Insights / Glossary
Dating industry glossary. The terms that run the business.
Short, plain definitions of the metrics, models and rules behind dating apps, from payers and ARPPU to liquidity and age assurance.
A
Age assuranceAge assurance is the umbrella term for checking that someone is old enough to use a service, from ID document checks to facial age estimation.Alternative paymentsAlternative payments means letting app members pay outside Apple's or Google's in-app billing, for example on the web or through another billing provider, where rules allow it.ARPPUARPPU (average revenue per paying user) is revenue divided by the number of payers in a period. In this industry it is often called revenue per payer.ARPUARPU (average revenue per user) is revenue divided by all active members, paying or not. It measures how well an app earns from its whole audience.
C
ChargebackA chargeback is when a bank reverses a card payment after the cardholder disputes it. The merchant loses the money and pays a fee unless it wins the dispute.ChurnChurn is the share of members or payers who leave in a period. For subscriptions it usually means payers who cancel or fail to renew.
M
Merchant of recordThe merchant of record is the company that legally sells to the customer: it takes the payment, handles tax and refunds, and carries chargeback risk.Monthly active members (MAU)Monthly active members, often written MAU, is the number of people who open an app or website at least once in a calendar month.
P
PayerA payer is a member who paid for a subscription, feature or virtual item during a period. Listed dating companies report payers alongside active members because payers drive revenue.Payer conversionPayer conversion is the share of active members who pay in a period: payers divided by monthly active members.