21 Signs He Has a Girlfriend & Is Taken Even If He’s Hitting On You

Maybe you just met him, or maybe you’re already dating. Either way, you are wondering about the signs he has a girlfriend. Here’s what you need to know.

You just met this guy, and you could see yourself falling for him. But he isn’t very forthcoming about whether he’s single or taken. Whether or not he’s purposefully being evasive or it’s just accidental, you want to know the signs he has a girlfriend before you pursue him any further.

It’s not like anyone wears a badge or a sign at all times screaming, “I’m in a relationship! I’m taken! Don’t get your hope up!” And if he’s not married and wearing a wedding ring, it can be difficult to figure out whether or not he has a girlfriend. 

Or maybe you’re already dating him and are suspicious that he might already have a girlfriend. Either way, you’ll need to know the signs to look for.

So, let’s start with the signs he has a girlfriend when you just met him.

[Read: Does he like me? 41 subtle signs and body language guys can’t hide]

Signs he has a girlfriend when you don’t know him very well

Some of these signs can be tricky to watch out for, but this is a good start. If you just met a guy or have recently started hanging out with him, here are the clues to look for. After all, you’ve just met him and chances are, he’s being nice and you like him.

But of course, there are other sneaky signs he’s clearly trying to hide the fact that he’s dating someone else. And we’ll get to those below!

1. How does he behave around you? 

The first place to start is to look for how he acts when he’s around you. Guys aren’t always upfront about having a girlfriend. So, you have to pay attention to whether he uses words like “us” or “we” when he’s talking about what he’s doing in his life. 

Another behavior is if he doesn’t flirt with you when you try to flirt with him. Either he’s not interested in you, or he has a girlfriend. He might be nice and polite, but just not flirty. So, don’t confuse the two.

2. Watch his body language around everyone

Some people are natural flirts, and their body language shows it. There are a lot of guys who like to hug and touch girls that they’re not dating. So, if he avoids your attempts to hug him or sit close to him, then he might be in a relationship. [Read: What does babe mean when it comes from someone you like?]

You don’t want to force any physical “intimacy” with him. Don’t make him hold your hand or do anything. He might turn away or back away from you if he’s taken. Just follow his lead and then you’ll know.

3. Figure out how he spends his time

When a guy has a girlfriend, he will usually spend most of his time with her. But if he mostly talks about how he is hanging out with his guy friends, then he might not be taken.

So, if you ask him what he’s doing this weekend and he says he’s free, that’s a good sign that he probably doesn’t have a girlfriend.

4. Stalk his social media

This might be one of the easiest ways to find out if he has a girlfriend without directly asking him. Look at what he says he did on the weekends. Check out his pictures and see if there is anyone who stands out.

If you see him with his hands all over a girl – the same girl – then that is a big sign that he already has a girlfriend. [Read: How to stalk on social media and find just what you’re looking for]

You can also check out his tagged photos or friends’ pages too. Sometimes guys don’t post a lot of photos or relationship-related things on social media, but their friends might post them for them.

But just be sure that you don’t accidentally like or comment on any of them because he’ll know you’re stalking him! 

5. Check his phone

As much as you can, get some glances at his phone. What does his background look like? Is it generic or is it a photo of him and a girl? You could ask to borrow his phone for something, and then sneakily peek at his photo albums and texts.

You can say that your phone’s battery died and you have to make an important call. This will make you look less suspicious. But don’t abuse his privacy or log into anything without permission because you don’t want to get caught. [Read: When you’re single AF – 13 experiences that are all too familiar]

6. Ask him

Instead of trying to act like a detective, you could take the simple, direct and easier route. Just ask him! You don’t have to ask him in a way that it shows that you are interested in him.

Try to direct the conversation to relationships and then causally ask him if he is in one. It’s not always the most comfortable way to do it, but it might be the most effective. [Read: How to ask a guy if he’s seeing someone else and the signs to look for]

Now that we’ve talked about the signs he has a girlfriend when you first meet a guy, let’s talk about the signs to look for if you’re already dating him.

15 signs the guy you’re dating has another girlfriend already

Ladies, listen up. You’ve been dating this guy for a while now and so far, everything’s great. But somewhere down the line, you notice that something’s not right. Your new man’s behavior seems a little off and you can’t put a finger on what exactly is the matter.

You tell yourself you’re just imagining things; that you’re just so used to being burned before that you always want to find something wrong when everything just feels so right. Well, for one, he’s such an eligible bachelor and you can’t even believe such a wonderful guy hasn’t been taken yet.

Or is he with someone else, like a girlfriend, other than you? Is the guy you’re dating really already taken?

It sucks to even consider the possibility that the guy you’re slowly falling for may already be dating someone else. But then again, it’s always better safe than sorry, isn’t it? [Read: 22 early warning signs of a bad boyfriend]

Here we give you a few signs to look out for to know if your Mr. Right is already someone else’s mister and you are, in fact, that other woman.

1. Unanswered phone calls

This is one of the most common red flags to watch out for when you’re looking for signs he has a girlfriend. It’s common for people in relationships to want to call each other just to check in or say “Hi” but when you do this to your guy, he doesn’t answer the phone.

Often, guys in a relationship would only prefer to text and would only answer your call at certain times of the day, especially when he’s at work. When he’s home, he rejects your calls or even turns his phone off.

2. Where’s your phone?

Aside from the mystery of the unanswered phone calls, he is also very secretive when it comes to his phone. He keeps it hidden or out of your reach whenever he’s with you.

He doesn’t answer calls on his phone when you’re around, or when he does, he goes outside or moves to another room. He also keeps it password-protected. [Read: 20 clear signs you can’t trust the guy you’re dating]

3. Pseudonym

Your name is stored with a different name or some cryptic pseudonym on his phone. This alone should raise red flags.

A guy who hides your name under a different name on his phone definitely has something to hide, more specifically another woman who checks on his phone too.

4. Weekend bubble

He is never available on weekends. Whenever you ask him, he tells you he has to work on weekends or some other excuse.

You also notice that there are certain times when he is unavailable. That is one of the biggest signs he has a girlfriend.

5. Holiday hoopla

Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and even Valentine’s have come and gone and yet, he never spends the holidays with you. Again, he tells you he has to work or has to be out of town.

Even if he tries to make up for missing out on the holidays with you by giving you gifts, a guy who can’t spend any holiday with you may be spending it somewhere else—with someone else. [Read: How to fix that nagging suspicion that your partner’s cheating on you]

6. Always your place

He always shows up at your doorstep at the most unexpected times. You find it utterly romantic—that is until you suggested a change.

You asked him if you can spend the night at his place and he gives you what you know is a lame excuse. That’s when you realize he never really invited you over.

7. Compartmentalized

He has successfully isolated you and your relationship from every aspect of his life. You don’t know any of his friends or family, and you can’t even see him at work.

It feels like you are compartmentalized and isolated, and you begin to wonder if he’s hiding something from you, or if he is, in fact, hiding you.

8. In and out

While you regularly see each other, you don’t spend more than 3 hours together. He also very rarely spends the night at your place, making you think that he just goes in and out of your life whenever he feels like it.

He’s probably less concerned about you, but more about saving his time and energy for his real commitment, his girlfriend. [Read: 16 small and subtle signs he’s probably with another woman]

9. No family

He tells you he has no family, and won’t talk about his family or even his friends with you. This is one of the big signs he has a girlfriend.

Come to think of it, he never even introduced you to any of his family while you have already taken him to visit your whole clan.

10. Too much privacy – on dates

You like that he takes you out to these hole-in-the-wall restaurants and you enjoy the privacy in some isolated booths so you can play footsies and even sneak in a few kisses. However, you start to wonder why he keeps dating you in these places and not in more public places?

11. Wallet watch

Have you ever seen the inside of his wallet? Most guys who have a girlfriend *or wife* would have their lady’s photo in their wallet, or on their cell phones. If he’s very dodgy about showing you his, then he may be hiding something you should be alarmed about. [Read: Love triangles and its confusing complications]

12. He’s not social

He says he doesn’t have a social media account. But upon further investigation, you find out that he, in fact, does have a Facebook page. It is set in the most private setting ever and he doesn’t even add your invitation to be friends. He defends that he doesn’t do much Facebook, but you discreetly notice he has the app installed on his phone.

13. Post no pics

You know that if it’s not on Facebook, it didn’t happen, right? So going back to social media, your guy doesn’t want you to post any of your pictures together on your own Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. In fact, he entirely avoids being in the frame with you during a selfie break.

14. Ring-a-ling! 

Of course, you will never go out with a married guy! And he came along looking single and available. You would know because he’s not wearing a ring. However, have you tried looking closely enough?

There may be a patch of paler skin on his ring finger, where a wedding band should be unless he takes it off whenever he’s with you.

Sometimes, some things are just too good to be true. And some men are just too good to be single.

So if the signs above check out with your man, you better check out of the relationship while you still have a lot of dignity left. Besides, going out with an already taken man *not to mention if he’s already married* is like inviting trouble. [Read: Backburner babe – 14 signs you’re just his backup lover]

15. The biggest sign of all! 

What you can do to really find out if he is already taken and you’re just his side girl is to take the proactive route.

Shower yourself with bucketfuls of perfume and be all over him. You can also overdo it on the lipstick and kiss him all over—and make sure you get some tint on his clothes too.

To further up the ante, you can also make out with him and then put a hickey on any part of his body, preferably his neck and chest. If he gets nervous or even flips out, then that’s your cue. If he doesn’t have a woman waiting for him at home, who cares, right?

[Read: 18 foolproof ingenious ways to catch a cheating partner]

Almost always, on the whole, one of the best signs he has a girlfriend already is to listen to your instincts. If you have even the smallest hint of suspicion, use these signs to confirm them for you.