There’s a lot to love about Tinder, the ideal dating app that takes the stress and complexity out of dating and instead makes meeting people easier than ever. Unlike most dating apps, Tinder feels friendlier and warmer, an app designed for the social media age where our public information is already available online. One of the most accessible dating apps to come out since the smartphone revolution with its sliding-friendly interface. Whether you’re on Tinder, meeting your next significant other, or just want to flirt and find a few potential dates or a one-night stand, you can have a blast. As you swipe left and right on the app to match with potential romantic partners, Tinder’s algorithm selects you with new matches for you to browse. When you’ve finally made that match, you can start instant messaging each other, test the waters, and make plans for your special night.
Sure, online dating can be completely free, but investing money in your dating app can improve your matches and save time. Some people prefer private dating apps. These sites and apps charge high fees and also tend to have a strict application process. You may need to submit your Facebook and LinkedIn for consideration. Your income, appearance and online presence will be judged. If the thought doesn’t sound good, Tinder might be a better option. This is the world’s best known dating app. It is used in more than 190 countries and has around 50 million users. With this type of selection, you are sure to find one to click with.
Still, using Tinder is time consuming. It also has some limitations. For example, you cannot undo an accidental scrolling in the wrong direction. Many Tinder users solve these problems by investing in premium features through paid plans like Tinder Plus and Tinder Gold. Are these features worth it, or will you spend money on your dating life? Let’s take a look at what Tinder’s premium plans have to offer for you to find out.
How Premium Features Improve Your Tinder Experience
Tinder’s premium subscription service is available in two unique variants: Plus and Gold. Both offer you similar experiences, but in order to make the right choice for you, you need to know the difference between both plans before choosing one. Let’s take a quick look at Tinder’s base model, with both Plus and Gold experiences.
Tinder Basic
Tinder Basic is the app you know and love. There are no special features; You just need to look at the people in your area and swipe left or right on them. You’re only allowed to “like” (right-swipe) a certain number of profiles each day, then Tinder will lock you up and tell you to come back later. The exact number varies, and Tinder keeps the algorithms a dark company secret, but the general consensus is that a male user can swipe right about 50 times every 12 hours before Tinder stops it.
That number can drop, especially for indiscriminate sliders that swipe right at everyone. (True, swiping left actually makes you look better in the Tinder algorithm.) Another major limitation of the basic level is that you only get one Super Like per day. (See this TechJunkie article for some information on Super Likes.) And of course, you don’t get free Boosts at Tinder Basic level; you should buy them if you want. (We’ve got your back on that too: Here’s an article on when to use your Buffs, here’s an article on how to get more Buffs, and here’s an exploration of whether Buffs actually work.)
Tinder Plus
Tinder Plus opens the doors a little bit and adds three powerful features. First, instead of just one, you get 5 Super Likes per day and 1 free Support per month. This is quite valuable if you are a basic heavy user and have purchased a lot of plugins. But what makes Tinder Plus interesting are its new features.
First, you get unlimited likes – you can swipe right on anyone all day and Tinder will never lock you out. (This is still not a great strategy for your Tinder rating score, however.) Second, you gain the ability to rewind your last swipe – if you accidentally swipe right or left on someone you can reverse your decision if you catch the error before you swipe to the next person. This is extremely useful for those of us who are a little distracted in our scrolling habits. Third, you can access Tinder Passport, which allows you to change your location in the app. This is incredibly useful for people who travel, or even those who just want to see what kind of people are out there on Tinder. (Of course we have this feature behind you too: here’s a discussion of how it works and a direct talk about whether it works.)
Tinder Plus costs $9.99 per month in the United States. If you use Super Likes and Boost, it easily pays for itself; Getting 120 extra Super Likes and a Boost on Tinder Basic will cost you $83.99 per month.
Tinder Gold
Tinder Gold is very simple. Although Tinder will literally throw a mountain of words at anyone trying to understand the difference between Gold and Plus, there are only two differences. First, if you have Tinder Gold, the app will tell you that people have swiped you directly. Second, with Gold you can hide your age and location from other users if you want. This second feature is not very valuable; If you are a man, this first trait is very valuable.
Why is it valuable to be able to tell that people are hovering over you? Simple. If you’re a woman, it’s probably not worth anything to you because, in all likelihood, more people swiped right on you than you could swipe right on, you have fewer conversations and/or dates. However, the numbers for men are the opposite. Even attractive men with great pictures and great profiles have only a fraction of the slaps a woman in a similar situation receives. A guy could literally spend hours swiping right on Tinder, hoping that one or two of the people he swiped would reciprocate.
With Tinder Gold, men who don’t want to spend two hours a day in swipe city can relax and leave all the work to women. When someone actually swipes a Tinder Gold subscriber, that subscriber gets a notification. With Tinder Gold, a man can let the app run silently on the phone and when he gets a rodent, he can go and see if it’s paying back interest. The potential time savings are enormous.
Tinder Gold costs an additional $4.99 per month and you must have Tinder Plus to get it.
Looking at the Numbers in General
Statistics for 2018 show that 13% of American dating app users pay for premium features. An additional 19% of users have paid for premium features in the past. About one in two respondents said they would never pay for online dating. The remaining 18% were either undecided or willing to consider it. Not surprisingly, men are more likely to spend on premium options. 19% of male respondents said they currently pay for extra features on dating apps. Only 6% of women were willing to make this investment.
Tinder currently has over 50 million members worldwide. The number of paid subscribers is around 3.8 million. In other words, around 7.6% of Tinder users prefer premium features.
So What Is The Best Option For You?
Should you join the 7.6% of Tinder users who pay for this app’s services? The answer depends on your lifestyle. Do you travel a lot? Are you often too busy to go through Tinder’s piles? Do you find it difficult to stand out because you live in a crowded area? If you answered yes to any of these questions, Tinder’s premium options may be perfect for you. Note that they are much cheaper than joining a private dating site.
