How has online dating in Russia developed over the past 20 years?
Online dating in Russia first developed hand-in-hand with social media platforms. When networks like OK (Odnoklassniki) and VK (Vkontakte) first appeared in the 2000s, their users utilized them to connect with friends and search for partners. At that time, there were no smartphones in the country, so Russians mostly used these platforms from desktop devices. Besides social networks, dating portals like Loveplanet and Mamba emerged in that decade.In the 2010s, users started using dating apps from their mobile devices; however, desktop platforms have not lost popularity. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic accelerated the market growth in 2020 and 2021, with two in 10 dating app users reporting that they started using such products due to social distancing. Matchmaking was the largest market segment, followed by online dating and casual dating.
