Products · Broad category
Dating apps
Raised as a usability problem by 46 people on Hacker News over 19 years (2008–2026), in 40 threads.
This is a broad category rather than one product, so its issues aren't ranked on the home page.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads this year.
Every issue, all time, most people first
Dating apps use dark patterns to push users into payingUnreviewed
20082026- Dating sites use dark patterns pushing users to pay for profile promotion2026-08-28
- Dating apps are poorly designed for people in midlife and experience is terrible for them2026-03-11
- Dating sites are unusable because of dark patterns2025-02-05
Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.
The newest 42 complaints
- Dating sites use dark patterns pushing users to pay for profile promotion2026-08-28
- Popular apps are designed for profit at the cost of user experience, creating friction2026-07-26
- Dating apps are poorly designed for people in midlife and experience is terrible for them2026-03-11
- Apps have gradually adopted dark patterns that push users into paying2025-03-23
- Dating sites are unusable because of dark patterns2025-02-05
- Matches ghost or string people along, so users can't tell where they stand2025-02-04
- Dating sites use horrific dark patterns that push users into choices they did not make2024-10-31
- Apps push users into paying to see messages and exposure, a dark pattern2024-08-17
- Full of annoying money grabs that interrupt the experience2024-07-17
- Apps are deliberately designed with user hostility to maximize profit2024-02-13
- Search returns too many irrelevant matches with no way to filter by location2023-10-29
- Nagging dialogs push users to buy spotlights and spend more2023-08-02
- Email is requested only at the end after the user has already filled the form2023-04-11
- Dating apps are loaded with dark patterns that push users into paying or staying2023-03-01
- Can't figure out how to subscribe or what differs2022-09-01
- Free version is nearly unusable without paying for upgrades2022-09-01
- Subscription is hard to cancel after a free trial that converts to weekly charges2022-03-30
- Apps make the experience sluggish and frustrating, forcing hours of useless effort2022-02-07
- Unhappy users are steered into a feedback form that goes nowhere2021-11-12
- Canceling the membership was very difficult, and users were pushed into paying for premium2021-10-10
- Built on frustration and counterintuitive design so users never reach their goal2021-04-26
- Apps are designed to keep users on them rather than help them find partners2020-08-21
- Swipe-based dating apps are a lot of work and feel dumb to use2020-02-24
- Lesbian dating apps have a terrible user experience and feel unusable2020-02-24
- Match notifications appear but the matches aren't visible when the app is opened2020-02-24
- Dating apps are deliberately left broken so users keep searching fruitlessly2019-11-25
- Daily match reminder notifications cannot be turned off in dating apps2018-08-08
- Users must maintain separate accounts across many niche dating apps2017-08-08
- Three confirmation screens and guilt-laden message when trying to close account2015-08-06
- Hundreds of messages per day make the inbox overwhelming and a chore to manage2014-10-14
- Birthdate dropdowns show only scrollbars, broken for the commenter on sign up2014-07-07
- Must drag friends into it without their consent to see how it works2013-03-30
- Women are overwhelmed by message volume, making replying too much work2013-03-29
- Filling out your own dating profile is awkward and takes too much effort2013-03-14
- Can't tell which profiles are active, so messages go unanswered and users must send many2011-12-06
- Out-of-matches message gives no way to restart the search2011-10-20
- Messages go unanswered because recipients must pay first, and the site doesn't say so2010-07-09
- Can't read received messages without an active paid subscription, and can't tell active users from dud accounts2010-04-20
- Can't find the Join button; lands on login screen with no clear way to register2009-07-01
- Unclear what the site is about, so people don't click through2009-02-09
- Unclear how rating others affects who sees my picture2009-02-09
- Users don't realise they can click Skype buttons on the map2008-11-03