Tinder, Bumble, Hinge. Swipe left, swipe right, slide into the DMs. That’s what dating apps are all about. Anyone who uses a dating app is in pursuit of love, connection and meaningful relationships, but the formulative nature of these apps begs the question: Is it love or addiction? 

Arguably, the line between love and obsession is very thin and it is easy to become very reliant on the stimulus you get from a partner, rather than valuing security, trust and a stable future. Just as a like on an Instagram post gives us a rush, a match on a dating app gives us a similar dopamine hit. 

Dating apps are designed to keep users hooked using a reward system based on a swipe right or a new message. This can create an artificial feeling of love and connection when in reality it may just be temporary neural dopamine networks that cannot withstand a real relationship. 

Just as apps like TikTok and Instagram use an algorithm to curate a user’s feed, dating apps like Hinge and Tinder use a similar mathematical algorithm to keep people coming back for another match or connection. 

Online dating activates the brain’s mesolimbic dopamine system. When we experience interactions that feel rewarding, it stimulates brain regions that link dopamine-producing centers with areas involved in motivation and reward-driven behavior. 

As users find increasingly interesting, diverse and new profiles, those dopamine releases are triggered. The idea of meeting someone different and exciting is stimulating to our brains, and on a platform where there are millions of personalities and profiles at our fingertips, those regions get activated more often. 

Further, the anticipation of a message back or an impending date can ignite those pathways more frequently. The apps are designed in such a way that the bursts of dopamine are randomized and not predictable. Meaning, a swipe right or like can come at any time while using the app, which maintains user engagement as the anticipation keeps people hooked and wanting more. 

However, this is not to say that dating apps are evil or it is impossible to find someone through online dating. Many long-term, flourishing and beautiful relationships come out of finding someone online and it is more than possible to meet someone who you connect with on a deeper level. 

Recent studies have shown that 53% of people have found their dating site experience to be positive, and 10% of married and committed couples met their partner through online dating. In an increasingly digitized world, love can truly come from anywhere and there are tangible success rates of dating apps. It is important, however, to acknowledge the mental health problems that can arise from the high of a swipe right and the anxiety of getting ghosted or blocked.