Bumble sacks hundreds of staff as Gen Z ditches dating apps to find love the old fashioned way

Daily Mail​

26-06-2025

Online dating service Bumble has revealed plans to cut a third of its staff as Gen Z have started to ditch online dating in favour of finding love the old fashioned way.
The company behind the UK's third most popular dating app, has reportedly told investors that 240 jobs could be axed in order to save $40 million (£29.4m) a year, with the restructure expected to cost the company $18m.
The company has warned that the industry had reached an 'inflection point', weeks after it revealed falling sales, The Telegraph reported.
Dating apps such as Tinder, Hinge and Bumble peaked during the pandemic when social distancing and isolation made it difficult for young people to meet.
Since 2020, Bumble's share price has plunged 92 per cent. Tinder's owner Match Group has fallen 68 per cent over the same period.
Whitney Wolfe Herd, the Bumble chief executive who also co-founded Tinder, told staff on Wednesday: 'The reality is, we need to take decisive action to restructure to build a company that's resilient, intentional and ready for the next decade.
'We've reset our strategy, and are going back to a start-up mentality – rooted in an ownership mindset and team structures designed for faster, more meaningful execution.'
It follows warnings from Tinder that Gen Z were seeking more authentic ways to find romance.
Ofcom revealed last November that usage of the most popular dating apps had fallen last year, as Bumble lost 368,000 users, around 2.3 per cent.
The watchdog said: 'Some analysts speculate that for younger people, particularly Gen Z, the novelty of dating apps is wearing off.'
A study by Ipsos found that 63 per cent of men and 66 per cent of women in Gen Z prefer meeting potential partners in real life.
Just 10 per cent of men and 7 per cent of women preferred dating apps.
Women account for just 35 per cent of users of dating apps, according to Ofcom, with many avoiding the apps for reasons of safety and unwanted contact.
Researchers are suggesting that users are now turning to traditional methods of meeting through sports clubs or mutual friends, or even newer methods such as gaming.
Hobby apps including Strava are also being used to find potential partners.