Demographics of people using bumble dating app

In this comprehensive collection we will curate the most up-to-date statistics about the online dating app, Bumble. Some of these Bumble statistics come from Bumble’s official press releases or reporting, some are based on industry research papers, few of them are estimated based on different research methodologies.

We will focus on worldwide statistics and on the US, as the US is the country with the highest number of Bumble users worldwide.

If you know that some of the statistics we display here are not the latest one, let us know in the comment section and will update the statistics accordingly.

Bumble Statistics – Users

Number of Users Stats Worldwide

As Bumble is not a public company yet, they are not required to release user numbers or exact revenue statistics. There are numerous stats that are floating around.

A 2020 report says there were a total 87 million people who use Bumble worldwide but there is no official confirmation for this, another one from 2019 puts the number around 66 million users.

The active users are situated in 150 countries.

Number of Active Users in the US

In terms of user numbers in the US, Bumble is the second most popular dating platform with 5.03 million users in the US, only Tinder has more users in the US with a staggering 7.86 million users according to 2019 Statista statistics:

Number of People who used Bumble at least once

The 5 million active Bumble users stats mean that out of the 210 million adult Americans, around 2% has an active account on Bumble which is a nice figure.

However, another interesting number is how many Americans have downloaded and used the app at least once. There has been a survey made in April 2020 that estimated this number to be around 8% of the US adult population which is around 20 million people.

Although this number will probably never be confirmed by Bumble and there is no way to independently confirm its validity but it shows how significant effect Bumble had on millions of Americans’ lives.

Bumble’s gender ratio worldwide

Bumble that is most often is referred to as the Feminist Tinder is famous for its most favorable gender ratio in the online dating industry. In 2019, based on an App Ape statistics, reported by Statista.com, 34.5% of users were female and 65.5% users were male on Bumble.

This ratio shows how online dating is dominated by men when on one of the most popular dating apps only one third of the active users are women.

Bumble’s Gender ratio in the US

The US shows similar distribution of users by gender ratio, according to a survey conducted in 2020, presented by Statista, 10% of the adult male population have used Bumble compared to only 6% of the female population which means that around 60-70 percent of the Bumble users in the US are male.

Bumble Users’ age stats

Unfortunately, Bumble does not report any official age demographic data that we could display here. To get a better idea about the average age and the distribution of Bumble users by age, there have been multiple surveys conducted over the years.

According to one of the most cited SurveyMonkey survey, Bumble has the youngest demographics out of all popular online dating apps. The study reported that more than 63% of Bumble users are younger than 30 years old. An important caveat that this study was conducted back in 2016, so even the survey data is not the most up-to-date.

Age distribution data of US Bumble users

We can get more up-to-date data if we only have a look at the age statistics of Bumble in the United States. According to this Statista statistics, 13% of all adults in the US from age 18 to 29 have used or are using Bumble at the time of the survey. This ratio is 10% among 30-44 years and 4% among 45%-64 years old people.

This statistics shows online dating is becoming more prevalent in the older generations as well, as Bumble, the dating app that is mostly used by the younger generation, also has a lot of older users.

Bumble Users’ other demographic data

As these dating apps work the best if you live in or next to a big city or in a metropolitan area it is a little bit surprising that based on a 2020 survey only 6% live in urban areas, 11% in suburban areas and 7% in the rural area from those Americans who use Bumble

This geographic distribution is more conceivable if we add that the majority of the Bumble users tend to be well of and be well-educated, as these demographic cohorts usually live in the suburbs next to big cities.

And Bumble users are really well-educated, more than 91 percent of users over the age of 22 have at least a bachelor degree.

And the level of education usually correlates positively with income levels it is not a surprise that Bumble users tend to make good money as 13% os all American adults that use Bumble make more than a 100 thousand USD per year and only 7% make less than 50 thousand USD.

Bumble Usage Statistics

Based on a data study from 2017 the average user spends 100 minutes a day on the app. Until 2017 more than 750 million matches were facilitated by Bumble and it was estimated to be responsible for 5,000 weddings and engagements.

Bumble as the feminist Tinder has an abuse report rate of 0.008 percent, which is allegedly one of the lowest in the online dating industry.

Bumble Business statistics

Bumble Revenues statistics

Again, as Bumble is not a public company yet, they are not required to report exact revenue stats, but it is estimated that Bumble has made around 300 million USD in 2019  which means that in one year the company managed to double its revenue.

The majority of Bumble’s revenue is coming from its premium subscription package Bumble Boost. Unlike Tinder, they don’t run any advertisements on their platform.

Bumble valuation and ownership

Bumble is owned by MagicLab, a company that also owns another popular dating app, Badoo and was founded by Andrey Andreev

At the end of 2019, Andrey Andreev sold its entire stake of MagicLab which valued Bumble and the wider business to around 3 billion USD.

Facts Summary for Bumble

Owner:

Bumble Trading Inc. (which is owned by Bumble Inc)

Headquarters:

Austin, Texas, United States [2019 #26]

Business Started:

2014

Brands & Partnerships:

Bumble (dating), The Hive (dating events), BumbleBFF (friends), BumbleBizz (business networking)

Employees:

70 (2016)

Main Service Areas:

United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia

Service Available Via:

Website, iOS and Android

Number of Languages:

19 (2021)

Number of Members since Launch:

100+ million [2020 #12]

Number of Paying Members:

All Brands 2.8 Million [2021 #8]

Bumble History Summary

Bumble with their Beehive logo was launched in December of 2014 by founder Whitney Wolfe Herd. Whitney originally had co-founded Tinder but left after suing Tinder for sexual discrimination which was settled for over $1 million in September 2014. After leaving Tinder Whitney had met with the founder of Badoo, Andrey Andreev and the 2 eventually struck a deal where Andrey would invest $10 million and offer the use of Badoo's infrastructure for a new dating service while receiving a 79% stake, and Whitney would serve as CEO of the service and receive 20% ownership. Since launch Bumble has also started several other services including BFF (mode in Bumble for finding friends - in 2016), The Hive (dating events - in 2017), and Bumble Bizz (business networking - in 2017).

Users are required to use their mobile phone number or Facebook when they login and create an account on the Bumble dating app (iOS and Android). As of 2018 users can also now access the Bumble service from the website. When using Facebook, photos and other information is pulled (with the users permission) to create a basic profile. Bumble is one of the first female friendly dating apps. Bumble displays a profile and the user must either swipe left or right before they can see a new match. Both members must mutually swipe right on each other before a conversation can begin. The main difference with Bumble is that female members must initiate the conversation (males cannot for heterosexual relationships). Males then must continue the conversation within 24 hours or the match disappears.

In 2016 Bumble added a paid subscription service called Bumble Boost which offers enhancements (see who already likes you, rematches, add additional time for matches) over the free service. One time payments for Bumble Coins was also added so users could purchases features like the Super Swipe (shows extra interest in someone).

In 2019 Bumble surpassed 55 million registered members and was #2 on the list of revenue earned on Google Play for all dating brands. Bumble also became part of Magic Lab, a new holding company for dating brands that Andrey Andreev has either founded or is in partnership with their founders.

In a little over a year Bumble surpassed 100 million registered users. In 2020 Magic Labs was also rebranded to Bumble Inc.

Bumble Facts By Year

2021

• General
  • Bumble stated that they are banning user accounts that display any content showing images or descriptions of participation in the Capitol riots. [1]
  • Bumble announced that it was removing the political filter from its app in order to “prevent misuse” but a few hours later reinstated the feature. [1]
  • Naomi Walkland is the head of Bumble in the United Kingdom. [3]
  • Bumble has a new feature that identifies and flags users engaging in derogatory language that is “fatphobic, racist, or homophobic”. Once accounts are flagged, moderators will analyze the conversation to determine whether the user violated the policy. All violators will receive a warning, and if they repeatedly violate the policy, they will be banned.[3]
  • Bumble introduced a feature that detects and blurs unsolicited nude photos. The recipient of the photo can choose to view, delete, or report the blurred image. [3]
  • According to Apptopia, Bumble has 12.7% of the U.S. dating market with close to 5.5 million active monthly users. [4]
  • Bumble has introduced an in-app virtual dating game called Night In that’s meant to operate as an ice breaker. [5]
  • Voice and video features on Bumble have been used 70% more by users since the pandemic began. [5]
  • Bumble has modified their paid Boost feature by offering unlimited swiping, the ability to undo a rejection on a match when you’ve changed your mind, and extending the time period to chat with a match by 24 hours. [5]
  • Bumble has released a new safety guide for online daters in India to address safety issues and the rise of cyber bullying. [6]
  • Bumble conducted a survey among its users in India and found that 83% of women experience online harassment of some kind, and one-third of women experience it at least weekly. [6]
  • 70% feel that cyberbullying has increased in India since the pandemic took hold and lockdowns began. [6]
  • An API vulnerability was discovered inBumble that exposed sensitive data of almost 100 million users. [7]
  • In a study on seniors and dating apps, 24% of seniors who had found a relationship through a dating app found it on Bumble. [9]
  • Bumble is adding a vaccination badge to their profiles for easy identification of users who are vaccinated. Bumble is also allowing access to paid content like “spotlight” and “superswipes” for free. This initiative is part of a partnership with the US Government to try and have 70% of American adults vaccinated by July 4th. [10]
  • Bumble commission a survey about dating and being vaccinated. It was conducted by research company Censuswide. [11]
  • As of June, 90% of users who were asked about their dating preferences said they were ready to meet and date in person again. [12]
  • Bumble Vaccination Status Badge for profiles is now available in Australia and New Zealand. [13]
  • Bumble has partnered with remote trauma support site Bloom, operated by non-profit Chayn in the U.K., to offer free therapeutic services to users. [14]
  • A security flaw was found in the Bumble API which would have allowed a hacker to determine prior locations of users. The flaw was fixed within 72 hours of being reported. [15]
  • Bumble has partnered with Reese Witherspoon’s production company Hello Sunshine and Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur to produce three short films on romances inspired by real-life Bumble users. [16]
  • Bumble has added a feature for daters to include values in their profiles (and to order them by importance), not only to highlight their priorities to other daters, but also to support a cause, including for environmental, social or political justice. Each time a user sends a message to another user, the company will donate to select organizations that work for these causes. [17]
  • 27% of UK users selected “environmentalism” as their highest value. [17]
  • Bumble adds Language Badges to Profiles: [18]
    • There are 100 language badges to its dating platform available globally.
    • 30 of the languages are specific to Indian users.
    • Users who have added at least one language badge saw a 34% increase in matches compared to those who hadn’t.
  • Bumble has open an online store and is selling Bumble-branded apparel. [19]
  • Bumble is changing the look of profiles and giving an upgrade to its algorithm. The update prioritizes a person’s pronouns and interests after their primary photo. [20]
  • Bumble Study on 2021: [21]
    • Over a billion matches were made on its app in 2021, a 25% increase from 2020.
    • Over 9 billion messages were exchanged globally, up nearly 40% from 2020.
    • The highest number of message exchanges were between October and early November, just prior to the holiday season.
• Finances
  • 1.1 million users paying for Bumble’s premium features. [2]
  • Revenue for Bumble rose 43% in quarter 1 2021 from the same quarter in 2020 to $171 million. [8]
  • Total paying users for Bumble and Badoo together was up 30% to 2.8 million in quarter 1 of 2021. [8]
  • Bumble has indicated it intends to create a crypto goods economy to monetize their platform. [18]

References

1. DC Bumble Users are Using the App to Turn in Capitol Rioters
2. Bumble Files IPO and Notes Apple Privacy Policy Could be an Issue
3. Bumble to Ban Users Who Body-Shame on the App
4. Bumble Q4 Revenue Exceeds Expectations
5. Bumble Expands Offerings with Night In and Boost Service
6. Bumble Unveils New Online Safety Guide
7. Gay Dating App Manhunt Says User Data Was Hacked 
8. Bumble Exceeds Expectations in First Quarter Report
9. Seniors are Flocking to Dating Apps According to New Study
10. Dating Apps Partner with US Government to Promote Vaccines 
11. Bumble Study Found That Being Vaccinated Gets You More Dates
12. Bumble Will Open Its First Cafe in New York
13. Dating Apps In Australia and New Zealand are Adding Vaccination Badges
14. Bumble Is Offering Trauma Support Services for Users
15. A Vulnerability in Bumble Platform Allows Location Leaks
16. Bumble Partners with Hello Sunshine to Produce Short Films
17. Environmentalism is a Big Attraction for Daters in the UK
18. Bumble Explores Metaverse and Adds Language Badges to Profiles
19. Bumble Launches First Store and Branded Apparel
20. Bumble Changes Up Profiles and Its Algorithm
21. Bumble Dating Study Reveals 2021 Was a Banner Year for Matches

2020

• General
  • In late December actress Sharon Stone took to Social Media to call out Bumble for blocking her. Bumble then tried restoring her profile but ended up mishandling the situation. [1]
  • Bumble is the recipient of the 2020 Editors Top Pick Innovative Award. [2]
  • With Chappy closing in February, Bumble has become Magic Labs destination for LGBTQ+ singles. [4]
  • From March 12-22 during the rise of the Covid-19, Bumble saw a 21% increase in messaging among Seattle users, Two other hot spots, New York and San Francisco, saw a 23% and 26% surge in messaging. [5]
  • A total of 87 million people use the Bumble app worldwide. [5]
  • Bumble's video chat feature saw 21% increase in use during the last week of March. [5]
  • Bumble Bizz reported a 57% increase in usage over the last week of March and first week of April. [6]
  • Bumble live video and voice chat capabilities saw a 93% increase in use between March 13 and 27. [7]
  • You can now leave a voice message for a match without having to exchange phone numbers. [7]
  • Nation wide searches are now possible on Bumble which now allows you to connect with other users who live more than 100 miles away. [7]
  • Bumble has released a "Virtual Dating Badge" which users can add to their profiles to let matches know they are willing to go on video chat dates. [7]
  • Bumble and Airbnb announced a partnership to provide a curated list of virtual dates to its dating app. [8]
  • in the wake of protests against police violence Bumble took to social media and created a detailed list of what they were doing to address the problem, including offering expanded mental health services to employees and holding internal discussions about how to respond to systemic racism on its platform. Bumble does not have an ethnicity filter. [9]
  • Bumble announced a new crowd sourced campaign to nominate LGBTQ+ organizations that support BIPOC who experience police violence and racial injustice. Bumble plans to donate $5,000 each to these selected organizations. Bumble also plans to donate $1 million across several justice organizations. [10]
  • Bumble reached 100 million users in July. [12]
  • Bumble advertised on TikTok between March and May and has seen its installs increase 5 times. Bumble also employed influencers to raise awareness of its app that targeted a younger demographic. [13]
  • Bumble is the second most popular dating app after Tinder in the United States. [14]
  • Bumble partnered with “I Am a Voter,” a public awareness campaign about voting. Bumble has also released a profile badge to indicate whether or not a member is planning to vote. [15]
  • Bumbles partnership with the National Domestic Violence Hotline will continue for a three-year period with an additional "high six-figure" donation. This builds on the $100,000 donation Bumble made to the organization in March of 2020. [16]
  • Bumble adds three new COVID-related profile badges that users can choose from to indicate how socially distant they want to be on a date. [17]
  • Bumble introduces a new safety feature which allows members to report other members even if they get unmatched first. Conversations are still visible between unmatched members until both agree to delete. [18]
  • Researchers from the Independent Security Evaluators (ISE) found a problem with the Bumble app’s API early in 2020 that allowed them to access personal data for all of its users across platforms (including data pulled from Facebook). The problem has since been fixed according to Bumble. [19]
  • Bumble has released a new guidebook called "Bumble’s New Dating 101 in 2021". [20]
• Finances
  • Of all the dating apps in the App Store and Google Play, Bumble earned the 2nd most revenue overall in May of 2020. [11]
• Legal
  • U.S. House of Representatives is investigating several US dating companies including Match Group following a report that found underage users and sex offenders were using dating apps. The House Oversight and Reform subcommittee on economic and consumer policy sent a letter asking for information on users ages, procedures for verifying ages, and any complaints about assaults, rape or the use of the services by minors. [3]

References

1. Bumble Stumbled with Handling of Sharon Stone’s Profile
2. 2020 Dating Sites Reviews Choice Awards - Innovative
3. Dating Apps Face Investigation by US House of Representatives Over Safety Issues
4. Bumble Shuts Down Gay Dating App Chappy
5. Tinder and Bumble See Increased Activity During Pandemic
6. How Coronavirus is Changing Dating Apps
7. Bumble Releases New Features to Help People Through Quarantine
8. Bumble Partners with Airbnb to Offer Virtual Date Experiences
9. Protests Cause Dating Apps to Question Ethnicity Filters
10. Bumble Launches In-App Campaign to Support Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ Causes
11. App Industry Led by Tinder Tops $50B in Revenue for First Half of 2020
12. Dating App Bumble Announces Rebrand and Other Milestones
13. Bumble Uses TikTok to Drive Subscribers
14. Bumble Plans for $6 Billion IPO
15. Dating Apps Including OkCupid Encourage Users to Register to Vote
16. Bumble Launches Partnership with National Domestic Violence Hotline
17. Bumble Announces 3 New COVID-Related Badges for Users
18. Bumble Updates Unmatch Feature So Bad Actors Can’t Hide
19. Researchers Find Security Flaw With Bumble App
20. Bumble Offers a How To Guide for Dating in 2021

2019

• General
  • Bumble adds the ability to filter matches not only on its dating platform, but also for its networking apps Bumble Bizz and Bumble BFF. [1]
  • Bumble Dating adds search filters for drinking, education, exercise, family plans, height, pets, political leaning, relationship type, religion, smoking, and star sign. [1]
  • Bumble now has 46 million users. [1]
  • Bumble is the recipient of the 2019 Editors Top Pick Innovative Award. [2]
  • Bumble partners with Serena Williams for a TV Commercial to play during the Super Bowl. [4]
  • Bumble releases a feature called Convo Starters which helps women make the first move by suggesting opening lines based on personality type and interests. [5]
  • Bumble has announced a new feature called Spotlight which when activated, will bump your profile to the front of the line for 30 minutes, allowing you to be seen by more Bumble users. [6]
  • Bumble Bizz (for career networking) has a new filter that when activated, will excludes men from searches. [7]
  • In 2018 Female Film Force, a UK-based initiative, 1,100 pitches and awarded five filmmakers (writer, directors or producers) £20,000 each to make a film embodying Bumble’s values. [8]
  • This year, Bumbles Female Film Force is expanding the initiative to filmmakers in France and Germany as well as in the UK. [8]
  • Making Moves in Music (MMM) is an international campaign and contest by Bumble designed to give female DJs access to mentorship from top music executives. [8]
  • Bumble repurposed a coffee shop to act as a gathering space for attendees of the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. [9]
  • Bumble used its SXSW event space to advertise its new badge feature, where people can populate their profiles with visual badges relating their interests. [9]
  • Bumble announced that Serena Williams will be an investor and active member of the new Bumble Fund (that help female entrepreneurs), as well as a global ambassador for the brand. [10]
  • Bumble’s newest endeavor is Bumble Mag, a lifestyle publication created in partnership with Hearst Magazines’ branded content studio, HearstMade. [11]
  • Bumble has over 50 million users. [11]
  • Bumble Bizz collaborated with Bloggers Who Brunch to highlight women in entertainment who are leading the way toward greater diversity and inclusion in the industry. [13]
  • A feature called Private Detector that uses AI will shield Bumble users from unsolicited lewd photographs sent through messages. [15]
  • Bumble became part of a holding company called Magic Lab which was created as a holding company for dating brands that Andrey Andreevh has invested in. [16]
  • Bumble has 55 million users and generates 2 billion matches in a year (with 1 billion first moves by women). [16]
  • A date friendly cafe will open this fall called Bumble Brew in New York. [18]
  • In the last 5 years Bumble has had about 32 million downloads (Jan 2014 to June 2019). [19]
  • Bumble introduces voice and video chat to their app. Only can be used with mutual matches and women must initiate the call. [20]
  • CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd spoke out against parent company Badoo in the wake of allegations made by more than a dozen employees that it promoted a toxic work culture, especially for women. She stated all her experiences at Badoo were positive. She also noted that the incidents took place between 2010 and 2012, long before Bumble was founded in 2014. [21]
  • Jameela Jamil joins Serena Williams in becoming Bumble's newest brand ambassador, with a campaign to combat loneliness. [22]
  • Bumble is sponsoring the first all-female team of professional Fortnite players. [23]
  • Bumble are hosting parties with fraternities on college campuses. In return, the fraternities are signing contracts declaring that they are exclusively a Bumble house. [24]
  • Urban Decay will give away 1,000 of its new eye makeup palettes over Bumble’s app. The campaign will target users across all three of Bumble’s services. [25]
  • Bumble is position to be a direct rival to dating app Tinder. [26]
  • Bumble is headquartered in Austin Texas. [26]
  • Bumble ranks third in Newsweeks 2020 America’s Best Customer Service for a dating service. [27]
  • A majority stake in MagicLab (Bumble's parent company) was sold to Blackstone. [28]
  • Founder of Bumble Whitney Wolfe Herd was made CEO of MagicLab. [28]
  • Blackstone plans to bring Bumble to new geographical regions. [28]
• Finances
  • Of all the dating apps in the App Store and Google Play, Bumble earned the 2nd most revenue in quarter 1 of 2019. [11]
  • In the beginning of 2018 to early 2019 Bumble gross revenue grew 135% to $117 million. [17]
  • Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd has secured a 4 million pound dividend payout from parent company Magic Lab. [26]
  • Bumble’s revenue made up about 48 percent of Magic Lab’s overall business. [26]
  • Bumble generates most of its revenue in North America. [26]
• Legal
  • A Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas denied Bumble's claim that the Match Group patents in question are ineligible for patenting under Section 101 of the Patent Act. [3]
  • CEO Wolfe Herd has been campaigning to make unsolicited ‘cyberflashing’ a criminal offense in the state of Texas. Texas Representative Morgan Meyer introduced a bill that would add “unlawful electronic transmission of sexually explicit visual material” as an offense in the state penal code. [14]
  • California state senator Ling Ling Chang announced that she has partnered with Wolfe Herd on a proposed law that would make it illegal to send unsolicited explicit photos online or via text. [29]

References

1. Bumble Adds Feature to Allow You to Filter Matches
2. 2019 Dating Sites Reviews Choice Awards - Innovative
3. Judge Rules Tinder's Swiping Interface Is Eligible For Patenting
4. Bumble Partners with Serena Williams to Debut Ad Campaign During Superbowl
5. Bumble Helps Users Make The First Move With Conversation Starters Generator
6. Bumble Takes On Tinder’s Boost With New Spotlight Feature
7. Bumble Introduces Women-Only Networking Tool
8. Bumble Enters The Entertainment Industry With Female-Forward Filmmaking And Music Initiatives
9. Bumble Reaches Out to Women at SXSW
10. Serena Williams to Invest in New Bumble Fund
11. Bumble Announces Inaugural Edition Of New Lifestyle Magazine
12. Tinder Dethrones Netflix As Top-Grossing Non-Game App In Q1 2019
13. Bumble Partners With Bloggers Who Brunch For ‘Women In Entertainment’ Series
14. Bumble Founder Backs Texas Bill To Criminalize Sending Unsolicited Sexual Photos
15. Bumble’s New AI-Driven ‘Private Detector’ Feature Automatically Blurs Explicit Photos
16. Owner of Badoo and Bumble Launches New Parent Company Magic Lab
17. Dating App Growth Slows Down in US Market, According to New Study
18. Bumble Is Opening A Cafe In Manhattan That Serves “Date-Friendly” Food And Drinks
19. Badoo Employees Reveal Toxic Work Environment in 'Forbes' Expose
20. Bumble Introduces In-App Video and Voice Calls
21. Bumble CEO Speaks Out Against Toxic Culture of Parent Company Badoo
22. Bumble's New Ad Campaign Features Actress and Activist Jameela Jamil
23. Bumble Sponsoring First All-Female Fortnite Team
24. Tinder And Bumble Ink Sponsorship Deals With College Fraternities
25. Beauty Brand Urban Decay Partners with Bumble in New Campaign
26. Bumble CEO Receives Over 4 Million Pounds from Magic Lab Dividend
27. Newsweek Ranks Christian Cafe #1 in Customer Service for Online Dating
28. Andrey Andreev Sells His Stake in Parent Company of Bumble and Badoo
29. Bumble Founder Partners With CA Senator To Criminalize Sending Unwanted Nude Photos

2018

• General
  • Fridays and Saturdays Bumble users are most likely to swipe right and match. Sundays also sees the highest activity with users checking their options. On Mondays users are much more picky. [1]
  • Bumble profiles now support Instagram integration, allowing potential matches to scroll through each other’s photo feeds. This option is only available for Bumble Date and Bumble BFF. [2]
  • As a stand against gun violence, Bumble has banned profile photos featuring guns and other deadly weapons, and has established a team of 5000 moderators to remove any images that do not comply. In the future, Bumble intends to remove the mention of guns from written content as well. [3]
  • If you delete your Facebook account you then cannot login into your Bumble account or create a new one. Bumble is working on a solution to allow new users to use Bumble without a Facebook account. [6]
  • As of April 17, Bumble users can register and log in with their phone number instead of a Facebook profile. [8]
  • Bumble has partnered with women’s health provider Planned Parenthood to educate college students at the University of Texas, Austin, about consent. [9]
  • After Facebook revealed that they will be releasing a new dating feature soon, Bumble reached out to Facebook to explore ways to collaborate. [10]
  • Bumble launched in Australia in June 2017 with huge success so they have now launched in New Zealand. [12]
  • The Bumble app allows you to switch between 3 modes: bumbledate, bumblebff (friends), and bumblebiz (business networking). You can now turn off Bumble Dates if you do not need it. [14]
  • Bumble adds a new snooze feature which allows users to pause their profile for 24 hours, 72 hours, a week, or indefinitely. [15]
  • Bumble plans to launch in India later this year. [17]
    • One popular investor and advisor for this expansion is actress Priyanka Chopra.
    • Bumble has created versions of its app in Hindi and “Hinglish.
    • Adjusted its user interface and matching algorithm for the country’s levels of network connectivity.
    • Bumble’s international apps now reach 160 countries.
  • Bumble now allows users to access Bumble Date via their website. For right now new users still have to create on the app first before they can access Bumble Web. [18]
  • Bumble Web will soon also allow access to BFF and Bizz in the near future. [18]
  • Bumble has topped the 40 million user mark. [18]
  • Bumble announced the launch of their app in India with a celebrity dinner at the Gramercy Hotel in New York. [19]
  • BumbleSpots offers Bumble-verified locations where its members can meet so they feel safe grabbing a drink with a match for the first time IRL. [22]
  • One of the first BumbleSpots partners is Marriott International's Moxy Hotels. [23]
  • Bumble is considering adding original video content but plans to be strategic about it. For example, offering it during primetime in the evening. [24]
  • Bumble in early 2015, got whitelisted for access to a new Facebook API that allows certain apps to see data about users’ Facebook friends. [25]
  • Bumble is sponsoring the 7th annual Prohibition NYE in downtown Los Angeles. This is a New Year’s Eve party that has a “Roaring Twenties” theme against the backdrop of the historic Union Station. [26]
• Legal
  • Tinder's parent company Match Group is suing Bumble for patent infringement on 2 patents. One is related to the use of swipe cards and mutual matching, the other pertaining to an “ornamental aspect” of Tinder’s app. [4]
  • Bumble responds to Match Groups lawsuit with a full page ad in the New York Times admonishing them for its “scare tactics” and “endless games”. [5]
  • Bumble has filed a $400 million lawsuit against Match Group accused Match Group of interfering with its business operations, including stealing trade secrets and hurting the company’s chance to sell equity investments. [7]
  • Bumble has announced it is no longer open to settling privately with Match Group. They have now served Match Group with court papers. [16]
  • Bumble is reportedly looking to refile its suit at the state level, which requires it to dismiss its claims in the federal court. [20]
• Finances
  • Bumble has made a $100,000 donation to March For Our Lives. [3]
  • Bumble has launched a new contest which grants five female filmmakers and screenwriters in the U.K. $27,000 each to make a short film. [11]
  • Bumble Fund is a new venture focused on early-stage investments for female-founded and female-led businesses. The fund will invest amounts ranging from $5,000 to $250,000 in companies. Bumble has committed more than $1 million to the fund. [13]
  • Bumble is actively pursuing an IPO. [16]
  • Bumble recently increased its revenue run rate to $200 million a year. [18]
  • Some analysts have estimated Bumble's public valuation at $1.1 to $1.5 billion-plus. [21]

References

1. Studies Show January is the Best Time to Date
2. Bumble Makes Dating Profiles More Stalkable With Instagram Integration
3. Bumble Is Banning Profile Pictures With Guns And Other Deadly Weapons
4. Tinder's Parent Company Match Group Is Suing Bumble For Patent Infringement
5. Bumble Swipes Left On Match Group Lawsuit With Defiant Full Page Ad
6. Want to Delete Facebook? Here’s How It Might Impact Your Love Life
7. Bumble Suing Match Group for $400 Million
8. Bumble Ditches Facebook Login Requirement Following Privacy Revelations
9. Bumble Partners with Planned Parenthood to Talk About Consent
10. Facebook Is Finally Getting Into The Online Dating Game
11. Dating App Bumble Moves Into Original Content Space
12. Jdate, ChristianMingle, And Bumble Announce Expansions Abroad
13. Bumble Launches Fund To Invest In Women-Led Businesses
14. Bumble Separates Dating App from Its Networking Apps
15. Bumble Launches "Snooze" Mode To Encourage Digital Detox
16. Bumble Moves Forward With Match Group Countersuit, Sets Sights On IPO
17. Bumble Set To Launch In India With Priyanka Chopra As An Investor
18. Bumble Introduces Desktop App And Gets Serious About IPO
19. Bumble Launches in India with Partner Priyanka Chopra
20. Bumble Moves To Drop $400 Million Lawsuit Against Match Group
21. Bumble IPO Moves Forward, Could Value The Company At $1.1 Billion
22. Bumble Launches BumbleSpots to Help Its Members Meet IRL
23. Bumble Partners With Moxy Hotels To Bring Online Connections To Life
24. Bumble and its Potential IPO, India Launch, and Becoming a Content Creator
25. Emails Indicate that Facebook Secretly Shared Personal Data with Dating Services and Others
26. Bumble to Sponsor Prohibition NYE Party in Downtown L.A.

2017

• General
  • A new feature called BumbleVid allows users to create 10 second videos in the app to share on their profile or with specific matches. These videos will automatically delete after 24 hours. [1]
  • Bumble opens its first brick and mortar dating space called the Hive in New York City. The Hive features a coffee bar and a real bar for visitors and will also hold events. [4]
  • Bumble has announced a partnership with the Anti-Defamation League, and has pledged a "zero tolerance policy against misogynist, abusive, and inappropriate behavior." [5]
  • Bumble introduces the SuperSwipe. It shows someone is extra interested in you. [6]
  • Bumble Coins are now available to pay for enhanced features (like the SuperSwipe). The cost $1.99 per coin and are cheaper in bulk. [6]
  • The Bumble dating app now has over 18 million registered users. [7]
  • Bumble is launching a new platform BumbleBizz in October which is aiming to connect professionals looking for a new job, a business partner, or to hire new talent. [8]
  • Whitney Wolfe Herd, founder and CEO of female-friendly dating app Bumble, was just named to Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list. [11]
• Members
  • In just over 2 years bumble now has 12.5 million registered users. [2]
  • Bumble is the number one dating app for users in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maryland. [3]
  • On average Bumble users earn more than users of other dating apps. [3]
  • According to some estimates Bumble has 20 million users, and it continues to add more than 50,000 new ones per day. [8]
  • January 1st through September 7th Bumble gained 24,499 Facebook followers. [9]
  • Bumble now has 23 million registered users since it launched three years ago. [10]
• Finances
  • According to reports Match Group made an offer to buy Bumble for $450 million. Some analysts value Bumble at almost $1 billion. [7]
  • Bumble is expected to take in more than $150 million in 2018. [8]
  • It has been reported that Match Group is talking with Bumble to acquire the dating app for around $1 Billion. [10]
  • About 10% of Bumble users pay for a subscription, compared to only 5% of Tinder users. [11]
  • Bumble is introducing hyperlocal advertising, which is projected to double its revenue in 2018. [11]

References

1. Dating App Bumble Launching Video Feature
2. Bumble Aims to Expand your Social Networks
3. Quantcast Map Reveals The Most Searched Dating App In Every U.S. State
4. Bumble Launches First Brick And Mortar Space In New York City
5. Bumble, OkCupid Among First Dating Apps to Confront Hate Groups
6. Dating app Bumble Adds Super Swipes to the Menu
7. Match Group Makes an Offer to Acquire Bumble
8. Bumble to Launch Female-Friendly Career Matching App
9. eHarmony Modernizing its Marketing Strategy by Turning to Social Media
10. Will Match Group Acquire Bumble for One Billion?
11. Bumble’s Growth Into a Billion-Dollar Business

2016

• General
  • Bumble is the 7th most search dating app on Google in 2015. [1]
  • On Bumble the woman must send the first message. Now she must do it within 24 hours or the match disappears. This new rule does not apply to same-sex matches or friend matches. [2]
  • A new feature called BumbleBizz will match Bumble users by industry and location. [3]
  • Bumble has over 5.5 million users since its launch a year and a half ago. [3]
  • Bumble now offers a premium paid service called "BumbleBoost". It includes "The BeeLine" (see who has liked you already), "Rematch" (gives you another opportunity with matches), and "BusyBee" (keep expired matches) [4]
  • The 2016 US Dating Awards winner for Dating App of the Year is Bumble. [5]
  • Bumble requires new users to verify they are a real user with a selfie. The user will be required to take a selfie in a specific pose and within 24-hours a moderator will review the photo. [6]
  • Bumble bans mirror selfies, and watermarks or text on photos. [7]

References

1. Google Reveals 2015's Top-Searched Dating Apps And Sites
2. Bumble Just Made A Major Change For Male Users
3. Bumble App Expands its Reach Beyond Dating
4. Bumble Monetizes its Dating App with BumbleBoost
5. The US Dating Awards Honor The Best Of The Dating Industry In 2016
6. Bumble Will Soon Verify Users’ Identity With Selfies
7. Bumble Banned Mirror Selfies And Other Awful Dating Photos

2015

• General
  • 60% of matches on Bumble turn into dates. [1]
  • After a month since the launch, there have been more than 100,000 downloads of the Bumble app. [1]
  • The male-female ratio on Bumble is 50-50 and the average user spends more than an hour on Bumble per day. [2]
  • In a little under a year since launch more than 500,000 users have joined Bumble. [2]
  • A new verification program called “VIBee” has launched on Bumble. It is a system that rewards users with a badge if they have good behavior on the app (like not continuous swiping). [3]

References

1. Tinder co-Founder Launches New Dating App Bumble
2. After The Tinder Meltdown, Is Bumble The App We Need?
3. Analyzing Behavior the Next Dating App Trend

2014

• General
  • Tinder co-founder Whitney Wolfe left Tinder and launches Bumble. [1]
• Finances
  • Whitney Wolfe raised millions of dollars from bumble and other non-dating related sources. [1]

References

1. Former Tinder Co-Founder Launches Bumble, a 'Women-Friendly Tinder' App

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Return to Online Dating Statistics & Facts

Related Reviews (by Owner)

Last Updated: Wednesday, March 02 2022 @ 07:23 am Hits: 35,214

In a data-driven world, numbers can help shape not just our business and finance decisions, but they can also help to shape how we date and find love. Wait, what? How are numbers going to help me find Mr. or Ms. Right? Well, if you know what to look for, numbers and online dating statistics can be your best wingman or wingwoman.

You see, online dating was created to help save you time, money, and lead you to the perfect man or woman you’re looking for! But, how can you make the online dating process more efficient and how can you have more success?

The answer lies in knowing as much as possible about the online dating landscape as possible.

Table of Contents

Online Dating Stigmas, Popularity, and Usage

• 15% Increase in US adults who think online dating is a good idea
• 6% Decrease in US adults who think people who use online dating sites are desperate
• 19% of all internet users are using an online dating site or app, 27% previously
• 36% of US dating app or dating site users use them daily

In the early days of online dating, it was highly regarded by people as being just for the weirdos and the shut-ins. How do we know this? Well, up until today, that was purely anecdotal, but we now have the dating statistics to back up what we were seeing. Let’s take a look at the online dating stigmas, popularity, and overall usage in the US.

From 2005 to 2015, there was a 15% increase in US adults who thought that online dating was a good idea. This is a massive change in opinion and clearly shows that online dating has moved out of the dark crevices of the internet and into the mainstream.

During the same time period, there was a 6% decrease in US adults who think that people using online dating sites are desperate. Personally, we’d love to see this statistic drop all the way to zero, but we can’t control how other people think. Online dating is a way for busy adults who are tired of trolling bars to find quality singles.

Regarding overall dating site usage statistics, there are two key things we want to look at. First, 19% of all internet users say they are currently using an online dating site or app. Out of the remaining 81%, 27% of those say they have used one previously. This means out of 10 of your friends, 2 of them are currently using an online dating app and 2 of them previously have. Out of this 27%, 36% of those users say they are using their online dating apps daily in some way, shape, or form whether that be responding to messages, searching for new matches, or just looking at photos of people they are interested in.

Number of Dating Prospects at the Same Time

Ever wonder how many people your match is also talking to at the same time? Well, you’ll never know for sure without hacking into their online dating account, but dating statistics can give us a good insight into what the answer may be.

The largest data block here that makes up over 50% of the people is 2-5 prospects. Probably the most astounding figure at least to us was that almost 20% of people are talking to 11 or more people at the same time. We’re not mad; we’re just impressed at how much they can juggle and keep straight at the same time. Curious why it might be taking a while for you to get a response to your first message? It’s either because you aren’t sending a great first message, or you’re talking to a juggler tossing 11+ singles around at the same time.

Men vs. Women Dating Statistics to Choose a Dating Site

• 67% of Tinder Users are Men, 33% Women
• An Equal Percentage of Men and Women Claim Match.com as Their Favorite Dating App
• More Women Claim eHarmony as Their Favorite Dating App than Men

For those of you ladies out there that say Tinder is just a big sausage fest, you’re right. Just over 67% of the users on Tinder as per a recent study are said to be men. This leaves only 33% that are women. Sure, it only takes one person to be the right one, but that is definitely a significant variation amongst the sexes. Ladies, this means a lot more choices for you thanks to this online dating statistic.

If you’re looking for a more even match of men and women, then you’re looking for Match.com. According to a recent survey, the exact same percentage of men and women call Match.com their favorite dating app. If you’ve spent any time on Match.com, this probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise as from what we hear, there is a solid selection of high-quality people on both sides of the aisle.

So, we’ve talked about an online dating site or app that’s great for the women (Tinder), one that is equal across the board (Match.com), but what about somewhere that’s great for the men? Well, a recent study has shown that more women than men claim eHarmony as their favorite dating app. This online dating statistic means that the ladies are finding quality men on eHarmony. Men, this means that if you’re a keeper and are struggling to find someone special, you may want to check out eHarmony because more women have that at the top of their favorites list.

Favorite Online Dating Site by Age Group in the United States

• 3 of the top 4 dating apps for the younger 18-29 age bracket are free apps
• Only 1 of the top 4 dating apps for the 45-54 age bracket are free apps
• Those reporting using no dating app increases as age increases from 47% up to 88%

In the 18-29 age bracket, it’s no surprise (at least to us) to see Tinder atop the list. The stigma with Tinder is that it’s just for flings and less serious relationships, and this tends to fit with the outlook of a lot of younger daters. On an anecdotal level, though, we do know a lot of people that have met their future spouse of Tinder so please don’t let us ruin it for those of you looking for something a bit more serious.

You’ll also notice that three of the top four dating apps listed here for the youngest age bracket are predominantly free. This may have to do with the economic situation of younger daters, but in our opinion you are always going to get what you pay for.

Match.com is at the top for the 30-44 age bracket, the 45-64 age bracket, and the 55-64 age bracket. What does this online dating statistic mean for you? If you’re over the age of 30 and under the age of 64 looking for love online, Match.com just might be a good fit for you. Remember from our earlier section as well, an equal percentage of both men and women find Match.com to be their favorite online dating app.

We see a small rise in religious dating site usage between the 30-44 age bracket and the 45-54 age bracket where it levels off around 3-4%. Also, do keep in mind that while 3-4% might seem small, this still represents millions and millions of people. So, if you’re looking to get started with a religious dating site, you still should have plenty of great singles to choose from.

Meeting a Match in Person by Gender and Age

Curious what the online dating statistics say about who has actually met someone they met online in person? Are people actually getting out from behind the computer and meeting in person or is online dating just a big waste of time? And if they are, is it more men or women? Let’s take a look at the answers to all these questions thanks to online dating statistics.

Let’s break down what we’re seeing in these online dating statistics. The biggest difference in percentage is between men and women who say they have met an online dating match in person for a hookup. 20% of men say they did, while only 8% of women say they did.

This could mean that more men online are looking for sexual encounters, but it probably is also slightly skewed because this study was self-reporting. Some women might have been hesitant to report their true intentions due to societal double standards.

Here’s the silver lining in all of these dating statistics for those of you looking for something a little. For both genders, over 50% of people had met someone in person for either a long-term relationship or at least a date or more than one date. There’s a floating stigma out there that online dating is only a place for hookups and nothing more.

Well, thanks to online dating statistics and cold hard facts, we can show that is just not the case. Are there people out there only looking for hookups? Probably. But it is not an overwhelming majority like most people tend to believe that it is.

Online dating is a much safer and more productive space than a lot of people give it credit for, and here are the dating statistics to back that up.

Online Dating App Users Who Have Met in Person by Age Group

There are a lot of interesting conclusions that can be drawn from this data set of online dating statistics. As we increase in the age groups, the number of daters meeting for a hookup drops by almost 10% total through the age brackets.

As you get older in the age brackets, the statistics show the number of dating app users that are meeting in person for a long-term relationship or one or more dates increases as well. We do see a drop in those meeting for just dates from 35% to 29% from the 45-54 age bracket to the 55-64 age bracket.

What Are Online Daters Looking For?

Are online singles looking for love? Hookups? Both? One of the most asked questions about online dating is exactly what online daters are looking for. If you ask anyone, they’re most likely just going to give you anecdotal evidence based on their personal choices and experiences. This really isn’t going to do you much good.

But, when you pour through the online dating statistics, you can learn quite a bit about what most people online are looking for. Let’s take a look at some of the most important statistics starting with the big picture first.

• 84% of online daters are looking for a romantic relationship, 24% a sexual relationship

In a recent survey of a group of online singles, statistics show that 84% of daters are looking for some form of a romantic relationship and 24% are looking for a sexual relationship. Now, for all of our math superstars out there, you’re probably noticing that 84% + 24% = 108%. Don’t worry; the data is accurate. What this is showing is that some people are looking for both a romantic relationship and also a sexual relationship.

The Full Breakdown of What Online Singles Are Searching For

• 61% of daters use an online dating app to meet people that shares common interests
• 44% of daters use an online dating app to meet someone who shares their values and beliefs
• 42% of daters use an online dating app to meet someone for marriage
• 26% of daters use an online dating app to meet someone to just have non-committal fun
• 21% of daters use an online dating app to meet someone because they have a challenging schedule

There’s a lot for us to digest here, so let’s start with some of the most important online dating statistics. 42% of people dating online are using a dating app to try and find someone to marry. That’s probably surprising to a lot of people as there seems to be a stigma that no one online is looking for anything serious. Clearly, though, that is incorrect and the data proves it. Almost half of the people using online dating apps are looking for something that ends with a ring.

What’s also interesting to us is the second listed dating statistic that 44% of daters using an online dating app are looking for someone who shares their values and beliefs. Those 44% of people make sense to us.

What seems a little crazy is that means that 56% of people that are dating online are not worried about finding someone who has the same values and beliefs as them. This probably makes since with those people who are looking for sexual relationships only, but we know from an earlier statistics that is only 24% of people.

That means another 20% of people are looking for something else but they don’t seem to care about their mates values and beliefs. We’re not here to judge, but we feel like that really should be an important criteria to look for in a partner.

Online Dating Truthfulness, Negative Experiences, and Match Familiarity

With the rise of catfishing, one of the biggest fears a lot of singles looking to get into online dating have is whether the people they are talking to are being truthful. The problem is that a lack of truthfulness and sketchy people can lead to some negative experiences that might just be uncomfortable or might actually be a safety risk.

Let’s take a look at the online dating statistics you need to know about truthfulness, negative experiences, and how familiar people are with matches before they meet.

Percentage of Daters Who Claim to Present Themselves as Truthful in Their Dating Profile

The good news here is that 98% of people claim to be 100% truthful or at least mostly truthful when dating online. Only 1-2% claim to be lying or untruthful often or always. Our guess is that those that claim to be truthful often are probably telling the truth about major things and fibbing about little things. Still, we’re big fans of always telling the truth when it comes to online dating (or anything), but we can’t control people.

Online Dating Negative Encounters by Age and Gender

One of the biggest fears that singles who are new to online dating have is having a bad experience. This could be feeling uncomfortable, getting an unsolicited naked picture, having legit concerns for your safety, having to block someone, or getting the full on catfish experience.

But, just how common is all of this? Let’s take a look at the statistics. The first chart will show you the different negative encounters by age, and then below that we break everything down by gender.

Contacted in a way that made them uncomfortable

Male – 25%

Female – 42%

Received unwanted inappropriate pictures

Male – 20%

Female – 32%

Fears about safety

Male – 26%

Female – 32%

Needed to block or report someone

Male – 23%

Female – 39%

Been catfished

Male – 38%

Female – 30%

Familiarity With an Online Dating Match Before Meeting in Person

Some of you out there might be curious if the singles that had bad online dating experiences did their homework first before meeting someone. Or, did they just randomly meet someone they knew nothing about? Well, let’s take a look at the dating statistics.

The chart below shows exactly how familiar online daters got with a match before meeting them in person. Surprisingly, the biggest number we see is 29% of people met someone right away without knowing anything about them.

This might be why a lot of people had some bad experiences. Thankfully, the close second at 28% are people who at least got to know the person a little bit better by sharing basic information.

We’d really have like to see more than 15% of people getting to know someone on a personal level before meeting (for safety reasons), but again, everyone is different and some people just prefer to get to know each other in person.

Final Thoughts

It’s crazy to see what we perceive things to be and what is actually happening when you dive into the statistics. Our minds can trick us into believing things are a certain way, when in actuality they are quite different. Hopefully, these online dating statistics can help you to better understand the landscape out there and better help you to find that special someone you’re looking for. Happy fishing, friends!

Author
Emma Doyle

Mentors
Melanie Palomares, Ph.D.

Psychology 228 (Laboratory in Psychology) is a capstone class for psychology majors and minors. The main goal of the course is the completion of an independent research project, which the student develops themselves from idea to data analysis over the course of the semester. The instructional team is led by faculty member Dr. Melanie Palomares and dedicated graduate students. The 2019-2020 graduate student team consisted of Wendy Chu, Kristin Kirchner, Samantha Langley, Jaleel McNeil, Jonathan Rann, and Daria Thompson.  

Students were encouraged to develop a study based on their personal interests such as social media, interpersonal relationships, or exercise. Following certification in human subjects training, the students collected data by deploying surveys and assessments to their target demographic. Students analyzed and interpreted their data using SPSS, a statistical software. Students then wrote a full length, APA style research paper about their project. Students from this class acquired several skills such as responsible research conduct, survey creation, statistical software analysis, and professional writing. This class provided the opportunity for undergraduate students to preview the graduate student research experience. The students published here went the extra mile and prepared their research papers for this publication, which often included additional, more sophisticated data analysis and new research questions.

Abstract

Dating apps are increasingly popular among young people, including college students. However, these apps can be quite versatile, and there can be a number of reasons why a college student would use them, whether they are looking for a serious relationship, casual sex, or anything in between. Our study evaluated the intents, behaviors, and satisfaction of college students who used dating apps. Using Chi-Square and independent samples t-test analyses, results show that while satisfaction ratings were similar between men and women, more men use dating apps than women, which suggests that women might have a more negative perception of dating apps than men. Insights obtained through research such as this can be used in the future to improve the world of online dating, and facilitate connections between college students.

Connecting on Campus: Exploring the Motivations and Behaviors of College Students on Dating Apps

According to Pew Research, 30% of adults in the United States use a dating site or app (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020). Dating and romantic relationships have intersected with the media in the past, beginning as early as the 1700s with the creation of personal advertisements in newspapers (Reimann, 2016). Throughout the modern world, technology has become more central in finding romantic relationships. Using the internet to form romantic and social connections is quickly gaining popularity, especially among college students (Stevens, 2006). On the one hand, even with the growing popularity of online dating apps, only 23% of those surveyed have reported actually going on a date as a result of using the dating site or app. On the other hand, 12% report finding a committed relationship or marriage from using the dating site or app (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020). Thus, it seems that motivations and satisfaction for using these apps vary widely. According to a study about Tinder, a popular dating app, young adults, aged 18-30 years were motivated by the prospects of love, casual sex, thrill of excitement, and ease of communication (Sumter, et al, 2017). 

The relatively low percentage of users who actually go on an in-person date suggests that the satisfaction from using dating apps might be variable as well. For example, many women have reported experiencing negative interactions, such as harassment and name-calling on the online dating platforms. Many men indicated that they did not get as many responses as they wanted from using dating apps (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020). Moreover, users of dating apps also report that they expect that lying is a common occurrence in these platforms.

Among non-users of dating apps, there is a perception that online dating is not a safe way to meet people. Indeed, dating apps have been associated with a user’s intent to engage in acts of infidelity (Alexopoulos, Timmermans, & McNallie, 2020), which is likely associated with the scandal of the dating site, Ashley Madison, which specifically caters to people who are married or in relationships (CBS News, 2015).

Much of the present research on dating apps has studied young adult users, but not exclusively college students. College students are a population of particular interest because college is seen as an environment in which many people find romantic relationships. Due to this notion, people may wonder why college students would resort to using apps to meet others, when a college campus seems ripe with opportunities to meet people in person. Many different types of relationships between students can be observed on a college campus, from platonic friendships, to relationships based solely around sexual encounters, to very serious romantic relationships. Given this wide breadth of relationships within a confined community, coupled with the high usage of smartphones by college students, studying dating apps in the context of college campuses can divulge information about how the rapid expansion of technology is affecting campus climates and interpersonal relationships. Research into the relationships between college students and dating apps is essential in order to understand a new and growing part of life for many college students.

The current study evaluated the usage of online dating among undergraduate students at the University of South Carolina. College students are a population of particular interest, as technology and college life have become increasingly integrated in recent years (Dye, 2016). Moreover, the frequency of smartphone usage and sensation-seeking personality seem to be correlated with the intent (e.g., romance or casual sex) in college students who used dating apps (Chan, 2017). Based on previous research (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020), we hypothesized that there will be differences between men and women in both their motivation for using dating apps, as well as the level of satisfaction obtained from using the apps. If this were the case, then compared to women, we would expect a disproportionate number of men to use dating apps, and would also expect them to report having different motivations for using the dating app.

Method

Participants

Sixty-nine college students from the University of South Carolina completed the online survey about dating app usage, who were recruited via social media.  There were 43 females (M = 19.86 years, SD = 1.06) and 26 males (M = 19.73 years, SD = 0.92) in our sample.  Racially, 57 people identified as White, seven as multiracial, three as Asian and two as Black.  The majority of the responses were from Sophomores (55.1%), followed by Juniors (17.4%), Freshman (14.5%) and Seniors (13.0%).

Procedure and Analysis

A survey was created using Google forms, which was distributed via direct messages to other students on campus, as well as messaging groups of students on the messaging platform GroupMe. The survey included demographic questions (age, race, class, biological sex), and asked if they had used a dating app within the past 12 months. If participants had used a dating app in the past 12 months, they were asked what apps they used, for what reasons, how often they used the app, and they were asked to indicate their satisfaction in using the app(s) on a Likert Scale from 1-10.

Responses for motivations for using the dating app(s), included “Casual Dates” “Casual Sex” “A Serious Relationship” “Friendship” or “Other”.  Respondents who selected “Other” could type in an answer of their own.  For the purpose of this study, we have operationally defined the motivations. “Casual Sex” is defined as engaging in sexual acts without the explicit expectation of any sort of relationship to follow.  The other responses were grouped to be in the non-casual sex category. “A Serious Relationship” is defined as an exclusive romantic relationship, typically with titles, such as boyfriend or girlfriend. “Friendship” is defined in our study the same way that it is defined and understood in current culture to be a non-romantic and non-sexual relationship. The responses to the motivation question were recoded to two categories, non-casual sex or  casual sex, in order to distinguish the motivations based on primarily psychological versus physical intimacy. Using SPSS (IBM, 2019), Chi-square analyses and independent-samples t-tests were used to assess differences in the frequency of responses.

Results and Discussion

Who uses dating apps?

Out of 69 students, 45 reported using dating apps. The majority of students (93.3%) reported using Tinder.  Other dating apps listed were Bumble (20%), Hinge (4%), Coffee Meets Bagel (2%), MeetMe (2%) and Grindr (2%).

In order to evaluate whether or not there were sex differences in who used dating apps (within the last 12 months), a Chi-square analysis was used. Out of 43 female participants, 20 stated that they used a dating app, while out of 26 males, 25 used a dating app, which indicated a significant difference in the frequency of the responses, ² (1, N=69) =17.60, p<0.001.  According to these counts (Figure 1), while there were more women who participated in the survey, a disproportionate number of men (96.2%) were using dating apps compared to women (46.5%).  Interestingly, these results were different from those from Pew Research, which found that roughly equal proportion of men (32%) and women (28%) use dating apps (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020).  However our data are consistent with demographics reported by Tinder, the most popular dating site (Clement, 2020), Bumble, a site catering to women (Alter, 2015), and Hinge, a site specializing in serious relationships, (Carman, 2019), which reports 72%, 54%, and 64% male users, respectively (Clement, 2020, McAlone, 2015, Vedantam, 2020).  It is noted that the data for percentage of male tinder users was Conspicuously, there were more male users than female users reported for Bumble, which is a site that is geared towards women. It is noted that the reported demographics of the Pew Research differ from those for the individual apps. A possible explanation for this disparity lies within the method of data collection. The data for the individual apps were collected via analytics, while the data in the Pew Research was collected via surveys. In addition, the Pew Research over sampled the lesbian, gay, and bi-sexual populations (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020). It is possible that men and women equally use dating apps in the lesbian, gay and bisexual communities, however, since the data regarding Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge did not analyze the demographic of sexual orientation, it is unclear whether sexual orientation factors in to dating app usage.

Figure 1: Proportion of online dating users as a function of biological sex.  A disproportionate number of males use online dating services compared to females.

What are the motivations of dating app users?

            Since the number of male and female dating app users were uneven, then it is possible that there were sex differences in their motivation (i.e. casual sex or not casual sex) for using the app. We evaluated whether men and women listed “casual sex” as a motivation to use the app in different proportions. In our sample, 55% of women listed casual sex as motivation, while 80% of men did. A Chi-square analysis showed a non-significant result, ² (1, N=45) =3.24, p=0.072, which suggests that men and women have proportional distributions for their motivation. However, it is expected that increasing the sample size would result in a significant test since the obtained p-value was approaching 0.05 (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Proportion of online dating users interested in “casual sex” as a function of biological sex.  More males compared to females indicated this motivation for using online dating apps but is only marginally significant (p=0.072).

Usage and satisfaction

Our data suggest that more college-aged men disproportionately used dating apps compared to women in the last 12 months. There is a possibility that women might report lower satisfaction ratings that could lead to potentially stopping the use of dating apps. Thus, we tested the possibility that there would be sex differences in satisfaction for using dating apps. An independent-samples t-test was conducted to see if there were differences between men (M = 5.04, SD = 2.19, n = 25) and women (M = 5.50, SD = 2.89, n = 20) in their satisfaction for using dating apps. Results show no significant difference, t (43) = 0.547, n.s.  

Remarkably, while there seems to be more men who use dating apps and sites, it has been reported that the majority of men do not receive what they deem to be enough messages from dating sites, which might lead to a lower rate of satisfaction (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020). This might be true for our sample as well. We tested sex differences in the number of times our participants checked the dating app within one week using an independent-samples t-test, two-tailed. Results showed that there was a significant difference between men (M = 1.92, SD = 0.91, n = 25) and women (M = 2.55, SD = 1.05, n = 20), t (43) = 2.156, p = 0.037. In our sample, women tended to check their dating apps more often than men, perhaps implying that they check their app more because they get more notifications from responses, relative to men (Figure 3). A previous study from Queen Mary University of London that examined user behavior on the application Tinder within New York City and London, found that women receive matches at a much higher rate than men (10% of the time as compared to 0.6%) (MIT Technology Review 2016). Given this higher rate of matches or perceived success on the app, this could potentially explain why women use the app more frequently. Notably, the interactions from dating apps could be both positive and negative. Negative interactions include continued contact after saying that they were not interested, an unsolicited sexually explicit message or image, being called an offensive name, or a threat of physical harm (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020).

Figure 3: Mean frequency of checking online dating apps as a function of biological sex.  Women significantly checked online dating apps compared to men.  Error bars +/- SD.

These data, together with the lack of a statistical difference in satisfaction ratings, imply that men and women might have different sources of dissatisfaction with dating apps. As suggested by Pew research, more women reported being targeted by harassment compared to men (Anderson, Vogels & Turner, 2020).  It would be interesting to test the factors, such as the perceived danger of dating apps, or the actual experience of harassment, that lead to lower rates of dating app usage in women. Complementarily, the relatively high dating app usage in men is also noteworthy, as they report concerns over a lack of responses and dishonesty from other users. 

Previous research has been done regarding the tendency of males to prefer or to be more accepting of casual sex in comparison to women. As previously mentioned, males in our study were more motivated to use the apps to find casual sex than the women in our study. The results for this analysis were marginally significant, but could potentially be significant with a larger sample size. The question of why men and women differ in their attitudes towards casual sex has been a longstanding one. Robert Trivers’ Parental Investment Theory may partially explain this disparity. Part of his theory is that female parental investment is typically higher than male parental investment, and that the sex with more investment will have stronger preferences in regards to who they mate with (Trivers, 1972). Based on this theory, females will be more selective about their partners, possibly limiting the chances for casual sex encounters. The benefits of short term mating are also different for men and women. Speaking in terms of benefits from an evolutionary perspective, to a male, many sexual encounters with many women in a year can lead to the production of multiple offspring, but a woman can only produce one child in the same time period. There does not seem to be much benefit to women to engage in short term sexual encounters. On the contrary, there seems to be more risks associated with casual sex for women than there are for men. Women risk greater damage to their reputation, and losing out on future encounters due to a lower perception of value. Later research by Buss & Schmitt revealed that when asked about their ideal number of sexual partners in a lifetime, the average answer for men was 18, while the average answer for women was around 4.5 (Buss & Schmitt, 1993). This upholds the notion that men prefer casual sex more than women do.

Research conducted on the campus of Florida State University showed that male students were far more likely to be willing to engage in casual sex than their female counterparts. In two studies on the campus, one conducted in 1978 and the other in 1982, students were approached by an experimenter and told that they were attractive, then were asked one of three questions, which were rotated among subjects. The options were a request for a date, an invitation to go back to the experimenter’s apartment, and an invitation to go to bed with the experimenter. In both studies, 0% of females agreed to go to bed, while 75% of males agreed to do so in the 1978 study, and 69% of males in the 1982 study (Clark & Hatfield, 1989).

Given our ever-advancing technological world, our research can be of use to college students as the use of dating apps is quickly becoming an undeniable part of college culture. Since this phenomenon has only emerged in recent years, the waters are still relatively untested, and college students may have many concerns surrounding dating apps. The current study investigated the usage of dating apps in college-aged men and women. Women tended to use dating apps less than men. In those who use the apps, women tend to check their apps more often than men, but there were no statistical differences in satisfaction or motivation between men and women.

Excitement of uncertainty

In general, it seems that the limitation of dating apps is the sense of trust and security from their users as only a subset of users actually meet from using dating apps. Therefore, there might be other factors that might explain the popularity of dating apps. Given that men seem to comprise the majority of users on dating apps, despite generally receiving fewer “matches”, one must wonder why they continue to use the applications if they are not “successful”. Perhaps this means that there are other motivations to use these apps, such as thrill seeking. The behavior appears similar in a way to gambling; app users enjoy the possibility of a match enough to outweigh not receiving as many as they may possibly want.

Despite a lower rate of matches, which would indicate a lower rate of success when compared to women, men still comprise the majority of the user base on dating apps. Why keep using it if it is not working? Similar to gambling, users of these apps may find excitement in the sheer possibility of getting a match, making the experience of using the app enjoyable for them even if they aren’t obtaining any success. They may keep using these apps because they feel that they are bound to have success at a certain point, similar to patrons of a casino who spend all night at the roulette table, but with no wins. Aside from the thrill of potential success, it is possible that men are staying on these apps simply because it is deemed “the thing” to do. Perhaps male college students know that many of their fellow classmates are on these apps, so they feel compelled to use them as well. Technology and social interaction have become increasingly integrated with one another, to a point where many connections nowadays are made online, oftentimes via dating apps (Stevens & Morris, 2007). Humans are highly social beings, constantly seeking connections with other humans. Maybe at the root of the desire to use these apps is the intrinsic longing for human connection, a powerful inclination that keeps people using dating apps, no matter the outcome that the user experiences.

Limitations of the study

Some limitations did arise during this research. Given that the sample was derived from one college campus, the results may not accurately reflect the trends and behaviors of all college students. Collecting data from one campus also skewed the demographics of this study. There were a disproportionate number of responses from white students, with few minority students being included in the sample. This could be attributed to the racial composition of the University of South Carolina’s Columbia campus, where this data was collected. University of South Carolina’s Columbia campus’ undergraduate enrollment is comprised of 76.7% white students, 10.2% African American students, 0.2% Native American students, 2.3% Asian students, 4.0% Hispanic students, 0.1% Pacific Islander students, and 3.2% multiracial students, according to the University of South Carolina Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. This page also includes 1.6% NR Alien and 1.7% No Response undergraduate students on the Columbia campus, two groups that were not included in our sample (University of South Carolina Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, n.d.). Besides the campus being predominantly white undergraduate students, the small sample size does not reflect the diversity of campus.

Future directions

            Further research can be done on this topic, ideally with a larger sample size, and a more diverse sample. Another interesting factor that could be examined in future studies is how a person’s sexual orientation affects dating app usage, something that was not examined in this study. Since this study collected data from those who have used dating apps, it may be the case that there were some students in our sample who tried dating apps, were dissatisfied with them, and stopped their usage. This may have skewed our sample in potentially making it more likely that people in our sample were satisfied. It would be interesting to conduct further research on this topic, perhaps in a more controlled nature. A possible future direction for research on this topic would be to have a number of single people download one or more apps and have the participants use these apps for a certain period of time while tracking their satisfaction with the app. This type of study provides the opportunity for a potentially more accurate satisfaction rating. Another interesting direction for a future study would be to conduct the study across various college campuses around the country. This would give a greater sense of trends and behaviors applicable to the population of college students as a whole, while also allowing the study of trends by geographical region and institution type (e.g. user behavior at state schools versus private universities).  

About the Author

Emma Doyle

My name is Emma Doyle, and I am a senior Psychology major with a Spanish minor from Long Island, New York. Post graduation I plan on attending graduate school to earn a PhD. in School Psychology. This topic was of interest to me because during my time at Carolina I have observed the popularity of dating apps among my fellow students. The phenomenon of online dating is also relatively new, so I was interested in contributing to a growing body of research. Working on this project has helped make me a better scholar, as it has deepened my understanding of the process of data collection, academic writing, and statistical analyses.

I would like to thank several people for the important roles that they played in this project. This research was originally done as part of the final project for my course section of Laboratory in Psychology. I wish to thank both my laboratory partner, Katerina Delidakis, as well as Jonathan Rann, who was the teaching assistant for my section of that class. I also wish to thank Dr. Melanie Palomares, my professor for Laboratory in Psychology. Aside from teaching me about statistics and the process of scientific writing, Dr. Palomares has been a great mentor to me during the process of finalizing this paper for publication, enhancing both my understanding for and love of academia. Lastly, I thank all participants of this study for their role in advancing the scientific body of work.

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