.
Picture two couples. The first one breaks up one evening in the middle of a fight, and they keep texting every day. In the second, one of them had been pulling away for months, made the decision alone, then cut contact. Both breakups hurt just as much, but they don't have anywhere near the same chances of ending in a comeback.
Signs your ex will come back
Here's what makes a comeback more likely. These are the answers that score the most points in the quiz.
Watched stories and likes barely count in the score: they cost your ex nothing, so they don't prove much. What takes some effort on their part, like texting first or asking to meet up, says a lot more.
What makes a comeback unlikely
On the other hand, some situations close the door, at least for a good while. The quiz picks them up, and two of them are enough on their own to bring the result down.
A decision made a long time ago
When your ex had been pulling away for months before leaving, they've often done a good part of their grieving before the breakup even happened. For you, it all starts the day they leave. For them, it's almost over. That's why some people seem to move on so fast.
A new relationship that lasts
A fling right after the breakup isn't necessarily serious, and sometimes it's mostly a way of not being alone.
But if your ex lives with someone, or has been introducing them to everyone for months, the quiz doesn't go above "slim chances", whatever your other answers say.
A clear request to stop texting
Getting blocked for a few days in the heat of anger happens. Getting blocked everywhere, or hearing "don't text me anymore", is something else: it's a request, and it deserves respect. Pushing at that point will only confirm to your ex that they were right to leave.
Two lives heading in different directions
One wants kids, the other doesn't. One moves abroad, the other stays. When that's where the breakup comes from, love doesn't change the problem: one of you would have to give up something important to them, and that rarely happens.
What your result means
Each answer scores points, and the questions don't all weigh the same: from 3 points for how long you were together up to 8 for who reaches out, or whether your ex has talked about regrets. The total goes from 0 to 102 points.
Three answers change everything on their own. A serious relationship on their side, or a clear request to stop contacting them, and the result can't go above "slim chances". On the other hand, if your ex has already suggested trying again, the quiz doesn't go below "a real chance".
| Points | Result | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 32 | Very slim chances | Your ex has made up their mind, and nothing since shows any hesitation |
| 33 to 48 | Slim chances, for now | A few threads remain between you, but nothing is heading toward a comeback |
| 49 to 62 | The door isn't closed | Signs in both directions, nothing is decided |
| 63 to 77 | A real chance | Several things point toward a comeback |
| 78 to 102 | A foot in the door | Your ex isn't far from coming back, if it isn't already happening |
The quiz talks about chances, not certainties. And the result can shift fast: a text, a new person, a new relationship, and everything changes within a few weeks.
And if you want them to come back?
Nobody can make someone come back if they don't want to. But some things help, and others are guaranteed to push them away.
Give them some space
Texting every day, begging, keeping an eye on their stories, asking their friends how they're doing... All of that adds pressure, and pressure almost always pushes the other way. Stepping back gives your ex room to realize they miss you.
Say it once
If you still love them, you can tell them. Once, clearly, without hints and without expecting an answer that same night. After that, it's up to them to take a step.
Ask yourself if it's a good idea
People rarely ask themselves that when they're hurting: they just want it to stop. But getting back together doesn't fix anything by itself. For it to work the second time, what split you up has to have changed, not just the fact that you miss each other.
And if the chances are slim, don't put your life on hold for a comeback that may never happen. Cutting contact for a while is still the best way to stop spending your days thinking about them. If your ex does come back one day, you'll be in a much better place to decide!
