Grindr Information, Statistics, Facts and History

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Facts Summary for Grindr

Owner:: Grindr LLC (which is owned by San Vicente Acquisition Partners)
Headquarters:: West Hollywood, California
Business Started:: 2009
Brands & Partnerships:: Grindr
Employees:: 98+- [2023 #12]
Main Service Areas:: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, International
Service Available Via:: iOS and Android
Number of Members since Launch:: 27 million users [2017 #2]
Number of Active Members:: 12 million per month [2023 #2]
Number of Paying Members:: 873 Thousand [2023 #2]

Grindr History Summary

Grindr was launched in March of 2009 by Joel Simkhai (Nearby Buddy Finder, LLC) in the United States. Grindr is a mobile dating app for gay, trans and bisexual men. When it launched it was the first service of its type on the Apple App Store. By 2013 Grindr had 7 million users and was available worldwide in over 190 countries. By 2017 Grindr had over 27 million members with on average 3.6 million men using the app everyday.

In 2018 Kunlun Group of Beijing completed the purchase of Grindr which it had started in 2016. By 2019 the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) had reviewed the sale and declared that the Grindr purchase by the Chinese company Kunlun was a threat to U.S. national security since it poses a risk to the privacy of users of the dating service. After several proposals Kunlun finally accepted an offer of $608.5 million from the San Vicente Acquisition Partners. In 2022 Grindr became a public company when it merged with Tiga Acquisition.

Like most other dating apps Grindr uses the freemium model for their service. The basic features of the service is free (creating a profile, finding matches, and sending and receiving messages) but Grindr charges a subscription fee (called Grindr XTRA) to remove advertising and for access to 6 times the number of profiles. Extra features like more filters available for searching and unlimited favorites are also included. To match members together Grindr uses the mobile phones geolocation abilities to locate members who are near by each other.

Grindr Facts By Year

2024

General Information
- Grindr CEO George Arison is focusing on moving Grindr beyond a hookup app, and in streamlining costs. [1]
- Grindr is testing a feature called Teleport, which lets users place their profile in a new location for an hour to connect with others before traveling to that place. [1]
- Half of Grindr users said in a survey that they are looking for long-term relationships. [1]
- In a survey 88% of Grindr users said they are using the app for casual hookups as well. [1]
- An “a la carte” payment option for travel services will be added to Grindr to help boost revenue. Travelling to events such as Aspen Gay Ski Week and New Year’s Eve in Rio de Janeiro is hugely popular among Grindr users. [1]
- Grindr is planning to monetize the app more aggressively: [2]
  - This will include launching an AI-based “boyfriend” chatbot feature that can engage in sexually explicit conversations with users, for a price.
  - Grindr is revising its terms of service to ask people signing up if the company can train their AI models on their personal data, which can include direct messages.
  - Grindr is also planning to put previously free features behind a paywall and increase in-app purchases to help boost revenue.
  - Grindr is testing a paywall for its “Taps” feature that lets users flirt without having to write out a message.
- In 2023 Grindr had 111 billion chats sent. They had 5.5 million daily active users. That's 600 messages per person per day. [2]
- Grindr has hired Athena (a fitness app) co-founder and CEO AJ Wolf as a senior manager of product finance, while co-founder and technology chief Max Roche is joining as a senior iOS engineer. Grindr did not acquire any of Athena’s assets. [3]
- Grindr plans to launch new changes later this year: [4]
  - These will be the biggest change to its platform in the app’s history, describing the app’s new purpose to be a “gayborhood in your pocket.”.
  - One new feature is called Roam which will allow users to set a location on the app to where they are traveling, so they can match and message with people before arriving.
  - Grindr is looking to connect people to all kinds of resources, including restaurants and fitness and health professionals. (which has already been happening for years unofficially on the app)
  - Referrals for health providers and other resources it lists on its app will have a “Grindr seal of approval,”
  - The app will offer LGBTQ+-friendly recommendations, from GPs to therapists.
  - The app will offer more profile options so users can specify what they are looking for, including friendships.
  - Grindr is also rumored to be taking AI further , essentially offering chatbot “AI boyfriends” which will sext, flirt, and maintain relationships with other users on a user’s behalf.
- Grindr has partnered with Equality in Movement in Georgia and MPOWER in Ireland to connect its users in these countries with at-home HIV testing kits. These users will have dedicated buttons on the app’s interface to order at-home self-test kits. [7]
- Grindr has launched a cross-country bus tour “Grindr Rides America” in celebration of Pride month: [8]
  - The tour will stop in ten cities across the U.S., starting with San Francisco and ending with New York.
  - Grindr’s bus tour is also in celebration of its fifteenth anniversary.
  - It offer free HIV testing, PrEP resources, and a full-service photography studio to LGBTQ neighborhoods on its route.
  - A team from medical service Q Care Plus will be along for the ride to discuss HIV and STI prevention with attendees, as well as screening, treatment options, and how to access prep and doxy-PEP.
- Grindr crashed in Milwaukee during the Republican National Convention on July 16th due to a spike in user activity on the platform. The outage has made headlines during the RNC because of the hardline views the political party has taken against the LGBTQ+ community. [11]
- Grindr has shut off the explore option on its platform for the Olympic Village in Paris to protect the identities of athletes who are staying there to compete. [12]
- Additional features that Grindr is making available to Olympic Village residents include the ability to send unlimited disappearing messages regardless of whether you are a paying user, disabling private videos within the Village, and the ability to report concerns with messaging while keeping user details confidential. [12]
- Grindr has issued a warning to its users who live in or are traveling to Brussels after a recent attack. Push notification for users in the area reads: "Be safe! Violent and homophobic setups have been reported in Brussels". [14]
- Grindr has launched a new online YouTube show called Host or Travel, which explores different “gayborhoods” (or gay-friendly neighborhoods) around the world, launched in tandem with testing its new travel-friendly “Roam” feature. [15]
- Grindr is developing an interactive map to help users find LGBTQ-friendly hotspots in their cities like those featured in the new Host or Travel show. [15]
- Grindr is officially testing an initial model for their AI Wingman: [16]
  - The AI will keep track of a user’s matches and make conversational suggestions based on messages they have had with other users.
  - The bot will recommend matches with long-term relationship potential and suggest places where they could meet.
  - The AI wingmen of Grindr users will eventually be able to chat with each other so they can offer a robust view of a match before the user decides to meet in person.
  - Grindr will ask users for permission to use their chat history for training its AI bot in order to protect their privacy.
  - Grindr won’t permit the AI chat bot to have conversations on commercial activity or solicitation.
  - This new feature is currently being tested by a small group of regular users which will be expanded to 1,000 users by the end of December, and up to 10,000 users in 2025. The goal is to launch the wingman to all 14 million Grindr users by 2027.
- The Democrats have launched a new series of ads on dating app Grindr to appeal to young LGBTQ+ daters, in hopes of turning out more votes ahead of election day on November 5th. [17]
Finances
- Thanks in part to increase number of users, Grindr’s stock has increased nearly 120% from last year, and jumped 32% since June when the company offered its new growth plan to investors. [10]
Legal
- Grindr was sued in the UK over sharing HIV information: [5]
  - The claim was filed in London’s High Court, and alleges that “covert tracking technology” was used to track and illegally share the personal health status of users with advertisers. More than 650 claimants were affected along with reportedly thousands of other U.K. users.
  - The lawsuit says the information shared with third parties includes the ethnicities and sexual orientations of users.
  - The sharing of such information took place primarily before April 2018, though some data was shared as recently as April 2020.
  - The lawsuit specifically names Apptimize and Localytics as involved third parties with access to the data.
  - A Grindr spokesperson said the company takes privacy "extremely seriously", and added the claim "appears to be based on a mischaracterization of practices from more than four years ago".
- Grindr is facing privacy concerns in the U.S. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) said in October 2023 that it had asked the FTC to investigate Grindr after finding it was storing user data even after accounts were deleted. [5]
- Grindr’s new Chief Privacy Officer Kelly Peterson Miranda is setting the record straight regarding the app’s privacy policies and use of personal data following allegations and a recent lawsuit. [6]
- Grindr was ordered to pay a $5.7 million fine by a Norwegian Court after the company was found to have violated EU regulations by sharing personal user data with third parties. [9]
- A former Catholic priest has brought a $5 million lawsuit against Grindr for allegedly selling his personal data without his knowledge or consent thereby allowing people outside of the app to know he was using it and causing him significant damage. [13]

References

2023

General Information
- Grindr has about 200 total employees. [2]
- A group of conservative Catholics based in Colorado spent millions to buy tracking data from dating apps like Grindr to identify gay priests, and then shared the information with regional Bishops. [3]
- Grindr has issued a warning to its users in Egypt after reports surfaced that police were posing as potential matches to target and arrest LGBTQ+ people. [4]
- Australia’s Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has ordered the Grindr to hand over information on sexual violence reports. [5]
- Grindr has launched a web version of its popular LGBTQ+ dating app, allowing people the choice to see more profiles at once and larger photos of potential matches. It is called "Grindr Web". [6]
- Former Grindr executive alleges company violated privacy laws by: [7]
  - Retaining sensitive data like nude photos without the consent or knowledge of the user.
  - Collected the HIV status of users, even after they deleted their accounts.
  - Information was stored in Grindr's systems, but also its vendor systems, and potentially retrievable by any employee of Grindr, or its third-party support vendor, through a backdoor to Grindr's application.
  - Grindr allowed third parties to collect data about users if they just viewed an advertisement over the platform.
  - The Grindr app violated the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation by not correcting a bug that would reset user data collection consent settings and store nude photos of users even after account deletion.
- A supermajority of Grindr employees have formed a union called "Grindr United-CWA". It was created in part in response to the layoffs and cutbacks happening across the tech industry. The employees want to be proactive in ensuring they maintain their benefits and have clear severance protocols, especially now that the company is publicly traded and answers to shareholders. [8]
- Grindr forces workers to relocate: [9]
  - Grindr has issued a return-to-the-office policy for all workers, forcing them to relocate to one of the company’s three main offices by October 3rd or lose their jobs.
  - Employees say this is a retaliatory move after forming a union 2 weeks earlier. Grindr refused to comment or answer question about the policy.
  - Workers were given the choice to move to within 50 miles of either Chicago (for the engineering team), and Los Angeles or San Francisco (for the product and design teams) offices.
  - In response to the company’s new policy, the union filed an unfair labor practice charge against Grindr for retaliating against employees seeking to form the union.
- Almost a quarter of Grindr members use the app to network for career advancement. [10]
- Nearly half of Grindr employees (80 of Grindr’s 178 workers) quit the company after they were given an ultimatum to return to work in the office. [12]
- About 100 Grindr employees got approval from the National Labor Relations Board for holding an election to form a union. The ballots will become available November 22nd, and voting will end on December 13th. [13]
- Grindr has announced a strategic partnership with Ex-human to add an AI assistant to its platform. The AI assistant (a type of Grindr Wingman) is going to be used for dating advice, conversation prompts, and will offer personal recommendations for dates. [14]
Finances
- Grindr hit a rough patch at the end of November 2022 where the newly launched stock hit an all-time low of $6.52. On November 18 when the stock launched, it ended its day at $36.50. [1]
- Grindr released in December its 3rd quarter earnings noting that revenue for the quarter was up 32% year-over-year to $50.4 million, and year-to-date revenue was up to $140.5 million. [1]
- Grindr earnings for the company grew over 337% over the past year, but the stock is still trading 37% below its estimated value. [1]
- Grindr reported on the earnings for 2022: [2]
  - This is their first earnings report as a public company.
  - Grindr saw 34% increase in year-over-year earnings to $195 million.
  - Grinder expects revenue to grow 25 percent in 2023
  - Monthly average users rose to about 12 million, up from 11 million at the same time last year.
  - Paying users grew from 703,000 to 873,000 over the last year.
  - Grindr is hoping to capture more paying users by offering new subscription tiers. They have also created a new testing system to experiment and gain insight on which new features to invest in, depending on user interest.
  - On the day of this reports release, shares more than doubled for Grindr throughout the trading day.
- Grindr is offering weekly subscriptions now, and it said it’s driving revenue as well. [11]
- Grindr is also looking at offering a premium high price tier as well as a cheaper subscription plan. [11]
- Grindr’s revenue is 39% higher than this time last year. [13]

References

2022

General Information
- Grindr has 11 million users, with roughly 80% of its user base under 35 years old. [3]
- Grindr named board member George Arison as its new CEO. Grindr also appointed a new CFO, the former CFO of Disney Streaming Service Vanna Krantz. [4]
- Grindr launched a new video series called Play Safe staring Kandy Muse. It's intent is to educate users about safety policies and practices. The videos will be available in the app as well as across the company’s social channels. The first installment has been released with more to come. [5]
- Users sent a total of 260 million messages in 2021. [6]
- Users spend on average 61 minutes per day on the app. [6]
Finances
- Grindr will become a public company through a merger with Tiga Acquisition, and that the combined companies have been valued at $2.1 billion. [3]
- Revenue grew 30% from the previous year (2021), totaling $147 million. [3]
- It currently has 723,000 paying users. [3]
- Grindr launched its initial public offering on November 18 and saw its stock go as high as $71.51 from its debut at $16.90. Over a week and a half later though it has reach lows of $7.62. [6]
Legal
- Grindr was fined $7.16 million (65 million kroner) by Norway’s Internet watchdog agency for violating the privacy rights of its users. The Norwegian Data Protection Authority said that Grindr had shared the sensitive personal data of its users, including sexual orientation, to hundreds of potential advertising partners without their consent. [1]
- Grindr has been removed from China’s app stores, including the Apple Store, as government officials tighten control over online behavior. Chinese officials said there were compliance issues with Grindr regarding China’s Personal Information Protection Law. [2]

References

2021

General Information
- Grindr is starting production on a new scripted series called Bridesman which is a comedy series stars Jimmy Fowley. Bridesman is expected to premiere in the fall of 2021. [2]
- Grindr releases a new comedy special called Gag Reflex, featuring a lineup of up-and-coming LGBTQ comedians, who share stories of dating and the queer experience. [3]
- TikTok and Twitter users are posting profiles of closeted Olympic athletes who are discreetly using Grindr while they compete in Tokyo for the 2021 Olympic. Grindr demands that these individuals remove their social media posts that include images from the Grindr platform. [4]
- Grindr creating a month-long series of live online performances and shows during Pride month for their users. [6]
Legal
- The Norwegian Data Protection Authority has notified Grindr that it could be fined as much as $11.7 million USD for sharing personal data of its users to third parties without their consent. [1]
- Pillar published a report that based on legally obtained data there seem to be 16+ mobile devices which emitted signals from the Grindr app on at least four days between March to October 2018. [4]
- Grindr says that since 2020 it does not share and age, gender or location information with ad partners. [4]

References

2020

General Information
- To protect users Grindr has released the ‘Holistic Security Guide’ in six languages. The guide will help queer users navigate dating in countries where a culture of homophobia, biophobia and transphobia puts them at risk. [1]
- Grindr’s introduces 3 new features focus on the app’s messaging system including the ability to “unsend” text and photographs they want to remove from a conversation, expiring photos, and screenshot blocking for chats, pictures and profiles. [1]
- The Discreet App Icon allows users the option of replacing the Grindr app icon on their phone with another symbol, which helps hide the fact that they are using Grindr. [6]
- Grindr has debuted two new language versions of its Holistic Security Guide so that users can understand how to use the app safely in Kiswahili and Bahasa Indonesia. [6]
- In the wake of protests against police violence, Grindr plans to drop the ethnicity filter from the search in the app in its next update. [8]
- Grindr has formed a partnership with UrSafe to offer a range of safety features to its members like being allowed to check in with friends and family during a date. [10]
- Over the last 12 months the Grindr app has been downloaded 2 million times in the United States. [11]
Finances
- Milan-based app design company Bending Spoons has offered $260 million to buy Grindr from Kunlun Tech. [3]
- Grindr is set to sell for $608.5 million to San Vicente Acquisition Partners. They are a group of entrepreneurs and investors in the technology, media and telecommunications industries. [7]
- Of all the dating apps in the App Store and Google Play, Grindr earned the 8th most revenue overall in May of 2020. [9]
Legal
- Grindr has come under fire from the Norwegian Consumer Council for sharing personal data of their users with third parties like advertisers. This includes sending GPS position, IP address, and relationship type information. [2]
- U.S. House of Representatives is investigating several US dating companies including Grindr following a report that found underage users and sex offenders were using dating apps. The House Oversight and Reform subcommittee on economic and consumer policy sent a letter asking for information on users ages, procedures for verifying ages, and any complaints about assaults, rape or the use of the services by minors. [4]
- Research from Pixalate shows that Grindr’s Android application was exploited to defraud advertisers. [5]
- With the Norwegian Consumer Council report, Grindr's account was suspended on Twitter’s ad platform. [5]

References

2019

General Information
- Grindr has terminated the editorial staff of their online magazine called INTO. The magainze launched in August 2017 and recently had reported on a viral exposé claiming Grindr’s president, Scott Chen, opposed marriage equality. [1]
- In response to closing INTO, Grindr says they plan to concentrate more on video. [1]
- In the last 5 years Grindr has had about 30 million downloads (Jan 2014 to June 2019). [5]
- Grindr Unlimited is introduced as a top tier subscription option and includes 5 more options than Grindr Xtra. [6]
Legal
- The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has declared that the Grindr purchase by the Chinese company Kunlun is a threat to U.S. national security because of the risk posed to the privacy of users of the dating service. [2]
- Beijing Kunlun Tech must sell the dating app Grindr by June 30, 2020. [3]
- Lebanon’s Telecommunications Ministry has blocked access to Grindr on the country’s state-owned internet service provider. [4]
- Grindr is headed towards an IPO again since the U.S. national security panel CFIUS has dropped its opposition to the IPO (not with full ownership by the Kunlun Group though). [7]

References

2018

General Information
- Chinese firm Kunlun Group purchased the remaining outstanding shares of Grindr for $152 million. [1]
- Grindr founder Joel Simkhai who was CEO has left the company. [1]
- Grindr has stated that the Chinese government does not have access to users accounts. [1]
- In the UK, Grindr is the busiest on Sunday nights. [2]
- A security flaw found in Grindr exposes members restricted profiles and location data. Grindr quickly resolved the issue. [3]
- A Grindr member named Keodara took to social media to announce plans to bring a class-action lawsuit against Grindr for racial discrimination. [4]
- Grinder has announced Kindr which is set to launch in September. It is an initiative to help curb discrimination amongst daters. [5]
- Grindr reaches more than 196 countries and has more than 3 million daily active users. On average these users send 228 million messages and 20 million photos via the platform each day. [6]
- Grindr faces backlash after President Scott Chen posted controversial Gay marriage remarks. [8]
Finances
- Parent company Kunlun Group filed for Grindr an IPO with the China Securities Regulatory Commission. [6]
- Of all the dating apps, Grindr earned the 6th most revenue overall (7th in App Store and 3rd in Google Play). [9]
Members
- In one study of 200,000 iPhone users, 77% of Grindr users felt unhappy when they used the app. [7]

References

2017

General Information
- Grindr is the most searched for dating app in California, Maine, Nevada, Missouri, and Mississippi. [1]
- Grindr has 27 million registered users with 30% of them from the United States. [2]
- According to Beijing Kunlun Tech the Chinese government will not have any access to Grindr accounts. [3]
- All users now get push notifications automatically. It is not a premium feature anymore. [4]
- Grindr updates app and website with new options for users who identify as transgender and gender non-conforming. Users may also choose a preferred pronoun. [5]
Finances
- Beijing Kunlun Tech buys the rest of Grindr (38.47%) for $152 million US dollars. [2]
- Full numbers have been released reporting that Beijing Kunlun Tech purchased the initial 62% of Grindr for $88 million and the other 38% for $152 million for a total of $250 million. [3]
- Grindr had $13.7 million USD in net profit for 2014. [3]

References

2016

General Information
- Beijing Kunlun Tech buys 60% stake in Grindr. The other 40% is owned by Grindr employees and Joe Simkhai (founder). [1]
- The total valuation of Grindr is about $155 million. [1]
- Grindr earned about $38 million for 2015. [1]
Members
- The average Grindr user spends up to 54 minutes a day on the app. [1]
- Grindr has 2 million visitors daily. [2]
- Grindr is most popular in the United States, followed by the UK, Mexico, Brazil and then France. [2]

References

2015

General Information
- Rumors say that Grindr will soon be up for sale. [1]

References

Will Grindr Soon Be Up For Sale?

2014

Members
- Brazil is the 6th-largest market for Grindr. [1]
- Grindr user numbers have increased by 31% in Brazil since the World Cup began. [1]

References

World Cup Fans Go Crazy for Dating Apps

2013

General Information
- Grinder has 7 million users in 192 countries. [1]
Members
- The average user spends two hours per day on the app and logs in eight times daily. [1]

References

The Top 10 Best Mobile Dating Apps in 2013 (Part I)

2012

General Information
- Some organizations have blamed Grindr for the rise in STDs like Syphilis in recent years. [1]

References

Rise in Syphilis Blamed on Grindr

2010

General Information
- Grindr launched a mobile dating app for Blackberry phones in June. [1]
- A straight version of Grindr is in the works now with plans to release it by the end 2010. [1]
Members
- 700,000 men from 162 countries are using the Grinder App with it being the most popular in the United States and United Kingdom. [1]
- Grindr is downloaded more than 2,000 times a day. [1]
- Grindr has 600,000 unique users per month which about 250,000 users use it every day. These users log on approximately eight times within a 24 hour period. [2]

References

2009

General Information
- Joel Simkhai founded Grindr with $5,000. [1]

References

Will Grindr Soon Be Up For Sale?

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Grindr Information, Statistics, Facts and History

Facts Summary for Grindr

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