Are dating apps over?
ELLA GAUCI GOES speed-dating to see if IRL events are really the answer to finding love
I dated 17 women in one evening. No, I’m not some sapphic lothario who’s here to steal your girlfriend. After spending the last three years swiping on apps to no end, I was bored of digital dating. I wanted to meet someone in real life. So I took the logical next step and went lesbian speed-dating.
Since the 2010s, dating apps have become a way of life for singles looking for love. In fact, LGBTQIA people are actually more likely to use dating apps than their straight counterparts. But in our post-pandemic world, daters have steadily become more disillusioned with online love. Following the lockdown era of the pandemic – which created a surge in online dating app users – downloads of apps like Tinder, Hinge and Bumble have been steadily declining.