Dating Apps Have Hit a Wall. Can They Turn Things Around? - The New York Times

The apps have changed our love lives, but they haven’t been able to convince enough young users to pay. Credit... Andrea Chronopoulos Supported by By J. Edward Moreno As online dating became as easy as swiping a finger across your phone screen, the companies who own apps like Tinder and Bumble became Wall Street darlings. But about a decade later, those platforms are now struggling to live up to expectations, and investors have grown frustrated and eager for something new. Match Group and Bumble — which make up nearly the entire industry by market share — have lost more than $40 billion in market value since 2021. Even in an age when the apps are a staple on people’s smartphones, the two companies are laying off workers and reporting lackluster revenue growth. Both companies have recently brought on leaders who have vowed to experiment with new features, hoping to capture the growth investors crave. But they face one critical obstacle: Not enough young people are willing to pay for sub

The apps have changed our love lives, but they haven’t been able to convince enough young users to pay. Credit... Andrea Chronopoulos Supported by By J. Edward Moreno As online dating became as easy as swiping a finger across your phone screen, the companies who own apps like Tinder and Bumble became Wall Street darlings. But about a decade later, those platforms are now struggling to live up to expectations, and investors have grown frustrated and eager for something new. Match Group and Bumble — which make up nearly the entire industry by market share — have lost more than $40 billion in mar