Tinder Expands In-Person Events to Stay Relevant Amid Gen Z's Shift Away from Online Dating

Tinder is trying to stay in the game by expanding its in-person events to dozens of new cities, as Gen Z rethinks the point of online dating.

As Gen Z reconsiders the point of online dating, Tinder is trying to stay in the game by expanding its in-person events to dozens of new cities by September, the company told analysts on its second-quarter earnings call on Tuesday. Match Group (Tinder's owner) reported its flagship dating app saw revenue decline in the quarter, which sent the company's stock down by over 10% in after-hours trading. Nevertheless, Match still appeared to be bullish on its Tinder turnaround efforts.

CEO Spencer Rascoff spoke of narrowing Tinder's declines in monthly active users, which were down 7% in Q2, slightly better than last quarter's 8% decline. He also said he believed Tinder's daily active user growth would once again lean positive "any day now." The app has not reported positive user growth in more than three years.

Still, Match, which also runs Hinge, OKCupid, Match, PlentyofFish, and other dating apps, is planning for a future where online dating itself may become passé. Numerous reports have suggested that younger Gen Z users are increasingly turning to real-world experiences that get them off their phones and out of the house as they seek to connect with others.

Internal data shows that nearly half of singles aged 18 to 29 want to share in-person experiences with people who could become closer connections.

Tinder's in-person events are designed to provide a more social and lower-pressure way for users to connect in real life. The events are featured in a dedicated Events tab in Tinder's mobile app, and Rascoff said 71% of Tinder's active users in L.A., aged 18 to 24, had engaged with the new sections.

Since its March debut, the company has featured over 60 events. Now, Tinder is expanding its events efforts beyond L.A.'s initial beta test. Since March, the Events tab has been launched in nine additional U.S. and European cities, and it will reach 26 cities globally by the end of September. By the end of 2026, Tinder expects to launch the feature in 75 cities.

Rascoff told analysts on the call that Events was being scaled via a "low-cost model built primarily around partnerships with leading event providers" — in other words, Tinder itself isn't directly running the events; it's just making them discoverable via its app. However, this strategy could provide the company with valuable data if it wanted to invest more directly in such events.

"Bringing more real-world connection into the experience can help shift perception of Tinder and the category more broadly, giving singles a reason to reconsider and try the app." - Spencer Rascoff

When asked about the potential for events to increase user acquisition, Rascoff said that early signals support that potential. Roughly three in five people who do not use Tinder today say events would make them more likely to do so, and a similar share say it would make connecting feel easier.

Tinder's expansion into in-person events is a bid to stay relevant in a world where online dating is no longer the primary way people connect. As Gen Z continues to reevaluate the role of online dating in their lives, it remains to be seen whether Tinder's events will be enough to keep the app afloat.