Contributed by: kellyseal on Friday, May 06 2022 @ 11:00 am
Last modified on Friday, May 06 2022 @ 11:11 am
Dating apps are having a moment since the pandemic began, and new ones have launched this year that are expanding options for how to connect with others beyond just a swipe.
Tinder and Bumble are by far the most popular apps, but many singles are looking for something different than your typical swiping experience that instead caters to social habits and lifestyles. Elle Magazine[*1] highlighted a few new apps to watch in their latest dating app round up, including some noteworthy ones that are following post-pandemic dating needs:
Now that we are all getting back to normal life with pandemic restrictions lifting, singles are looking to meet people IRL again. Thursday and Victoria the App offer connection with in-person events. Thursday had 11,000 members signed up even before in launched in New York and London. The app is only live for one day per week – Thursday – encouraging engagement with users, and offers live events at trendy clubs and bars. Victoria the App is an exclusive dating experience like Raya, but where it differs is it’s both a networking and dating app, and hosts panels and other events at exclusive places (for now only in London).
Jungle Dating is not into awkward one-on-one first dates, so if you want some support this app is for you. It allows users to create a group of up to four friends to match with another group so you can go out together and see what happens. Fourplay allows friends to create joint profiles together to match with other double profiles to go out on a group date and see what happens. The app launched this year and had a 9,000-person waiting list.
Match Group just launched its newest dating app Stir specifically for single parents who have busy, changing schedules and not much time to connect and go out on dates. The app makes it easier by placing schedules front and center in a user’s profile, making it easier to meet and date. If you have no plans to ever have kids, Kindred is the app for you. It’s specifically for singles who don’t have kids and don’t want them, so they can find like-minded souls.
POM (Power of Music) and Tastebuds both offer matching based primarily on your musical preferences – and this is a big trend among Gen Z daters. Tinder has just launched its Festival Mode feature to let its users match with others going to the same concert or music festival, proving the point. In fact, Tinder’s own study showed that 64 percent of respondents for a survey they conducted said they enjoy meeting new people at festivals, and 61 percent say they’ve become friends or romantically involved with people they’ve met at a concert or music festival.