Most couples view sexual satisfaction as crucial for the maintenance of romantic relationships, yet our understanding of a person’s sexual ideals (i.e., the traits and attributes a person desires in a sexual partner) and what might buffer against the lower satisfaction associated with unmet sexual ideals, is limited. One factor that may help couples manage unmet ideals is sexual communal strength (SCS)—the motivation to be responsive to a partner's sexual needs. In past work using cross-sectional, dyadic, and longitudinal methods, we have shown that unmet sexual ideals are associated with lower sexual and relationship satisfaction, however, having a partner who was high in SCS buffered these effects. In the current research (N = 618) we experimentally manipulated perceptions of one’s sexual ideals being met by their partner and perceptions of their partner’s SCS. People who were led to believe that their partner did not meet their sexual ideals reported lower sexual and relationship satisfaction, however, those who were primed to perceive their partner as responsive to their sexual needs reported greater satisfaction (post-manipulation) than those who were led to believe their partner was low in SCS and to a control condition. Furthermore, people who perceived their partner as highly responsive to their sexual needs reported the same levels of satisfaction when they were told they had unmet sexual ideals as when their sexual ideals were met. Our results provide novel evidence of the deleterious effects of unmet sexual ideals for relationships and suggest that SCS can help buffer these detriments among partners.