Tinder has come to signify everything that is right, and wrong, with modern dating culture. Yep, you get good volume, but where’s the longevity?
Well, despite shaping many fist-shaking headlines recently, turns out most of the world is actually looking for more than just face roulette.
London-based Badoo is the top dating app across 21 of the world’s biggest Web hookup countries, according to data released by App Annie to the BBC, with Tinder topping the charts in 18.
Upstart Tinder sure leads in most Western nations across iOS and Android combined, but decade-old Badoo, which has a bit more focus on friendship than speed, takes huge swathes of Latin America, Eastern Europe and Asia.
The 💜 of EU tech
The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!
Which is actually pretty impressive, given the diverse range of languages and cultures the site is clearly working for.
There are a few outliers too, including Russia and Egypt, where Frim tops the list, and WhosHere, which is specific to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait where dating is more restricted.
According to its website, a whopping 298 million people have signed up to use Badoo, although that stat doesn’t tell us how many of these are active users.
Given that Badoo has just bought controversial man-rating app LuLu, the company may well be setting its sights on capturing those missing markets.
Forget Tinder, Badoo is the new old thing all the kids will be talking about.
➤ The dating game [BBC]
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.