Online Dating Apps Business: Definition, Statistics, and Prospects
Free dating sites and apps are pretty popular and the online dating industry is prospering now. But what are the peculiarities of such a subscription business, and do you need subscription management CRM? Let’s find out together.
In recent years, both mainstream and niche dating sites have been growing in popularity. For instance, in 2022, there were about 1.250 billion online dating site or app users worldwide. Moreover, the numbers are expected to grow since younger generations have no stigma against online dating sites. Thus, the industry has great prospects and is worth investing in, so let’s talk about the online dating business in more detail.
Dating Niche and Its Peculiarities
The online dating industry is large and pretty diverse. In general, we can divide all the best dating apps and sites into two groups — mainstream dating apps, such as Tinder, Badoo, Bumble, etc., and niche dating sites that have dozens of types for any relationship request, like NSA, sugar dating, mail order bride, affairs, and many more. Of course, all these online dating apps bring decent profits, especially niche services that have pretty much no free features except for registration. Yet mainstream apps prove to be rather profitable as well since people are ready to pay for an ad-free experience and premium functionality. All in all, the dating business guarantees decent financial gain simply because, whether it’s love or casual sex, people will always seek it.
Common Problems with Online Dating Business
Just like in any business, in the dating industry, there are many challenges entrepreneurs must deal with. So, to help you get ready to work in this niche, let’s take a look at the main challenges of working in this vertical.
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Limited scalability.
Most dating apps, like Tinder or Badoo, utilize users’ GPS data for matching, which is convenient for users. But, from a business standpoint, it’s not the best model since you have to launch city by city, and that requires more effort and capital. Yet international dating sites do better in this regard. -
Online dating scams.
The dating niche is adored by scammers, and in 2021 alone, daters lost $547 million in romance scams. Additionally, about 60% of profiles on both premium and free online dating sites are inactive or fake. That scares off potential users and results in less revenue for dating business owners. -
Payment orchestration.
Another common problem with the online dating business is payment orchestration. Since most platforms are either fully premium or offer premium services, constant cash flow overloads the merchants, which leads to nasty consequences. Luckily, this problem can be quickly solved with Germius.
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Transactional nature.
The main purpose of any premium or free dating site is to match two people, and if you do it well, after a user finds a partner, you lose not one but two customers simultaneously. This is the biggest paradox of the industry. At the same time, there will always be singles who seek communication, love, casual sex, etc., so it doesn’t mean that you will ever reach the point of zero customers. -
Slow market growth rates.
The user penetration in this vertical is predicted to be just 7.7% in 2024, which is not that great. This is why investors tend to avoid dating sites and apps, so attracting investors in this niche is extremely challenging.
As you can see, there are many challenges in working in this niche, yet it does not mean that the dating industry is not profitable, and if you have a well-thought-out business plan, you will most likely succeed.
Dating Vertical Stats and Prospects
Numbers speak better than any words, so let’s take a look at some data:
- The revenue of online dating services is estimated to reach $8.10 billion by 2024
- Between 2024 and 2028, the Compound Annual Growth Rate will be 1.95%
- The United States is projected to generate the largest revenue of about $2,547 million by 2024
- The matchmaking market is anticipated to be the largest, with $4.05 billion in market volume by 2024
- In 2024, the ARPU is estimated to be $13.60
- The user penetration rate is projected to be 7.7% in 2024
- By 2028, the number of dating apps and sites is going to reach 698.8 million users
In general, the dating site industry is more or less steady, which is proven by the chart below. Even though the vertical’s growth is rather slow, it’s stable and that is definitely better than sudden drastic falls and raises.
All in all, the industry is expected to grow and bring profits, so if you want to launch an online dating service, it’s time to do it now.
Germius for Dating Sites
Launching an online dating site might seem easy, yet it involves a lot of hard work. Moreover, if you want your products to compete with the best online dating sites and win this competition, you have to make sure you have a flawless website that offers secure payment methods, provides a wide variety of features, and has a great reputation. With Germius, you will be able to create an online dating service that will exceed all your expectations.
We will help you arrange a top-notch payment orchestration, reduce fraud rates, prevent chargebacks, set up an understandable and comprehensive subscription management system, as well as many more. Contact us to find out more benefits Germius can provide you with.
Conclusion
Slowly-growing but stable, the dating site industry is meant for those who are ready to think outside the box and come up with unconventional business plans. All in all, the vertical is promising and brings decent profits, so if you have always wanted to conquer this niche, it’s time to do it now.