Tinder in Trouble? Younger Users Choose Another App

The recent financial report from dating app giant Match Group shows the difficulties Tinder is facing. It has seen a decline in premium users for the sixth consecutive quarter, while interest in its rival Hinge is growing.

Who hasn’t heard of Tinder? Just a few years ago, this dating platform enjoyed huge interest, attracting many users. Even if we ignore the questions about Tinder’s effectiveness in fulfilling its main goal, which is to enable new relationships, it is hard not to notice that Match Group has not been able to find a way to improve its functionality and eliminate the problems related to bots that spoil the overall experience of using the application. On the other hand, it is enthusiastically introducing new, not always clear features, such as the recently added ability to share information about your date on Tinder.

Unfortunately, as the aforementioned financial report shows, Tinder is increasingly losing its popularity. While it still boasts an impressive 50 million active users, only 10 million of them are paid subscribers. At the same time, Hinge is entering the scene – another dating app owned by Match Group, which has seen its revenue increase by 50 percent over the previous year, which translates into $124 million in revenue.

Interestingly, Hinge currently has 1.4 million paying users. This is an impressive number for an app that is promoted with the slogan “Hinge, designed to be deleted.” For those unfamiliar, Hinge is a platform aimed at helping people find long-term relationships, not short-term flings like Tinder. After finding their other half, users are asked to uninstall the app.

Users are increasingly paying for the chance to find true love, rather than for quick, casual hookups. Tinder offers optional in-app purchases like Super Likes and a “See Who Likes You” feature, but revenue from those services has fallen 18 percent. As Gary Swidler, Match Group’s chief financial officer, notes, this trend is becoming more and more apparent. The changing preferences of users could herald a new era in the world of digital dating, with apps like Hinge gaining ground by focusing on longer-term relationships. That seems to be exactly what young Gen Zers are looking for these days.