Written by Zoe Han
Dating Sunday is the busiest time of year for dating apps. But unlimited likes come at a price.
If finding love is on your New Year’s resolution list, this weekend might be your best chance to find a partner on a dating app. But it can be costly.
Dating platforms refer to the first Sunday of the year as “Dating Sunday.” This is because dating apps will see a surge in traffic as the holiday season ends and people are looking for love.
Tinder (MTCH) expects messages and likes to increase by 22% and 18.2% compared to other Sundays of the year. The company says responses to messages are also faster, about 19.4 minutes faster than average. The same goes for Coffee Meets Bagel, a dating platform dedicated to helping users find long-term relationships. Date Sunday’s 2022 registrations increased by 47% compared to his previous 30 days.
But even before you get to the stage of meeting in person over dinner and drinks, finding love comes at a price. Many matching app users have to pay a monthly fee if they want to match and interact as much as they want.
For example, if Tinder users want to interact with other users without restrictions, they must pay at least $7.99 per month for a Plus account. If you want to see who likes you on the app, you’ll have to pay $24.99 for Tinder Gold. Tinder Platinum’s $29.99/month lets you prioritize what you like. At the top end, the company offers an invite-only premium subscription for $500 per month.
To get the most out of Date Sunday, ambitious daters are considering the potential cost of at least $20 per month to get started. The lowest subscription level for that app, Hinge+, costs $29.99 per month. More serious Hinge daters can pay her $50 a month to get even more exposure for their profile. Coffee Meets Bagel costs $35 per month.
Bumble (BMBL) costs $39.99 per month and $19.99 per week. Those who want the possibility of lifelong dating can pay $229.99.
Bumble, Tinder and Coffee Meets Bagel did not immediately respond to MarketWatch’s requests for comment.
A Hinge spokesperson said the app has a free version and that Hinge is designed for users looking for “intentional” relationships. In the free version, unlike other apps, you can see everyone who has liked a user, but there is also a cap on the number of likes a user can send in his day. Masu.
According to a 2023 report from the Pew Research Center, about half of people who have used a dating site or app have a positive experience, and about 10% of adults in a relationship use a dating platform They answered that they had met their partner. The figure is even higher for people under 30, with around 20% of them saying they met their partner that way. The report found that around a third of users pay to use dating apps, and those with higher incomes are more likely to do so.
Pugh said that while users say the app has made it easier to meet people, they have also expressed concerns about safety and harassment on the dating platform.
Some users think being able to view a user’s profile page before interacting with them is an important step, but in some apps it’s a paid feature. A Reddit thread recently lamented the “exorbitant costs” of dating apps, with one user lamenting: [corporations] They take advantage of people’s basic desire to meet someone for the sole purpose of dating. ”
-Zoe Han
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01/05/24 1917ET
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