Online dating statistics 2026: users, revenue and who is really swiping
Hinge is booming, Tinder is shrinking slowly and Bumble is losing payers fast. The latest investor filings, regulator data and surveys, gathered in one place.
Match Group paying users by segment, Q2 2026 (millions)
In the three months to June 2026, Hinge grew its revenue by 22 per cent. Over the same quarter, Bumble lost roughly one in six of its paying users. Those two numbers, both from company filings published in August, capture the state of online dating better than any trend piece: the market is not dying, but it is sorting itself into winners and strugglers.
This roundup gathers the latest verifiable online dating statistics as of October 2026, drawn from investor filings, the UK communications regulator Ofcom, Pew Research Center and peer-reviewed research. Every figure carries its publisher and date. Where a number comes from a company’s own survey, we say so.
Key online dating statistics at a glance
- 13.3 million paying users across Match Group’s apps in Q2 2026, down 6 per cent year on year (Match Group, August 2026).
- 8.5 million Tinder payers, the largest paid audience of any app in the filings reviewed here.
- 22 per cent revenue growth at Hinge, to $204 million in the quarter.
- 3.16 million paying users at Bumble Inc., down 16.4 per cent (Bumble, August 2026).
- 1.4 million average paying users at Grindr, up 16 per cent (Grindr, August 2026).
- 4.9 million UK adults, about one in ten, used an online dating service in 2024 (Ofcom).
- 30 per cent of US adults have ever used a dating site or app (Pew).
- 39 per cent of heterosexual US couples who got together in 2017 met online (Stanford).
Dating app revenue: what the listed companies earn
There is no single official figure for the global online dating market. The most reliable proxy is what the listed companies report to the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Private firms and market-research estimates are excluded here.
Match Group revenue and payers
Match Group, owner of Tinder and Hinge, reported total revenue of $853 million for Q2 2026, down 1 per cent year on year (down 2 per cent excluding currency effects). Paying users fell 6 per cent to 13.25 million, while revenue per payer (RPP) rose 6 per cent to $21.13. We covered what the results mean for each app in our report on Match Group’s second quarter.
The previous quarter was similar. In Q1 2026, revenue was $864 million, up 4 per cent, with payers down 5 per cent to 13.5 million and RPP up 10 per cent to $20.90. Across the first half of 2026, that comes to roughly $1.72 billion in revenue (our calculation). For Q3, Match guided to $885 million to $895 million, down 2 to 3 per cent year on year.
The pattern is clear: fewer people paying, each paying more.
Tinder vs Hinge: one shrinking, one surging
Match’s Q2 2026 shareholder letter breaks the business into segments:
| Segment | Direct revenue (Q2 2026) | Payers | RPP | Year-on-year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tinder | $457m | 8.5m | $17.90 | Revenue −1%, payers −5%, RPP +4% |
| Hinge | $204m | 2.0m | $33.11 | Revenue +22%, payers +17%, RPP +4% |
| Evergreen & Emerging | $179m | 2.7m | $22.24 | Revenue −17%, payers −21%, RPP +4% |
Tinder’s monthly active users fell 7 per cent year on year, and its female MAU by 8 per cent, though both declines were narrower than in Q1. Match said Tinder’s daily active user decline had narrowed to 4 per cent, “the best result in 10 quarters”.
Hinge is the opposite story. Its global MAU rose 13 per cent, although in its core markets MAU was roughly flat, meaning growth is coming from newer countries. Match said Hinge is “still expected to reach $1 billion in revenue in 2027”. Hinge payers also pay the most: $33.11 in RPP, against $17.90 at Tinder. Our Hinge review and Tinder review explain what each charges for.
Bumble Inc.: a reset in progress
Bumble Inc., which owns Bumble and Badoo, reported Q2 2026 revenue of $210.5 million, down 15.2 per cent. Total paying users fell 16.4 per cent to 3.16 million.
| Bumble Inc. (Q2 2026) | Revenue | Paying users | ARPPU |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bumble app | $171.7m (−14.7%) | 2.08m (from 2.50m) | $27.55 (from $26.85) |
| Badoo and other | $38.8m (−17.1%) | 1.08m (from 1.28m) | $11.21 (from $11.57) |
| Total | $210.5m (−15.2%) | 3.16m (−16.4%) | $21.96 (+1.2%) |
Management framed the quarter as part of a rebuild, citing a platform migration, changes to its matching algorithm, new ways to start conversations and upcoming group experiences, and referring to “the reimagined Bumble we expect to bring to members”. Its Q3 guidance was $205 million to $213 million in revenue. In March 2026, it also announced Bee, an AI matchmaking assistant. See our Bumble review.
Grindr: the steady grower
Grindr’s Q2 2026 shareholder letter reported revenue of $138 million, up 33 per cent year on year. Average paying users rose 16 per cent to 1.4 million, and average revenue per paying user rose 12 per cent to $26.51. The company describes itself as having 15 million average monthly active users. More in our Grindr review.
Revenue per payer: how much daters spend
Each company defines its metric slightly differently, so treat this as a guide rather than a like-for-like comparison. In Q2 2026:
| App or segment | Revenue per paying user | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Hinge | $33.11 | Match Group |
| Bumble app | $27.55 | Bumble Inc. |
| Grindr | $26.51 | Grindr |
| Match Group overall | $21.13 | Match Group |
| Tinder | $17.90 | Match Group |
| Badoo and other | $11.21 | Bumble Inc. |
The apps marketed on relationships rather than volume, Hinge and Bumble, extract the most from each payer. Tinder makes its money on scale.
Across the three listed groups, that is roughly 17.8 million paying users in Q2 2026 (our calculation from the filings above). Many more people use free tiers.
UK dating app usage: what Ofcom measures
Ofcom’s February 2025 analysis, drawing on its 2024 Online Nation report, found 4.9 million UK adults, about one in ten, used an online dating service in 2024. Tinder lost 600,000 users (5 per cent) and Bumble Inc. lost 300,000.
The top services by monthly reach in May 2024 were:
| Service | UK monthly reach (May 2024) |
|---|---|
| Tinder | 1.9m |
| Hinge | 1.4m |
| Bumble | 1.1m |
| Grindr | 913,000 |
| Badoo | 521,000 |
Men made up 65 per cent of dating app audiences. Hinge was the only top-ten service where women outnumbered men, 53 to 47 per cent. One in five 18 to 24-year-olds used a dating service, the highest reach of any adult age group. Most users use more than one app: 56 per cent of Hinge visitors also visited Tinder.
The decline continued into 2025. Ofcom’s Online Nation 2025 report, using Ipsos iris audience data, shows Tinder reaching 3 per cent of UK online adults in May 2025, down from 4 per cent in 2024 and 5 per cent in 2023. It remained the UK’s top-reaching dating service. Our research on dating app fatigue looks at why.
Who uses dating apps: US demographics from Pew
Pew Research Center’s detailed study of online dating, published in February 2023, surveyed 6,034 US adults between 5 and 17 July 2022.
By age, share who have ever used a dating site or app:
| Age | Ever used |
|---|---|
| 18–29 | 53% |
| 30–49 | 37% |
| 50–64 | 20% |
| 65+ | 13% |
| All adults | 30% |
Use was markedly higher among lesbian, gay and bisexual adults (51 per cent) than straight adults (28 per cent). Just 9 per cent had used one in the past year.
Experiences split almost evenly: 53 per cent of users described them as positive and 46 per cent as negative. The gender gap is sharp. Some 57 per cent of men reported a positive experience, against 48 per cent of women.
How many relationships start online?
The best-known estimate comes from Stanford sociologist Michael Rosenfeld and co-author Sonia Hausen. Their study, published in PNAS in August 2019 and based on a nationally representative 2017 survey, found about 39 per cent of heterosexual couples who got together in 2017 met online, up from 22 per cent in 2009.
Pew’s figures look lower because they measure something different: all current relationships, including decades-old marriages. In its 2022 survey, one in ten partnered adults had met their partner online, rising to one in five among partnered adults under 30 and 24 per cent among partnered LGB adults. We explore this further in how couples meet.
Paying for online dating
Among Americans who had used a dating site or app, Pew found 35 per cent had paid for one. Men (41 per cent) were more likely to pay than women (29 per cent), as were users aged 30 and over (41 per cent) compared with under-30s (22 per cent). Paying users were more likely to report positive experiences: 58 per cent, against about half of those who had never paid.
AI and online dating: the newest statistic to watch
Match’s Singles in America 2025 study, funded by Match, run with the Kinsey Institute and fielded by Dynata among 5,001 US singles, found 26 per cent were using AI to enhance their dating lives, a 333 per cent rise in a year. Separately, Pew’s February 2026 survey of 5,119 US adults found 4 per cent use AI chatbots for companionship. Our full report on AI in dating unpacks both.
Reading the numbers: our analysis
Three conclusions stand out from the 2026 data.
Fewer payers, higher prices. Match Group’s payer numbers fell in both quarters of 2026 reported so far, while revenue per payer climbed. That works only as long as the remaining users feel the premium is worth it.
Intent is winning. Hinge and Grindr, both growing, serve users who know what they are looking for. The broad, casual-swipe model is where audiences are thinning, in the UK as in the US.
Trust is now a growth metric. Match reports verification gains in the same letters as revenue. With UK police recording more than £102 million in romance fraud losses in 2025, safety is no longer just a policy page. Our romance scam statistics set out the detail, and our best dating apps ranking weighs verification alongside price.
Frequently asked questions
How many people use dating apps?
Ofcom found 4.9 million UK adults, about one in ten, used an online dating service in 2024. In the US, Pew found 30 per cent of adults have ever used a dating site or app, rising to 53 per cent of under-30s.
How many people pay for dating apps?
Match Group reported 13.3 million payers in Q2 2026, Bumble Inc. 3.16 million and Grindr 1.4 million: roughly 17.8 million across the three listed groups.
What percentage of couples meet online?
A Stanford study published in 2019 found 39 per cent of heterosexual US couples who got together in 2017 met online. Pew found one in ten of all partnered US adults met their partner online, and one in five of those under 30.
Which dating app makes the most money?
Tinder, with $457 million in direct revenue in Q2 2026. Hinge is growing fastest among the large apps, with revenue up 22 per cent to $204 million.
Is online dating declining?
Usage of the biggest swipe apps is falling: Tinder’s MAU fell 7 per cent in Q2 2026 and its UK reach dropped from 5 to 3 per cent of online adults between 2023 and 2025. Hinge and Grindr, however, are still growing.
Sources
- Match Group, Q2 2026 results press release (4 August 2026): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0000891103/000089110326000128/mtch8-k20260804ex991.htm
- Match Group, Q2 2026 shareholder letter (4 August 2026): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0000891103/000089110326000128/mtch8-k20260804ex992.htm
- Match Group, Q1 2026 shareholder letter (5 May 2026): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0000891103/000089110326000072/mtch8-k20260505ex992.htm
- Bumble Inc., Q2 2026 results (5 August 2026): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001830043/000183004326000099/bmbl-ex991prxq22026.htm
- TechCrunch, Bumble introduces AI assistant Bee (12 March 2026): https://techcrunch.com/2026/03/12/bumble-introduces-an-ai-dating-assistant-bee/
- Grindr, Q2 2026 shareholder letter (6 August 2026): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001820144/000182014426000023/shl_q2x2026xfinal.htm
- Ofcom, “‘Appy Valentine’s Day: top online dating trends revealed” (14 February 2025): https://ofcom.org.uk/media-use-and-attitudes/online-habits/appy-valentines-day-top-online-dating-trends-revealed
- Ofcom, Online Nation 2025 report (10 December 2025): https://www.ofcom.org.uk/siteassets/resources/documents/research-and-data/online-research/online-nation/2025/online-nations-report-2025.pdf?v=409837
- Pew Research Center, “Key findings about online dating in the U.S.” (2 February 2023): https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/02/02/key-findings-about-online-dating-in-the-u-s/
- Stanford University news report on Rosenfeld and Hausen’s PNAS study (21 August 2019): https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2019/08/online-dating-popular-way-u-s-couples-meet
- Match and the Kinsey Institute, Singles in America 2025 (10 June 2025): https://match.mediaroom.com/2025-06-10-Match-and-The-Kinsey-Institute-Unveil-14th-Annual-Singles-in-America-Study
- Pew Research Center, “Americans and AI 2026” (17 June 2026): https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2026/06/17/americans-and-ai-2026-chatbots-smart-devices-and-views-on-impact/
- City of London Police, romance fraud figures (5 May 2026): https://www.cityoflondon.police.uk/news/city-of-london/news/2026/may/romance-fraud-costs-uk-victims-102-million-in-a-year-as-reports-surge-by-nearly-a-third
