Tinder Accused of Secret Pricing and Lack of Transparency in Official Complaint

The Australian Consumer Agency Choice has filed an official complaint against popular dating app Tinder for secret multiple pricing levels for its Tinder Plus premium service based on a user’s personal data, including gender, sexual preference, and age.

The complaint was filed with ACCC, the national consumer commission in Australia, according to Mashable. It’s been no secret that Tinder has charged higher prices for Tinder Plus to users over the age of 30, but this is the first time the public has learned of multi-level pricing based on personal data, and the wide range of pricing – from AUD$6.99 to AUD$34. Tinder offered no transparency about their pricing up front, so many users are probably still unaware they are being charged more if they are over 30, or LQBTQ+, or if they are male, for example.

Choice conducted a survey, collecting data from over 60 users of the service in Australia, some of whom were given different prices at different times, according to Mashable. For example, a queer man between 30 and 49 outside the city was quoted two different prices (AUD$14.99 and AUD$30.44), a straight man under 30 was quoted AUD$13.82 and AUD$16.71. And the AUD$34 price tag was offered to a straight man over 50 in a metro area, while the lowest of AUD$6.99 was offered to a queer woman under 30. The prices also seemed to vary by region.

News of Tinder’s age-based pricing resulted in a class action lawsuit in California last year, and a settlement of $23 million. Tinder agreed to stop discriminatory pricing, but only for users in California. The company still charges $9.99 for people under 30, and $19.99 for those 30 and older in much of the rest of the U.S.

In its research, Choice also found that in addition to the multiple pricing levels, those over 30 were charged more than double the average price for those under 30.

“It is really concerning that we don’t know what information about us Tinder is using to determine these personalized prices,” Choice director of campaigns Erin Turner said in a statement. “Without knowing what factors influence the prices people get for Tinder Plus, customers aren’t able to really compare prices with other services and can’t judge whether Tinder is unfairly discriminating.”

Tinder maintains that it offers pricing based on price point testing, and that services like Spotify also offer different pricing based on age. However, as Choice points out, Tinder is not specific about the other factors that could be calculated to come up with a price. Its terms of service only state that Tinder offers “discounts,” with no clarification.  

When asked for a response, Tinder issued this statement to Mashable: 

Tinder operates a global business and our pricing varies by a number of factors. We frequently offer promotional rates - which can vary based on region, length of subscription, bundle size and more. We also regularly test new features and payment options.