The Decline of Dating Apps: From Boom to Bust

- Younger generations are moving away from dating apps like Tinder and Bumble, seeking long-term relationships and real-life meet-cutes. - Hinge, owned by Match Group, has seen a 14% increase in user downloads in Q2, while Bumble's growth stagnated at 2%. - Tinder's downloads fell by 11-12% in Q2, with analysts predicting no positive growth until mid-2025. - Grindr's stock has surged 120% over the past year, despite a stable user base, thanks to a compelling growth plan. - Match Group, which owns Tinder and Hinge, plans to exit Russia by June 30, 2023, citing human rights concerns.

I have been using the prominent dating apps since quite some time, they work well initially but slowly the experience feels like a drag. It’s just a bunch of connections you talk to and it mostly ends up being a dead conversation. I realised when you engage with users who are genuinely looking to date it’s much easier to meet up since everyone is aligned. My hypothesis is that adding more friction on onboarding (not blindly adding this ofcourse) could weed out the users with low intent and leave you with a high quality user base. What do you guys think is the problem with dating apps in general? P.S: this is a random 5am thought and I had to post it since I can’t stop thinking about it and wanted to hear other, and probably smarter, people out haha 🙌

It's the same story with so many platforms. They start off well, then start making it difficult for users over time to get matches. Eventually it becomes pay-to-match completely, especially for men. Is it really that difficult to run an honest matchmaking platform that actually does its job for a decent price or just ads? Has anyone tried starting their own or worked on platforms like these?

I've seen a bunch of posts over the last month asking for tips on optimising profiles on Tinder / Bumble / Hinge to get to date / casual relationships / serious engagements. Have people completely stopped relying on just walking up to people / meeting someone in person, asking them out and taking it from there? It's slow and requires effort but works better. Zero chance of being catfished. You can control the narrative and pace. Whats with being handicapped by the app?

I am writing this post to understand the pros and cons of different dating apps from the customer side point of view.

And why