Single? Three reasons why dating apps suck in 2023
Did you know that there are now almost 8,000 online dating apps and websites around the world? Yep, you read that right.
With so many choices, why is dating harder now than it used to be?
In short, dating apps suck.
So with so many options out there, why are we building another dating app?
We actually hate dating apps as much as you.
We like to think of ourselves as the “anti-dating app”. There may be a lot of dating apps out there but they are riddled with problems ultimately leading to serious dating app fatigue. So, we had to do something about it!
But for now, let’s dive into the good, the bad and the ugly of online dating…
The good - the world is your oyster
The way we meet our romantic partners has changed a lot over the years as illustrated below.
Whilst meeting your partner through work, university or the local church group used to be commonplace, that is certainly not the case today.
It’s probably not surprising to you that online dating is now the most common way to meet people. There are now a staggering 366 million dating app users globally, and 3.2 million in Australia alone!
Today, 40% of heterosexual couples will meet each other online vs only 22% in 2009 - and this is forecast to keep growing. Online dating is clearly convenient, at times entertaining and can obviously introduce you to a wide variety of potential matches you may not necessarily have the chance to meet in the wild.
However, it is not all fun and games. Below we get into three reasons why dating apps suck.
1. The bad - an extremely frustrating experience
We are at an interesting point in time where online dating is now both as popular as ever and as hated as ever. It has become a necessary evil!
You may not be surprised to learn that customer dissatisfaction with dating apps is higher than any other consumer facing industry. In fact, 88% of dating app users are disappointed by their experience and 84% would prefer to meet their prospective partner IRL rather than on an app.
Online dating has become hard work! First, you’re asked to swipe through an infinite number of incompatible profiles before finally finding a “match”. Then, you must build up the courage to message someone, knowing that 80% of first messages won’t be replied to.
Or, maybe you’re one of the lucky ones that gets a reply, until one day… radio silence! Yep you’ve been ghosted - something that 91% of dating app users will experience at some point.
The result? Only 0.2% of swipes lead to phone numbers being exchanged and 2% of matches convert to dates!
So let me get this straight, 84% of us want to meet our partner IRL, but only 2% of matches are converting to dates – dating apps are clearly broken!
2. The ugly - a time waster
For millennials, most of our dating life has been during the dating app era. So it’s no surprise, given the gloomy stats above, that the majority of daters are suffering a severe case of dating app fatigue.
Scarily, millennials are spending on average two hours per day on dating apps swiping through a never ending number of profiles. You could literally run a half marathon, go watch a play or almost get through The Titanic in that time!!
Many daters are stuck in a vicious cycle of deleting and redownloading dating apps time and time again. In fact, more than 90% of dating app users have deleted and redownloaded a dating app, and 62% have done this multiple times. The primary reason users are deleting dating apps is (surprise, surprise) because they are a waste of time.
3. The uglier - impact on self esteem
The more you swipe, the more chance of success right? Wrong!
Endless swiping brings with it a whole host of issues. We become more indecisive, leading to increased rejection bias, as well as increased pessimism, reduced self-esteem and negative mental health effects.
Dating should be fun and exciting and should definitely not consume your life or dictate your self worth. Clearly, the dating app industry is ripe for change.
How do we fix modern dating?
We want to bring the fun and excitement back to dating!
Humpday is the intersection of online and offline dating that you have been looking for. Say hello to your own 90s Rom-Com meet cute 👋
We facilitate IRL connection through fun events and unique dates and we are proud to have said goodbye to swiping and created a dating app that revolves completely around Wednesday!
Go thrive in your busy social and work lives because after all, life is so much more than just online dating.
Join the waitlist to get Beta access. See you out there x
