Tinder is an online dating and location-based app that was created in 2012.

After creating a profile, users can "swipe right" to show they like another person's profile or "swipe left" to show they do not like it. Profiles include photos, a short description, and some interests. To match with someone, both users must swipe right on each other's profiles. This process is called "matching." Once matched, users can send messages. Users cannot see who has swiped right on their profile unless they match with someone. Verified profiles are available for public figures, allowing celebrities and others in the public eye to confirm their identities.

Tinder is used in 190 countries and supports 45 languages. The basic app is free, but users can pay small amounts for extra features. These payments cost more for users over 30 years old and those in developed countries. This is based on tests showing these users are more likely to pay for additional options.

Tinder is not allowed for anyone under 18 years old. If someone under 18 is found using the app, their account will be blocked until they turn 18.

History

Sean Rad started Tinder during a hackathon at Hatch Labs, an incubator in West Hollywood, California, in 2012. With engineer Joe Munoz, Rad created the first version of Tinder, called "MatchBox," during a hackathon in February 2012. Hatch Labs, based in New York, had a branch in West Hollywood. The team later changed the name to Tinder because "MatchBox" was too similar to Match.com. The company kept its flame-themed logo during the rebranding.

In January 2012, Rad joined Cardify, a credit card loyalty app developed by Hatch Labs. During a hackathon in his first month, he shared the idea for a dating app called MatchBox. Rad and Munoz built the prototype and presented it on February 16, 2012.

In March 2012, co-founder Jonathan Badeen (who later became Tinder’s chief technology officer) and designer Chris Gulczynski (who later became Tinder’s chief marketing officer) joined Cardify.

In May 2012, while Cardify was being reviewed by Apple for the App Store, the team focused on MatchBox. At the same time, Alexa Mateen (sister of Justin Mateen) and her friend Whitney Wolfe Herd became sales representatives for Cardify.

In August 2012, Cardify was no longer used, and MatchBox was renamed Tinder. Justin Mateen (who later became Tinder’s chief marketing officer) joined the company as a co-founder.

In September 2012, Tinder was first released on the App Store and began expanding to college campuses.

Tinder’s selection feature, which started as a click-based system, became the swipe feature. Rad and Badeen designed it to feel like a game, inspired by a deck of cards. Badeen improved the feature after testing it on a bathroom mirror. Tinder is widely credited with making the swipe feature popular among many companies.

By October 2014, Tinder users swiped over one billion times each day, creating about 12 million matches daily. At that time, the average user spent about 90 minutes per day on the app.

Rad was Tinder’s CEO until March 2015, when he was replaced by Chris Payne, a former executive from eBay and Microsoft. Rad returned as CEO in August 2015.

In March 2015, Tinder introduced Tinder Plus, a subscription service that allowed unlimited matches, while the free version limited the number of right swipes in a 12-hour period. This change caused debate because it limited how many "likes" free users could send and charged different prices for different age groups.

In 2015, Tinder added the "Rewind" and "Super Like" features and removed the "Moments" and "Last Active" features. In January 2015, Tinder acquired Chill, the company behind Tappy, a mobile messenger that used images and temporary messages.

In 2016, Tinder was the most popular dating app in the United States, with 25.6% of monthly users. Match Group’s CEO, Greg Blatt, called Tinder a "rocket" and the "future of this business."

In September 2016, Tinder tested a feature called "Boost" in Australia, which later became available globally in October 2016.

In October 2016, Tinder opened its first office in Silicon Valley to help recruit technical workers.

In November 2016, Tinder added more options for users to select their gender.

In December 2016, Blatt became interim CEO of Tinder, and Rad stepped down as CEO, becoming chairman of the company.

In 2017, Tinder became the highest-grossing app on the App Store, surpassing Netflix.

In March 2017, Tinder launched Tinder Online, a web version of the app, initially available in several countries. It later expanded globally in September 2017. During the launch, Tinder took legal action to stop third-party apps that allowed users to access Tinder on desktop computers.

In July 2017, Match Group merged with Tinder for about $3 billion.

In August 2017, Tinder introduced Tinder Gold, a subscription service that lets users see who swiped back and offers other exclusive features.

In 2017, Blatt resigned from Match Group and Tinder after allegations of sexual harassment. He was replaced by Elie Seidman.

In August 2018, Tinder launched Tinder University, a feature that helps college students connect with others on campus and nearby schools.

In May 2020, Tinder announced plans for a lighter version of the app, called Tinder Lite, to help users in areas with limited data, bandwidth, or storage space. At that time, Tinder became the highest-grossing non-gaming app, surpassing Netflix.

In January 2020, Tinder added a panic button and anti-catfishing technology to improve user safety in the United States. The panic button sends location data and calls emergency services if needed. Users must download the Noonlight app to use this feature. Before meeting someone, users are required to take selfies to confirm their photos match their real identities.

In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Tinder temporarily made its Passport feature free for all users in March 2020. Passport had previously been a paid feature.

In August 2020, Tinder announced a new subscription plan called Platinum, which offers more features for a higher price than Tinder Gold. That month, Jim Lanzone became Tinder’s CEO.

On September 1, 2020, Tinder was banned in Pakistan due to government concerns about "immoral content."

On September 12, 2020, Tinder relaunched Swipe Night, an interactive storytelling feature. The international launch was postponed due to the pandemic but later included multiple countries and languages.

In November 2020, Tinder reported higher-than-expected third-quarter earnings and growth, with a 15% increase in users and a 16% increase in subscribers since 2019. This growth was linked to more people using online dating during the pandemic.

In 2020, Match Group, including Tinder, added video-based features to help users connect long-distance.

In February 2021, Tinder launched a line of mobile accessories under the brand "Tinder Made." That month, Tinder reported a record number of users ready to meet in person after the pandemic. It also gave away free COVID-19 testing kits to some matches to encourage safe behavior.

In March 2021, Tinder announced a service that allows users to run background checks on potential matches after investing in Garbo, a company that collects public records about violence, abuse, arrests, and other legal issues.

Financials

In 2017, Tinder's annual revenue was $403 million. This amount made up 31% of Match Group's total revenue for that year, which was $1.28 billion. Revenue increased by 19% compared to 2016 because of Tinder Gold. This growth happened as the number of Tinder's paid members rose by 476,000 to more than 2.5 million. This increase was mainly due to changes in the product and improvements in technology.

In 2018, Tinder's annual revenue was $805 million. This made up 48% of Match Group's total revenue for that year, which was $1.67 billion. Match Group's market capitalization on December 30, 2018, was $15.33 billion.

In 2019, Tinder's annual revenue was $1.152 billion. This made up 58% of Match Group's total revenue for that year, which was $2.0 billion. Match Group's market capitalization on December 30, 2019, was $21.09 billion. That same year, Tinder's annual revenue was also reported as $1.2 billion.

In 2020, Tinder's annual revenue was $1.355 billion. This made up 58% of Match Group's total revenue for that year, which was $2.34 billion. Match Group's market capitalization on December 23, 2020, was $40.45 billion.

After merging with Tinder in July 2017, Match Group's market capitalization increased from $8.34 billion to $44.59 billion by October 14, 2021.

In August 2021, Morgan Stanley estimated Tinder's value at $42 billion. This estimate used a multiple of 40 times EBITDA, which is similar to the valuation method used for Bumble. Match Group's market capitalization on October 14, 2021, was $44.59 billion.

In March 2014, a large company called IAC increased its majority ownership in Tinder. This move is believed to have valued Tinder at several billion dollars.

In July 2015, Tinder was valued at $1.35 billion by Bank of America Merrill Lynch. This estimate was based on a calculation of $27 per user for an estimated 50 million users. A higher estimate of $3 billion was also suggested by comparing Tinder to similar companies during their initial public offerings. At that time, analysts estimated that about half a million of Tinder's users were paying customers, while the rest were free users.

Membership history

In 2016, Tinder increased its number of paying members by almost one million on its own, while Match Group’s other 44 brands added 1.4 million paying members.

On August 6, 2018, Tinder had more than 3.7 million paid subscribers, which was an increase of 81% compared to the same time in 2017.

At the end of the second quarter in 2019, Tinder had 5.2 million paying subscribers. This was an increase of 1.5 million compared to the same time in the previous year and 503,000 more than the first quarter of 2019.

In November 2020, Tinder had 6.6 million subscribers worldwide, which was an increase from 6.2 million reported in June.

As of December 2020, Tinder had 6.6 million paid users. According to a Match Group SEC filing, the increase in average subscribers in international and North American regions was mainly due to Tinder.

As of September 2021, about 75 million people used the app each month. In late 2014, Tinder users made an average of 12 million matches per day. To achieve these matches, users collectively swiped through about 1 billion profiles each day. Tinder now limits how many swipes users can make every 12 hours using an algorithm. This helps ensure users are looking at profiles instead of swiping randomly to get more matches.

As of April 2015, Tinder users had swiped through 1.6 billion profiles and made more than 26 million matches per day. Since its launch, more than 558 billion matches have been made on Tinder.

In 2022, Tinder had 10.9 million subscribers and 75 million monthly active users.

As of 2021, Tinder had recorded more than 65 billion matches worldwide.

Advertising

In 2015, the "The Barn" internship program of Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH) created an advertising campaign for their NYC Puppy Rescue Project. BBH made Facebook pet profiles available on the Tinder app. This campaign was reported by media outlets such as Slate, Inc., and The Huffington Post. In April 2015, Tinder shared its first paid advertisement for Budweiser’s #Whatever, USA campaign.

On December 11, 2020, Tinder announced a collaboration with singer Megan Thee Stallion for the Put Yourself Out There Challenge. This challenge offered $10,000 in prizes to users who created unique Tinder profiles.

Lawsuits

On June 30, 2014, Whitney Wolfe, a former vice president of marketing, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court against IAC-owned Match Group, the parent company of Tinder. The lawsuit claimed that individuals named Rad and Mateen had discriminated against her, harassed her sexually, and retaliated against her. It also stated that Sam Yagan, a corporate supervisor at IAC, did not take action. IAC suspended Mateen from his job while an investigation continued. The company said it "acknowledges that Mateen sent private messages containing inappropriate content, but it believes Mateen, Rad, and the company are innocent of the allegations." The lawsuit was settled without any admission of wrongdoing, and Wolfe reportedly received over $1 million in the settlement.

In March 2018, Match Group sued Bumble, claiming Bumble had violated patents and stolen trade secrets from Tinder. In June 2020, Match Group and Bumble reached an undisclosed settlement to resolve all legal disputes.

In December 2018, The Verge reported that Tinder had fired its vice president of marketing and communication, Rosette Pambakian. Pambakian claimed that Greg Blatt, a former CEO of Match Group and IAC, sexually assaulted her in a hotel room after a company party in December 2016. She also accused the company of firing her after she reported the incident.

In August 2018, Rad, Mateen, and eight other former and current Tinder executives filed a lawsuit against Match Group and IAC. They claimed that the companies had manipulated the 2017 valuation of Tinder to deny them billions of dollars they were owed. The lawsuit alleged that Match Group and IAC executives intentionally altered data provided to banks, overestimating expenses and underestimating potential revenue growth, to keep the 2017 valuation artificially low. Tinder’s 2017 valuation was set at $3 billion, the same as a valuation from two years earlier, even though the company had grown rapidly in revenue and subscribers. The plaintiffs sought more than $2 billion in damages. The trial was scheduled to begin on November 8, 2021. On December 1, 2021, Match Group and the plaintiffs settled for $441 million.

Criticism

Critics have expressed concerns about Tinder related to cybersecurity, data privacy, and public health. Public health officials in Rhode Island and Utah have stated that Tinder and similar apps may be linked to an increase in some sexually transmitted diseases. In October 2013, security researchers discovered a problem that allowed users' locations to be revealed. They reported the issue, but Tinder did not respond until December. A Tinder spokesperson said the problem was fixed "within 48 hours." In August 2016, two engineers found another issue that showed users' exact locations for matches. The location was updated every time a user logged into the app, even for people who had been blocked. This problem was found in March 2016 and fixed in August 2016.

In July 2017, a study published in Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing found that Tinder users are more likely to share personal information. In September 2017, The Guardian reported that a journalist requested all data Tinder had about her. The company provided details such as messages, locations, user preferences, and how long users spent viewing specific photos, totaling 800 pages of information.

In 2021, Tinder partnered with Garbo, a nonprofit background check company, to allow users to run background checks on matches. Critics argue that this feature may unfairly affect people with criminal records, as about one-third of U.S. adults have such records. They also say the checks may be unreliable because they disproportionately impact Black people and other ethnic minorities. A Prison Policy Initiative representative noted that unequal laws in the U.S. could lead to marginalized groups being excluded. Garbo does not include information about drug possession or traffic violations to reduce bias.

In 2022, Tinder partnered with No More, a campaign group, to help users protect themselves from domestic violence, especially women, who are more at risk. The No More feature will provide education on safe dating practices.

In August 2015, Business Insider reported that transgender users were being reported and banned for being transgender. A trans woman described receiving abusive messages containing hate speech. In December 2017, Vice reported that this pattern continued. A YouTube creator named Kat Blaque said all her Tinder accounts had been banned.

In March 2018, The Cut reported that a trans woman sued Tinder after her profile was removed without explanation. The article noted that many transgender users had their accounts banned shortly after creating them. In October 2019, PinkNews reported that the issue persisted. The article stated that Tinder offers 50 gender options but still bans trans users based on their identity. A trans woman said, "the fact that the system can be abused in such a way just shows, yet again, that they [Tinder] don't care about the trans and non-binary people using their app."

In late 2019, Reuters and The Independent highlighted Tinder's failure to address the problem of transgender users being banned. In August 2022, The Cut again reported on the issue. A trans woman recommended OkCupid as a more welcoming app for LGBTQ+ individuals.

Reception

The New York Times reported that Tinder's widespread use may be due to problems with older dating apps, which used math-based systems to match people. Experts said users often look at the photos shown in order on Tinder to learn about a person's social standing, confidence, and interests. Marie Claire noted that Tinder is simple to use, feels natural, and can be hard to stop using because of its game-like design. However, the app is mainly focused on casual relationships, and many users are only looking for short-term connections. For those seeking serious relationships, the app may not be the best choice. In September 2020, the Pakistani government said it would ban five dating apps, including Tinder, because the apps contained content that breaks Pakistani laws.

Tinder Motives Scale (TMS)

In 2017, Timmermans and De Caluwé created the Tinder Motivations Scale (TMS) to measure why people use Tinder. They found 13 main reasons, such as entertainment, spending time, socializing, and seeking relationships. The TMS includes a 58-question survey that researchers use to study why people use dating apps like Tinder. The survey uses a scale from 1 to 7, where users choose how much they agree with statements about their reasons for using Tinder. This tool helps researchers connect certain reasons, such as fun versus looking for relationships, to how people use the app and what happens in real life. It also allows for studying dating app use in different groups of people around the world.

User behavior

Men use dating apps and websites more often than women do, both in how frequently they use them and in the total number of users. According to Statista, as of March 2021, 75.8% of users in the U.S. are men, and 24.2% are women. A study on how people use swiping features found that men tend to like a large number of women they see, but only about 0.6% of those likes result in matches. Women are more selective when swiping, but they match at a rate that is 10% higher than men. The study also found that women are more engaged, spend more time writing messages, and send longer messages than men.

University of Texas at Austin psychologist David Buss explained that apps like Tinder and OkCupid create the idea that there are many potential partners available. This can affect men’s behavior, making them more likely to focus on short-term relationships. It can also make people feel less connected to their long-term partners. Tinder’s 2018 data showed that out of 1.6 billion swipes recorded daily, 26 million result in matches, which is a match rate of about 1.63%.

In 2015, journalist Nancy Jo Sales wrote in Vanity Fair that Tinder is often used in a culture where people seek casual encounters rather than long-term relationships. In 2017, a study by the Department of Communications Studies at Texas Tech University examined how infidelity might be connected to Tinder. Researchers surveyed 550 students from a university in the southwestern U.S. The results showed that more than half (63.9%) had seen someone on Tinder who was in an exclusive relationship. Additionally, 73.1% of participants knew male friends who used Tinder while in a relationship, and 56.1% knew female friends who did the same. Psychologists have found that when people see images or stories of attractive potential partners, they may rate their current relationships as less important. David Buss estimated that about 30% of men on Tinder are married.

Before Tinder, most dating websites matched people based on details like interests and future plans. Tinder focuses more on first impressions. For scientists studying human relationships, Tinder provides a simpler environment than earlier dating services. A 2016 study in New York City and London tested how users behave. Researchers created profiles using average-looking photos, some with real photos, some without photos, and one that appeared inactive. All profiles liked others and counted how many likes they received. Men liked many profiles but only got matches 0.6% of the time, while women were more selective but matched 10% of the time. Once matched, women were more likely to send messages (21%) than men (7%), but took longer to do so. Men’s first messages were short, averaging 12 characters, while women’s averaged 122 characters.

Researchers found that men liked many profiles to increase their chances of matching, creating a cycle where they liked more profiles over time. Women could be more selective because they had a better chance of matching. This cycle continues until men like all profiles they see, and women match every time they like a profile. Scientists have not yet determined if a stable strategy has developed, and Tinder has not shared such information.

In 2016, researchers studied a trend called "Tinder Tourism," where travelers use Tinder to connect with other tourists or locals during trips. A 2019 study by Leurs and Hardy found that this behavior is linked to tourists seeking authentic experiences beyond typical tourist activities. Research has shown that all genders participate in Tinder Tourism, but it is more common among women due to safety concerns. A 2025 study by James et al. found that safety issues also affect local women who use Tinder to connect with male tourists in postcolonial Global South regions.