Grindr Raises Its Outlook and Starts Selling a $120-a-Month Tier

Grindr reported third-quarter 2026 results on November 5. Revenue rose 22% to $141.4 million from $115.8 million a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA rose to $61.7 million, a 43.7% margin, down from 47.4% a year ago. The company posted a net loss of $6.6 million, against net income of $30.8 million a year earlier, after $32.3 million of litigation-related costs. On the earnings call, CFO John North described the main item as a "one-time $33 million settlement charge related to historical U.K. litigation over data practices prior to 2020."

Average paying users rose 11% to 1.4 million and average revenue per paying user rose 10% to $27.15, North said. Grindr says it has nearly 16 million average monthly active users. Over the first nine months it repurchased about 13 million shares for $180 million.

Guidance up, and a first look at 2027

Grindr raised its 2026 outlook to revenue of at least $560 million, from about $540 million, and adjusted EBITDA of $236 million, from about $232 million. It also gave an initial 2027 outlook: revenue of at least $705 million and adjusted EBITDA of at least $275 million. North said that implies about 26% top-line growth and a margin of at least 39%. Next year will be the first full year to include Freddie, the PrEP telehealth provider whose $250 million acquisition closed on November 2.

CEO George Arison said "almost a quarter of Freddie's U.S. patients came through Grindr ads that any advertiser could buy," and that Grindr expects about 12,000 U.S. patients at the end of the year. He said current and planned native placements could take Freddie to 50,000 patients over the medium term, which he said "would generate approximately $240 million in annual revenue."

Edge: $120 a month, capped

The other new line is Edge, which the company calls its "AI-native premium tier built for power users who want more value." Early access began November 10 and the global launch is set for November 17. "We are launching Edge at an introductory price of $120 a month," Arison said. He said Grindr received 400,000 registrations in a 72-hour window, that it will "hard cap it at no more than 1% of our MAU for now," and that he sees it as "a $100 million-$150 million opportunity" over many years on conservative estimates.

Why it matters: Grindr is showing that a dating company with a defined, highly engaged audience can grow by selling that audience more things, not only more subscriptions. Its 2027 outlook rests on two bets outside classic dating monetization: health services sold through the app and a very high-priced tier for a small group of heavy users. For operators, the Edge cap is the detail to watch. A $120 monthly price limited to 1% of users is a live test of how much the top of a user base will pay, and if it works, expect others to add a top rung to their own pricing ladders. Watch the margin too: it fell almost four points year over year in Q3, and the 2027 floor of 39% is lower again.

Sources: Grindr Q3 2026 results (Business Wire), November 5, 2026 · Grindr Q3 2026 earnings call transcript (The Motley Fool via AOL), November 5, 2026