Once Was Built for Dating. Now It Is Selling Chat

Dating app Once started with a good idea. It launched in 2015, and promised users one carefully selected match each day. The focus was on quality rather than quantity at a time when swiping was becoming the dominant way to date online. The concept gained traction. Once later claimed more than 10 million registered users and acquired women-focused dating app Pickable. In 2021, Dating Group acquired Once in a deal valued at up to $18 million. At the time, the one-match-a-day concept was still at the heart of the business.

Today, Once is a very different product. Its website now calls it an “Iconic Chat App” and invites users to “Find Your Perfect Chat Partner.” In a recent recruitment post, the company went further, describing Once as a “chatting app and creators platform.”

The business model has changed too. Once now combines subscriptions with an in-app currency called Gems. Users spend Gems on messages and other features. Even paying subscribers need Gems to chat with members Once describes as “popular.”

Mark Brooks: “The distinction is very clear. If users want to chat, they should go to a chatty app or an AI companion app. Once has become a chatty app. If users want to date IRL, go to a dating app. Incentives drive behaviour. Need I say more?”

Editor’s note: This article was updated on 6 October 2026 to correct an earlier statement regarding Once’s response and remove duplicated wording.