Picture this: your thumb is starting to resemble a professional thumb wrestler’s after one too many swipes.

Your dating app matches read like a never-ending lineup of “maybe” and “meh,” and you’re fairly certain you’ve spotted the same person on at least three different platforms—holding the same fish in every photo. Sound familiar? You’re not alone, friend.

Online dating fatigue is real, it’s out there, and it’s giving a lot of love-seekers digital jetlag.

In this short-and-sweet summary, we’ll explore why so many people are ready to break up with their dating apps (or at least give them the silent treatment), and how the apps themselves might try to woo us all back.

Grab a comfy seat, because even if your love life’s been swiped left one too many times, we’ve got some light-hearted insights and tips that might make you feel a little more hopeful—and a lot less thumb-sore.

Sky News – “It’s not you, it’s dating”

‘It’s not you, it’s dating’: Where is modern love going wrong?
Usage of the biggest dating apps is starting to drop, and I want to find out just where we are going wrong with modern dating.
SkyCharline Bou Mansour, news reporter

Sky News explores the existential crisis of modern romance, highlighting why so many people feel like every swipe is another spin of the roulette wheel in search of genuine connections.

Global Dating Insights – “UK Dating Site Users Report Fatigue as Engagement Declines”

UK Dating Site Users Report Fatigue as Engagement Declines - Global Dating Insights
More than a decade after Tinder transformed the dating landscape, the dominance of dating apps appears to be wavering. Recent data suggests that user engagement is on the decline, with a 16% drop in usage across the 10 biggest dating platforms between 2023 and 2024. Even Tinder, the flagship app of Match Group, has reportedly
Global Dating Insights - Dating Industry NewsStaff Writer

This piece points out that almost half of daters are tired, bored, or simply exasperated. In other words, the only sparks flying are from your phone overheating as you switch endlessly between apps.

BBC News – “Dating apps could be in trouble – here's what might take their place”

Dating apps could be in trouble – here’s what might take their place
For some Gen Zs, meeting online through shared hobbies is an alternative to the tyranny of the swipe.
BBC News

Gen Z is quitting swipe apps; UK usage slides as hobby platforms surge—Strava’s user base is up 20 % and Letterboxd’s monthly actives 55 %. Shared-interest spaces feel more authentic and lower-pressure, while experts doubt AI tweaks will tempt daters back. 

The Guardian – “Swiping left on ‘swiping’: why some daters are stepping away”

Dating apps face a reckoning as users log off: ‘There’s no actual human connection’
In Australia, dating apps have been hit with lawsuits and new regulation, while their profits are declining worldwide
The GuardianCatie McLeod

Explores how certain individuals are deleting (or at least burying) their profiles and discovering that maybe they’d rather read an entire novel in a coffee shop than read yet another “hey, how r u?” message.

The Main Issues: Why Are Daters Tired?

1. Swipe Burnout

If your thumb is starting to look like Popeye’s forearm, you might have swipe burnout. Apps’ infinite streams of faces (and the occasional photo of a guy proudly holding a fish) turn dating into a reflexive flick rather than a meaningful interaction. End result? Achy thumbs and disappointed hearts.