Mate value is perceived through signals and cues. Signals are characteristics that have been selected for because they offer reliable changes in receiver behavior that lead to higher reproductive success for the receiver. Conversely, cues have not been selected for to carry meaning, instead they are byproducts. However, with sexual selection, cues can become signals over time. Costly signals are ones that require intense effort for the signaler to send. Because they require high investment, costly signals are typically honest signals of underlying genetic qualities. However, signals that are not costly enough can be faked and therefore are not associated with the underlying benefits.

Evolutionary psychologists have predicted that men generally place a greater value on youth and physical attractiveness in a mate than do women. Youth is associated with reproductive value in women, because their ability to have offspring decrease dramatically over time compared to men.

However, male mate value is partly based upon his ability to acquire resources. This is because one of the costs of pregnancy is the limited ability to get resources for oneself. Additionally, it signals ability of the male to commitment and invest in the female and her offspring. <...> Due to this, females are typically attracted to older males, since they are likely to have a greater ability to provide resources and have a higher social status. Evolutionary psychologists have speculated that women are relatively more attracted to ambition and social status in a mate because they associate these characteristics with men's access to resources.