happn Reaches Milestone of 100 Million Global Users

First launched in 2014, happn has announced that it passed the 100 million user milestone at the beginning of January.

The hyper-local dating app was founded by Didier Rappaport and offered a unique way for singles to meet, just as online dating products were beginning to gain popularity. Users could only see each other if they crossed paths in real life, leading to genuine connections with people in the area.

Global lockdown restrictions in 2020 meant that this way of dating was almost impossible, so the matching radius was expanded. The pivot was a success with the number of messages increased by 18% compared to the previous year.

Rappaport expressed in a statement: “Dating apps like happn have an important role to play in today’s society. Thanks to developments to the app, we have managed to welcome an increasing number of singles looking to meet other people, and we are delighted to celebrate this symbolic milestone of 100 million users. 

“This confirms happn’s position as one of the leading dating apps on a global scale. We will continue making user experience our priority by ensuring it offers the highest quality possible.”

happn released a video calling feature like the majority of other dating apps this year. However, it has assured the community that moving forward it will continue to focus on the original promise of everything starting and ending in real life.

The app’s biggest market is mainland Europe but it has over 3 million members based in the UK, the majority of which are under the age of 35.

Visit the happn website here.