Dating apps have taken the modern dating scene by storm, and completely reshaped how people find and pursue relationships. But these apps really worth trying out?
Dating apps have reshaped how people approach dating. Going out and meeting someone at a pub or cafe and finding them interesting is based on chance. But with dating apps you can find and tailor your profile to the type of person you want to find, the type of relationship and more.
Within the United Kingdom dating apps have increasingly become the norm for many people. According to Statista, in 2023 there were over 11.1 million dating app users in the UK. Indeed, the UK is the third largest producer of revenue for the online dating market in the world. Thus big companies such as Tinder, Bumble and hinged have developed a large presence.
The allure of dating apps
Dating apps have become the new way to meet people and for some, if you don’t use them, then you may feel you are missing out. People are investing time and money into dating apps and it all boils down to how much it can facilitate your love life.
Meeting people outside your social circle
Dating apps broaden your horizons in terms of meeting new people. Whether one has a small social circle or a big one, dating apps allow you to find more people outside of this circle, and to expand your dating possibilities.
Separation of love and social life
In an article written in the Guardian, sociologist Dr Marie Bergström argues that dating apps create a separation between the social sphere and the love life of individuals. With dating apps, one can privatise their love life and separate it from their social life.
This allows many individuals to feel more comfortable and also has created the scene for casual relationships. Dating apps have facilitated the ability for people to find short term sexual partners. Dating apps have options to show the type of relationship a user wants. In doing so it allows many people to have a way to find people and just have fun.
Bergström argues that due to the privatisation of a person’s love life brought by the dating apps, they can experience short term relationships freely without those in their social sphere ever finding out. This is especially motivating for users who like to keep their personal life hidden from people in their social spheres.
Meet the people you want
Dating apps allow you to tailor your profile to show your dating preferences. This allows users the ability to read through someone’s profile and see if they like what they see, and hopefully find someone who shares similar hobbies and interests as well. At the same time by putting some of your own preferences into your profile, it allows other people to reach out to you that might meet your preferences. In the end it’s up to the user to pick who they want, but you can tailor the app to find the best potential candidate for your next relationship.
The Issues with dating apps
Although dating apps certainly have their fair share of perks, it does not mean they do not have their own issues.
Harassment
Users need to be wary that while using dating apps harassment is a common occurrence. A recent study published in 2023 in Sage Journals regarding harassment in dating apps found out that the possibility of being sexually harassed is between 57-88%. The study also showcased that the two groups of people at higher risk of harassment were women and people identifying as sexual minorities.
Closing yourself off
By engaging in dating apps the nature of how people meet is changing. Dating apps allow people to meet up from their room rather than meeting them outside in the real world. Thus, dating apps users can forget how to meet and befriend new people in the real world and close themselves off for potential dating partners to people just within the app.
Instead of being a tool to augment the amount of people you could meet, more people are using it as an option to stay inside and find someone from the comfort of one’s home. People become less aware of how to approach someone they might be interested in real life and close themselves off from new people.
Premium features
Dating apps tend to lock their most beneficial privileges behind money paywalls. Apps like Tinder and Hinged for example greatly limit the online dating potential. For example, without premium a free user’s profile is shown less often to other people reducing the amount of potential matches one can get on Hinge and Tinder alike. Premium also gives the option to infinitely give likes to people you’re interested in each day, whilst the free users get a limited amount of likes each day: 100 on Tinder and ten on Hinged.
At their core, dating apps motivate you to spend money in order to be more successful, by greatly limiting the free features and putting all other features within expensive paywalls. A basic upgrade on Hinge to Hinge + costs £14.99 per week.
Alternatives to dating apps
With the rise of dating apps there have also been a variety of other methods to meet people. For example, events that focus on drawing single people together are becoming popular. Apps like Thursday for example, pitch in person events each Thursday at certain venues in different cities to serve as a place for single people to meet up in person.
If that’s not for you either, one can meet new people the old fashioned way: whether its meeting a friend of a friend, someone on nights out, or approaching someone at the library or cafe.
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