The Dating App Industry: Business Models, Monopolies, and Why They Need You Single

The Business Model Is the Problem

Match Group reported $3.5 billion in revenue in 2024. Tinder alone made $1.96 billion. Hinge made $550 million, up 26% year over year, despite marketing itself as "designed to be deleted."

Let that sink in. The app that tells you it's designed to be deleted grew its revenue by 26%. Doesn't sound like there's much deleting going on.

This isn't a bug. It's the business model. Every major dating app makes money from subscriptions and in-app purchases. The longer you stay single and searching, the more you pay. The moment you find your person and leave, their revenue drops. They have a financial incentive to keep you swiping, not to help you find someone.

The Monopoly Nobody Talks About

Match Group owns Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, Match, Plenty of Fish, and over 40 other dating brands. When you get frustrated with one of their apps and switch to another, you're often just switching to a different app owned by the same company.

They settled a lawsuit with their own co-founders for $441 million after being accused of cheating them out of stock options. They've faced class action lawsuits for designing addictive features. They've been sued for keeping a serial rapist's profile active for over two years after he was reported for sexual assault.

The Addiction Playbook

Tinder co-founder Jonathan Badeen admitted the app's swiping feature was inspired by B.F. Skinner's experiments that "turned pigeons into gamblers." A 2024 class action lawsuit (Oksayan v. Match Group) alleges the apps are intentionally designed to addict users using "dopamine-manipulating" features and "game-like design" that locks users into a "perpetually pay-to-play loop."

Match Group called the lawsuit "ridiculous." The law firm representing users described it as a fight against "an effective monopoly purposely designed to foment dating app addiction."

The Alternative Exists

On Deck Society is a Delaware Public Benefit Corporation. Our charter legally ties our success to helping users find meaningful connections. We don't have shareholders demanding engagement metrics. We don't need you single. We built consent-based dating because it's the right thing to do, and we structured the company so that doing the right thing is also the business strategy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who owns Tinder, Hinge, and Match?

Match Group owns Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, Match, Plenty of Fish, and over 40 other dating brands. They reported $3.5 billion in revenue in 2024.

Why are dating apps designed to be addictive?

Dating apps make money from subscriptions. The longer you stay single and searching, the more you pay. Tinder's co-founder admitted the swiping feature was inspired by B.F. Skinner's pigeon gambling experiments. Addictive design keeps users engaged and paying.

Is there a dating app that actually wants you to find someone?

Love On Deck is a Public Benefit Corporation, which means our success is legally tied to our public benefit mission of fostering meaningful connections. Unlike Match Group apps, our business model doesn't depend on keeping you single.