Grindr
Bumble
Match Group
Hinge
Badoo
Momo
Tinder
Match
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Dating apps make most of their money from members paying directly, through subscriptions and single purchases. Match Group earned $839.9 million of its $853.1 million revenue in the second quarter of 2026 from members, about 98.5% by our calculation [1]. Grindr is the main exception among Western apps, earning $25 million of its $138 million quarterly revenue from advertising, about 18% [4]. Live and social apps such as Momo work differently again: they earn mainly from virtual gifts that members buy with coins [8][9].
There are four building blocks. Most apps combine two or three of them.
The four models
| Model | How it works | Typical items | Who leans on it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subscriptions | Members pay weekly, monthly or for longer for a better version of the app | Plus, Gold, Premium, XTRA, Unlimited | Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, Grindr, Match, eharmony |
| À la carte | One-off purchases of a single feature | Boosts, Super Likes, Roses, SuperSwipes | Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, Plenty of Fish |
| Coins and virtual gifts | Members buy credits, then spend them on gifts, live streams or features | Credits, coins, diamonds, gifts | MeetMe, Tagged, Skout, Momo, Badoo |
| Advertising | Third parties pay to show ads to members, usually free ones | Banner, video and native ads | Grindr, plus small amounts at Match and Bumble |
Source: Match Group 10-K [3], Bumble Inc 10-K [7], Grindr results [4][5], Hello Group results [9] and App Store listings [10][11][12][13].
Match Group describes most of its brands as freemium: free to use, with premium features that need a subscription lasting from about a week to six months, plus some features sold on a pay-per-use, or à la carte, basis [3]. Bumble describes the same model for Bumble and Badoo, with subscriptions most commonly of 7, 30 or 90 days, single features such as SuperSwipe and Spotlight, and Badoo Credits bought in bundles [7].
Revenue mix where it is disclosed
| Company | Period | Paid by members | Advertising and other | Share from members (our calculation) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match Group | Q2 2026 | $839.9m direct revenue | $13m indirect revenue | 98.5% |
| Match Group | 2025 | $3,415m direct revenue | $72m (total less direct) | 97.9% |
| Grindr | Q2 2026 | $113m app-based revenue | $25m advertising | 81.9% |
| Grindr | Q2 2025 | $87m app-based revenue | $17m advertising | 83.7% |
| Hello Group | Q2 2026 | RMB2,439.6m value-added services | RMB46.4m other services | 98.1% |
| Bumble Inc | Q2 2026 | Not split out | Included in Badoo and other revenue | Not published |
Source: Match Group results for Q2 2026 [1] and 2025 [2], Grindr Q2 2026 shareholder letter [4], Hello Group Q2 2026 results [8], Bumble Inc Q2 2026 results [6]. Shares are our calculation: member-paid revenue divided by total revenue.
Three points stand out.
Match barely relies on ads. Its indirect revenue, which comes from advertising, fell 28% on a year to $13 million in the second quarter of 2026 [1]. The company calls it a much smaller part of revenue than direct revenue [3].
Grindr is the outlier. Its advertising revenue grew from $17 million to $25 million on a year, faster than its app revenue, lifting ads from about 16% of revenue to about 18% [4]. Grindr defines indirect revenue as money from third parties who pay to advertise to its members [5].
Bumble does not split ads out. It folds advertising, partnerships and affiliate income into Badoo and other revenue, which was $38.8 million in the second quarter of 2026 [6].
Subscriptions plus single purchases: the Western default
Tinder, Hinge and Bumble all sell tiered subscriptions with single purchases on top. On 16 October 2026 the US App Store listed Tinder Plus and Gold alongside Boosts and Super Likes [11], Hinge subscriptions alongside Roses and Boosts [12], and Bumble Premium alongside BumbleCoins [13]. See dating app subscription prices for the full price points.
The subscription carries most of the revenue. Single purchases do two jobs: they let members who will not commit to a plan spend a little, and they give subscribers something more to buy. Hinge earned $33.11 a month per payer in the second quarter of 2026, the highest of any app that reports it [1].
Grindr's model is similar, with XTRA and Unlimited subscription tiers and consumables [4]. It is also testing Edge, which it calls an AI-native premium tier and expects to be a main driver of revenue growth from 2027 [4]. Grindr has added a separate telehealth subscription, Woodwork, launched in May 2025 [5].
Coins and virtual gifts: the live and social model
Apps built around live video and social discovery earn differently. MeetMe's US App Store listing is led by credit packs, from 200 credits for $1.99 to 13,000 for $99.99, and describes members sending and receiving gifts during live streams [10]. Subscriptions such as MeetMe+ exist, but they are not the centre of the model [10].
Hello Group, owner of Momo and Tantan, reports almost all its revenue as value-added services: RMB2,439.6 million of RMB2,486.0 million in the second quarter of 2026 [8]. It says these are mainly virtual gift revenues from audio, video and text-based features, with membership subscriptions second [9].
The economics of gifting are different from subscriptions. A small number of heavy spenders can account for a large share of revenue, revenue often depends on broadcasters and agencies, and conversion looks low on a payers-per-member basis. Hello Group linked part of its second-quarter revenue decline to a smaller member base at Tantan [8]. See payer conversion benchmarks for how this shows up in the numbers.
Advertising: useful, rarely central
Advertising suits apps with large free audiences and frequent sessions. Grindr fits that profile, with 15 million average monthly active members in 2025 [5]. For most subscription apps, ads compete with the paid upgrade: removing ads is often one of the reasons to pay, and ads can make a dating app feel less safe. That helps explain why Match's ad income is small and shrinking [1].
Questions
How do dating apps make money?
Mainly from members paying for subscriptions and single features such as Boosts or Super Likes. Match Group earned $839.9 million of its $853.1 million revenue in the second quarter of 2026 directly from members. Advertising and virtual gifts make up the rest of the market.
Do dating apps make money from advertising?
A little, with one exception. Advertising was about 1.5% of Match Group's revenue in the second quarter of 2026 by our calculation, but $25 million of Grindr's $138 million, about 18%.
What is the freemium model in dating apps?
The app is free to use and a minority of members pay for extra features. Match Group and Bumble both describe their apps this way.
How do live streaming dating apps make money?
Mostly from virtual gifts that members buy with coins or credits and send to broadcasters or other members. Hello Group says virtual gifts are the main part of its value-added services revenue, which was 98% of its total in the second quarter of 2026.