Tinder for Teens – The Guide to use Tinder as a teenager

Teens were star-struck in 2016 when Tinder banned the use of their app by everyone under 18 years old.

Have they found a way to circumvent the ban?

In this article, we’ll try to answer these questions:

Get on board, let’s take a Teen ride on Tinder!

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Tinder is No Longer under 18

• This article on Tinder is part of my larger Tinder hub (50+ articles)

What is Tinder?

Before we start talking about Tinder alternatives, we want to shed some light on Tinder.

Tinder is an online dating app that was released in 2012.

It has over 50 million users, the majority of which are between 18 and 25 year-olds.

These users range from people looking for a quick fling to Serious relationships – it is not only for hookups (like BeNaughty or Ashley Madison) or only for serious relationships (like eHarmony).

It is a relatively safe app, where once you create your account, you can swipe right or left on other people’s accounts.

It uses only the basic information and quite literally forces people to ask you questions if they want to learn more about you.

Of course, one of the real dangers of Tinder is that it lets other people know your current location because it uses your phone GPS to show you which people are using Tinder near you.

The rules are quite simple.

If you swipe right, you like the person, and if the person swipes right on your profile as well, you will match, and then you can start talking.

Swiping left on someone means you aren’t interested, and life goes on.

Many people like Tinder, and many hate it, but one thing is for sure – it is the highest-grossing dating app, and there aren’t any indications that its popularity is going to decline.

Can Teens Use Tinder?

A lot of teens have been using Tinder before the under-18 ban, and a lot of them still use it and just put that they’re over 18.

So the question remains – how old do you have to be for Tinder?

The answer is quite simple – Tinder’s minimum age is 18.

Tinder banned this because the owners of the app didn’t want to be involved in any illegal activity that might occur if child predators were to contact minors through their app.

That’s why Tinder is working quite hard to spot if under-aged teens are using the app, and because of that a lot of people who are 18 but look younger get banned.

Also, a lot of Tinder users will report profiles that they think are under-aged because they don’t want to have any problems if they accidentally match with a minor.

It appears that we have a dilemma on our hands because even though many parents fear that their children shouldn’t use social media or dating apps at all, there still needs to be a platform dedicated to teen dating.

But there are parental control measures that parents can implement to ensure that their teens only have access to teen dating apps and block off those that are above the limit, like Tinder.

But this shouldn’t be a concern because there are a lot of alternatives to Tinder for teens.

“Tinder” for Teens

Since Tinder’s ban on under, there have been a lot of dating apps for teens on the market.

Many dating sites/apps have used the Tinder ban to market themselves as “Tinder” for teens, and as you can imagine they’ve become quite popular.

Now, we don’t have all day to talk about them all, but we do want to present to you the best “Tinder” for teenagers’ apps.

1. Skout

Skout is a good dating app for teens to start exploring the online dating world.

Unlike the Tinder age minimum of 18, Skout lets teens between 13 and 17 sign up.

What’s great about this app is that it puts all of the teenagers in a separate category, and they can only match other teenagers under 17-year-olds at most.

The signing up process is quite easy and can be even done by using Facebook.

It uses only basic information such as age, gender, and hometown, so it doesn’t allow other users to find out more about you than they should.

Once you create an account, you can search for users based on your personal preferences and your location.

One thing we should add is that this is more of an app where you can make new friends than a dating app.

That’s the reason why it might not be the perfect “Tinder” for teens alternative, however, when it comes to online safety, it is a lot safer than other apps.

2. Yubo

Yubo, which changed its name from Yellow, is also a popular dating app that has a lot of teen users.

It was launched in 2015 and has over 25 million users.

Formally, you need to be 13 to use the app, and you can sign up using your Facebook account.

You can also add a short bio, a link to your Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter, and add a few photos.

Other features include stating your birthdate, your city, and gender which as you can imagine, is a concern for most parents.

The app uses a swipe interface just like Tinder, and that’s why it’s sometimes even called “Teen Tinder”.

It also has a live video feature that you can use with up to 4 friends to chat with.

But is this app something we could call – Tinder under 18?

Well, the short answer is no, and the long answer is also negative.

This is due to many reports of the app not protecting its users enough and that they might be exposed to inappropriate content.

However, Yubo is putting efforts to stop underage users from being exposed to such content by allowing them only to find matches in their age group.

3. Taffy

To use Taffy, you need to be a minimum of 17 years of age.

You also need to login in using your Facebook account for age verification & to ensure that you don’t lie about your age.

Of course, common sense tells us a lot of teens lie about their age on their Facebook profiles, but we’ll let Mark Zuckerberg deal with that.

What sets Taffy apart from other dating apps for teens is that it matches people based on their mutual interests, rather than attraction.

Also, it lets you choose what you’re using the app for and you can choose from – Love, Friends, Hookup, Advice, Chat, or Whatever.

So once you’ve made your choice, you can start chatting with people who are on the app for the same reasons.

Please note that no app is truly safe but we’re here to shed some light on how to stay safe using dating apps.

4. MyLOL

MyLOL is another dating app that is popular with teens.

You need to be at least 13 to be able to use the app, and the majority of users are between the ages of 13 and 17.

To create an account, you need to set a username and password, state your birthdate, location, and gender.

The site uses a search tool so you can find members based on your preferences and interests.

It also has lots of forums where teens can talk to other users on topics such as school, movies, books, music, and so on.

One feature is quite unusual – you can shake your phone to be matched with a random user and start chatting.

The moderators of the app take great care to detect inappropriate language and immediately ban users who use any sexual connotations.

The app is generally free, but there is a premium option where users get more features.

MyLOL is somewhat a safe app, but of course, you can never be too careful.

What Parents Need to Know About Tinder

Even though Tinder has age restrictions and has banned anyone under 18 from using the app, there are still a lot of teens who lie about their age and somehow get on the app.

And although nowadays parents don’t have much control over their children, they should be informed about the dangers of sites like Tinder.

Tinder isn’t the safest of dating apps, and there are a lot of bad people using it, but as in real life, we can never completely protect our children from being exposed to them.

Maybe the real danger of Tinder is that it lets other users know how near you are to them and also displays some personal information.

Of course, almost all personal info can be left hidden, but this still does create the danger of teens matching up with cat-fishes and child predators.

If you see that your child is using Tinder, you should talk to them and explain why that isn’t a good idea, and, if you don’t mind them using dating apps, offer them some of the safer alternatives we’ve talked about today.

Banning dating apps isn’t the solution, as they can go on them without your knowledge, as they can easily download the app from the ios app store using their iPhones or from the Google Play store using their Android mobile phone.

Ironically, when you ban something for your kids, they’ll get more interested in it.

As long as you teach them how to be responsible and stay safe on the Internet, there should be no problem.

Do Teens Use Tinder?

Every Tinder user of legal age knows that teens do use Tinder and can spot at least a couple of them in their suggestions when they start swiping.

Now, there’s no real statistic to show the number of Tinder teen users because all of them state that they’re 18 years old.

As it was already mentioned, Tinder is working round-the-clock to spot and ban under-aged users, but because there’s no other verification other than Facebook, no one can be completely sure how many teens use Tinder.

Of course, it’s up to you if you’re going to report if you spot a minor using the app because no one wants to deal with legal issues related to maybe flirting with minors or even worse, meeting them in real life.

The question of whether Tinder is safe for teens is up to debate but parents and other influential people should still talk about the dangers of dating apps and how to be responsible.

Also, everyone else on the app should be responsible as well and choose who they will swipe wisely.

How to Use Dating Apps Responsibly as a Teenager?

Kids, I’m saying this for your safety.

There are a lot of bad people on the Internet and in real life as well.

You never know who you’re talking to on Tinder or any other dating app for that matter.

You should never give out personal info, like your home address, your phone number, e-mail, or any other info which could be used against you.

You also want to report anyone who seems suspicious and asks you to give your information or something else.

If your parents let you use dating apps, that’s fine, but always be honest with them, and know that even though they sometimes seem as being overly-dramatic, they just want to protect you.

Dating is hard, and most teens are socially awkward nowadays so it seems logical why they choose to go on dating apps to chat with someone like them or even date someone.

Also, there’s the factor of peer pressure, and it seems that everyone else around you has a boyfriend or a girlfriend, so you think that you need one as well.

But, don’t give in and wait a couple of years until you’re the legal age to start using dating apps, and even then, be careful.

The best thing to do is to slowly go into the whole online dating world, and first, start with some “Tinder for teens” apps, just to see how it all functions, and then later, when you turn 18, see if Tinder is something you’re interested in.

The important thing is to listen to your parents and think with your head because you can never trust someone you’ve talked to online.

Final Word on Tinder for Teens

That’s about it as far as Tinder for teens is concerned.

If you have any questions or comments you might want to add, please do in the comment section below.

Good luck and stay safe!

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