Tinder is expanding a program that brings its users together for face-to-face events after data from its parent company showed a growing share of young singles prefer to meet people in person rather than through an app.
The expansion was announced at the end of July. By the end of September, Tinder's Events feature will operate in more than 26 cities. The feature organizes activities including game nights, coffee socials, and group hikes. It launched in March with a pilot program in Los Angeles that hosted more than 60 events.
The push comes as Match Group, which owns both Tinder and Hinge, reported second-quarter earnings this week. CEO Spencer Rascoff spoke directly to the generational shift during the call.
"Our internal research shows that nearly half of singles aged 18 to 29 want to share in-person experiences with people who could become closer connections," Rascoff said.
Tinder built partnerships with event organizers and ticketing platforms to connect members with local community events. More than half of the users who attended pilot events, 53 percent, returned for additional gatherings, according to a statement Tinder released in July. The company said the format offers a low-pressure way for people to meet.
U.S. and European cities included in the expansion include New York, Denver, Dallas, Phoenix, Berlin, Munich, Geneva, and Zurich.
Rascoff acknowledged the tension at the center of the shift. "For a generation that grew up online, making that transition into real life can still feel hard," he said. The Events feature is designed to ease that transition by providing a structured social context rather than a one-on-one meeting arranged through a profile swipe.
Tinder missed its financial targets in the second quarter, according to CNET, but Rascoff expressed confidence that the Events push would attract new users. "Bringing more real-world connection into the experience can help shift perception of Tinder and the category more broadly, giving singles a reason to reconsider and try the app," he said.
The broader trend has been reported across the dating industry. Gen Z users have been opting out of traditional swipe-based matching in favor of meeting people through mutual friends, social events, and other offline settings. Tinder's strategy represents a direct response to that behavioral shift, using the app as an entry point to in-person connection rather than a replacement for it.
