Is Tinder Worth It? (For Dating or Hookups?)

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Is Tinder worth it for your time?

Or is it a complete waste of your time?

You’ll hear people have all sorts of opinions about Tinder. Why? Because they use Tinder for different reasons and end up with different results.

Yet, if Tinder was not worth it, how come millions of people are still using it?

Because it isn’t all bad. And it does what it says on the package: it allows you to meet people in your town in an instant. Boom. Thousands of people are at your fingertips.

So because of all this whining, let’s have a look at the pros and cons with Tinder first and then we’ll tackle the whining. And through our practical knowledge, we have answered you question is it worth it or not?

is tinder worth it

Tinder Pros

Everyone is on Tinder

Since Tinder is the most popular app, you can expect thousands of people on Tinder at your fingertips. You can swipe right and left on half the single population in the city you’re in. It’s a very convenient way of meeting people. Especially if you’re new in town.

It’s Easy to Tell What You Want and Find What You Want

As you have a Tinder profile, it’s also easy to state what you want with Tinder. Some people use it when traveling to meet people to show them around a city. Others use it to make friends (rare). Some use it to find love. Most use Tinder for hookups.

A lot look for one thing and end up finding another as life rarely goes as planned. Still, if you see what someone’s looking for, it’s easy enough to swipe left if it’s not what you’re looking for.

It’s Easy to Use

You don’t have to write a long profile and answer fifteen questions about your personality. It’s very easy to upload a couple of good pictures of yourself and write three or so (fun) sentences to describe yourself.

It’s Fun

It’s an excellent way of having fun, going through profiles, and drooling over hot people whom you might meet. Come on, it’s kind of like playing a game where you might score a date — it’s exciting.

It’s an Ego Boost

If you belong to the better-looking part of the population or have a wickedly fit body, or simply know how to dress to impress and write a good Tinder bio, you may also land yourself an ego boost.

Particularly when you just join, as your profile will be boosted to be seen by lots of people. Thanks to Tinder I’m aware that lots of men 6 years my junior (that’s where I cut it off, I could always try to go lower…) want to date me. Thank you, Tinder!

I also got a message at the beginning of this year from Tinder stating that in the 2.5 years I’ve used Tinder, 25k men have swiped yes and I haven’t even been active on Tinder for all of that time.

No Emotional Attachment

Rather than being attached to the outcome with whoever you’re currently dating, you can have five more lined up on Tinder. Some people get attached way too fast and end up heartbroken too often. Having more people whom you can date, makes it less likely that you get caught up too soon.

Tinder Cons

True Love Doesn’t Come Easy

If you want to find true love, you might need to be patient with Tinder. The majority of people are on there to do casual dating. Not only that, people swipe right on people they never even bother speaking with.

Why?

They realized someone better popped up in their feed, they swiped right without actually reading the entire profile, or they just wanted an ego boost.

Conversations Easily Stop

On Tinder, it’s easy to be overwhelmed, especially when you just join. As you have five to ten conversations going, the ones that don’t strike your immediate fancy fall to the roadside.

And sometimes you simply find out that they weren’t as fun to talk to as you hoped.

Basically, Tinder offers options. That means you aren’t that committed to talking to people before they really hook your attention, because you have others lined up to talk to. It also means people aren’t that committed to talking to you.

If you can’t handle people going MIA after chatting to you for a while, Tinder isn’t for you.

Ghosting is a Reality

I don’t know how many of my friends have told me: “I met him on Tinder, we dated for a while, then he disappeared after we had sex once or twice, no explanation given.

Tinder basically made ghosting acceptable. I, for one, don’t find it acceptable at all. It doesn’t matter if you just wanted to hook up or realize after you hook up that you don’t want anything more, you should still be able to tell the other person that. I am not saying this thing just like that it is based on my experience.

This happened to me once. I met a guy who I dated for a month, had sex with, and then voila, he disappeared. If he’d said he just wanted a hook-up, then fine, but that was not fine. It’s downright lousy manners.

Inside Scoop: OkCupid Vs Tinder: The Real Winner

Is Tinder Worth it?

Yes, Tinder is worth it if you're open to interacting with people who are looking for casual dating or hookups. However, if you’re looking for a long-term relationship, Tinder is possibly more hard work than it’s worth. In fact, I would suggest you either Match.com or eHarmony over Tinder if you're looking to find a soul mate.

What do I Personally think About Tinder?

Tinder, from my experience, is used for different reasons in different countries.

  • In Greece, sex is the main purpose, though not the only one.
  • In Sweden, Britain, and South Africa, people appear a lot more serious.

You’ll find several profiles stating people are looking for love. Still, a lot of them are also open to casual dating.

The problem is, as in real life when we meet someone at a bar when we date them we risk falling for them. You know they’re just in it for casual dating, but still. You hope. And if it doesn’t work out and they miraculously change their minds, you feel hurt.

Likewise, not everyone has your best interests at heart. You say you don’t want hookups, but they like you and think they can score anyway.

Or they think it’s obvious they just want something casual, you think it’s obvious you want more, and somewhere it gets lost in translation as you both go for what you want. Then you blame each other because the other party knew what you wanted.

Of course, this could be the other way around: you want something casual, they want something more.

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About Maria Montgomery

A Writer. Director. Social Entrepreneur. Change maker. Foodie. Creative nutcase. Potentially funny. Maria has been in the online dating scene for the longest time. Her personal experience in online dating is unmatchable which qualifies her for a top expert.