Swipe Right for Parental Approval: Tinder’s Matchmaker Feature Gets the Family Seal of Approval

Meeting the parents can be a daunting milestone in any new relationship, but Tinder has devised a way to ensure your partner earns their family’s approval before the introduction even occurs.

Tinder has introduced a feature known as Matchmaker, enabling users to present their potential matches to up to 15 friends, family members, or guardians for a 24-hour scrutiny period. These individuals can access the profiles and offer feedback without the need for their own Tinder accounts. Importantly, they are unable to engage in messaging on your behalf.

Following the assessment period, Tinder users can evaluate the profiles recommended by their matchmakers before making a final decision on the suitability of their matches. This innovative feature, had it existed, might have spared Robert De Niro’s character much turmoil in the movie “Meet the Parents,” where he clashed with his prospective son-in-law, portrayed by Ben Stiller.

Tinder Matchmaker is currently available in various countries, including the UK, US, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, and Vietnam, with plans for expansion to additional nations in the future.

Tinder acknowledges that many users have long sought the opinions of their friends when making decisions on the app. Melissa Hobley, the Chief Marketing Officer, stated, “For years, singles have asked their friends to help find their next match on Tinder, and now we’re making that so easy with Tinder Matchmaker. Tinder Matchmaker brings your circle of trust into your dating journey and helps you see the possibilities you might be overlooking from the perspective of those closest to you.”

Tinder, initially launched in September 2012, has significantly transformed the landscape of online dating. It introduced a $500 invite-only membership tier called Tinder Select for “elite” users, available to less than 1% of users. Additionally, the company revealed in August that it was testing an artificial intelligence tool designed to select users’ most attractive photos for their profiles, aiming to increase the likelihood of receiving positive swipes. This tool analyzes a user’s photo album and chooses the five images that best represent them.