Gone are the days when dating was all about meeting someone and having dined to get to know the person. Over time, this trend has changed, and people were introduced to dating apps. These apps gained much attention, and now they are a vital part of everybody’s life.
The outbreak of coronavirus pandemic has drastically hampered and affected the growth and development of human civilization. The COVID-19 has also touched the online dating putting most substantial impact on this because of social distancing. Social distancing is the only way to sustain in this period, but the daters on the dating apps have chosen a different journey. It had previously been a frictionless, low-commitment interaction was forced to adjust quickly to an environment where “hooking up” is no longer an option.
During this time, social media is full of Dalgona coffee-makes, artist and home chefs, while singles are looking for matches by showcasing their skills. Dating apps have reported a 20% increase in swipes in lockdowns. The second preferred way of doing virtual dates is video calling. The apps have enabled methods and features for virtual dating, and they are working on the expansion of the match range.
Online dating has been rapid development, from matchmaking services to the swipe-based apps today, these apps have given customized, personalized matches and expanded social networks. This has changed the way modern generation people meet. But, as per the current situations, things are rolled, and many apps are affected. If you ever logged into the most popular dating app ‘Tinder’ to check matches, they have mentioned-
“Social distancing doesn’t have to mean disconnecting. We hope to be a place for connection during this challenging time, but it’s important to stress that now is not the time to meet in real life with your match. Please keep things here for now.”
OkCupid one of the Tinder alternatives has updated the question bank and asks-
“Does coronavirus affect your dating life?”
Social Distance Dating
The top-rated dating apps work perfectly fine and act as the right platform to connect with a match around you during the crisis. In this challenging time, connect with your future partner and talk to know him or her more. Though the users are not meeting personally, they are going digital for dates. Moreover, now the singles are establishing an emotional connection and crave for meaningful relationships.
The dating applications such as Tinder confirmed that all the users are conscious of the recommendations of the WHO in COVID-19. The dating applications adopt social gaps for consumers that have boosted the app’s use during the last few months. Couples are adhering to the rules of social distancing, and they take dating as responsibilities which they too have to fulfill. It has been a commonly prescribed practice for consumers to ensure continuous social distancing. Digital connectivity has been a source of convenience for users where face-to-face contact is not possible. The virus is also benefitting online dating as it is becoming more real, and people can get ample time to judge the other person. This is giving a chance for real conversations to happen.
A frequent user of Bumble app claims, “Coronavirus is giving a chance for real conversations to happen and making the flow of chats much easier. Otherwise, it is usually “hey what music do you like” or “check this meme.” Now online daters enjoy long hour’s conversations and video dates with their match.
The CEO of OkCupid Ariel Charytan says, “You wouldn’t believe it, but when people can’t meet in person they still find a way to date. In fact, there have actually been over 50 million intro messages sent across the world on OkCupid over the last month among daters connecting for the first time. With restaurants, bars, gyms, offices, and entertainment establishments around the world all temporarily closed, people are looking for human connection now more than ever before. OkCupid allows daters to match and get to know each other through thousands of in-app questions on everything from your thoughts on chai and pakoda on a rainy day to women working after marriage, that’ll help you get to know each other without physically meeting. We don’t have to go through this isolation period completely alone. Staying connected is so important right now, whether that’s through OkCupid, video chatting with friends, or phone calls with family.”
The up surging hike in the use of dating apps is observed during lockdown. The recent stats show Bumble has observed 11% increase in registration of new users and 29% increase in messaging and video calls. Hinge has observed 30% elevation in the messaging among matches. 70% of its user is interested in digital dating. Furthermore, OkCupid’s users matches have grown by 10% and conversations on the app has hike of 20%. Now, these apps are launching ‘Date from Home.’
The dating message has caught a hike of 30%, and it is projected to reach 50%. Nowadays, people are becoming more active in dating online and try to establish long-term relationships.
These dating apps are proffering many options to the users. For the users, Tinder has introduced the Passport feature, which is a premium service, as a paid subscription which makes it easy to connect to the specific location. This functionality has been temporarily free so that users can be conveniently linked in times of crisis. Apart from Tinder, other apps like Hinge and OkCupid are also working on new assets to serve the singles better. Including Tinder, Hinge has incorporated dating from home. The users can set up video chats by this. Additionally, the app is working to provide the Date Ready feature to boost sessions via phone. Plenty of fish is also following the trend of video streaming functions.
Encounter a real-life dating meets with the assistance of these apps. Therefore, winding up, there is no recession in love though pandemic exists. It’s just “Love in the Time of Cholera” is reframed as “Love in the Time of Corona.”

Allthinks4u
May 22, 2020 at 12:49 am
Very Good and interesting for couples dating in corona time