Match looks to Hinge as Tinder fails
Match Group, the company that owns several dating apps, including Tinder and Hinge, released its first-quarter earnings report on Tuesday, which shows that Tinder’s paying user base has decreased for the sixth quarter in a row. On the other hand, Hinge has seen an increase in members who are willing to pay for the app. Tinder had 10 million paying users in Q1 2024, which is a 9% decrease from the previous year. Meanwhile, Hinge now has 1.4 million paying users, a 31% increase year over year.
The decline of Tinder was foreseeable due to the shift in dating app culture that has taken place in recent years. Younger users are more interested in pursuing serious, long-term relationships instead of casual hookups, which is what Tinder is known for. Since its inception, Hinge has gained popularity among users looking for more substantial connections.
While Tinder struggles to retain paying users, Hinge is on track to become a “$1 billion revenue business,” touts CEO Bernard Kim during a conference call with investors on Wednesday morning. Hinge has seen a sizeable revenue spike in the past six years, with direct revenue growing to $124 million in Q1, a 50% jump from the year prior. In 2023 alone, Hinge brought in $396 million.
