In a sea of match-making services, Plenty of Fish distinguished itself as the first free-to-use website, built and operated entirely by the founder Markus Frind for the first few years of operation.
Due to Frind being the only employee and Plenty of Fish being simply a side project to improve his coding skills and look good on his resume, the operation costs, even as Plenty of Fish became popular, were very low in comparison to other services at the time such as Match and eHarmony.
The early website was quite bare bones, simply matching people based on location and a few tags. It added POF Chemistry Predictor in 2007, which matched people with similar personalities based on their answers to an in-depth questionnaire.
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Download NowFrind grew Plenty of Fish to 30 million registered users, surpassing a few of the big names of the 2000s in the process. The launch of the mobile app in 2011 drew in new users.
In 2015, Match Group came calling with a $575 million offer to Frind. It had already acquired a few online dating services, and its owner IAC was looking to spin it off as a public company. The deal was closed in summer 2015 and Match Group went public in November of that year.
Frind stayed on as CEO of Plenty of Fish until 2019. The service has been folded into the Emerging and Evergreen division of Match Group.
We have collected data and statistics on Plenty of Fish. Read on below to find out more. Want to gain more insights? Check out our dating app report.
Plenty of Fish Key Statistics
- Plenty of Fish made an estimated $208 million revenue in 2023, a decline of 23% on the year prior
- Over 10 million people use Plenty of Fish, about 15% pay for premium membership
- Plenty of Fish was installed 5.3 million times in 2023, around the same amount as last year
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Dating App Report 2024
Plenty of Fish Overview
| Title 1 | Title 2 |
|---|---|
| Launch date | 15 March 2003 |
| HQ | Dallas, Texas |
| People | Hesam Hosseini (CEO, Evergreen brands), Bernard Kim (CEO, Match Group) |
| Business type | Subsidiary |
| Owner | Match Group |
| Industry | Online dating |
Plenty of Fish Revenue
Plenty of Fish revenues dropped heavily in 2023, decreasing by 23% to $208 million.
Plenty of Fish revenue 2015 to 2023 ($mm)
| Year | Revenue ($mm) |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 213 |
| 2016 | 271 |
| 2017 | 264 |
| 2018 | 288 |
| 2019 | 295 |
| 2020 | 354 |
| 2021 | 312 |
| 2022 | 272 |
| 2023 | 208 |
Sources:Â Dating App Report, Company data
Plenty of Fish Users
There are around 10 million people using Plenty of Fish actively, with around 15% paying for a membership.
Plenty of Fish users 2015 to 2023 (mm)
| Year | Users (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 10 |
| 2016 | 11.2 |
| 2017 | 11.9 |
| 2018 | 10 |
| 2019 | 11 |
| 2020 | 15 |
| 2021 | 16 |
| 2022 | 12.2 |
| 2023 | 10.5 |
Sources:Â Dating App Report, Company data
Match Group Subscribers
Match Group doesn’t split out its evergreen brands, which include Plenty of Fish, Match and OKCupid. We estimate Plenty of Fish is responsible for about 40% of the subscribers of this group.
Match Group evergreen subscribers 2018 to 2023 (mm)
| Year | Users (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 4.1 |
| 2019 | 3.9 |
| 2020 | 5.2 |
| 2021 | 4.8 |
| 2022 | 4.5 |
| 2023 | 3.7 |
Source: Company dataÂ
Plenty of Fish Downloads
Downloads have dropped off in the past five years, with half as many downloads in 2023 in comparison to 2019.
Plenty of Fish downloads 2015 to 2023 (mm)
| Year | Downloads (mm) |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 14.5 |
| 2016 | 14.8 |
| 2017 | 15.2 |
| 2018 | 14.5 |
| 2019 | 10.6 |
| 2020 | 8.5 |
| 2021 | 7 |
| 2022 | 5.8 |
| 2023 | 5.3 |
Source: Appfigures, AppMagic
PoF vs Competitors: Market Share
Plenty of Fish is a distant fourth in the US market, behind the three apps popular with younger users – Tinder, Bumble and Hinge.
US dating app market share 2023 (%)
Want to learn more about dating apps? Check out the Dating App ReportÂ
Plenty of Fish FAQ
Who owns Plenty of Fish?
Plenty of Fish is part of the Match Group. It is operated by the group’s Emerging and Evergreen division.
How much did Match Group acquire Plenty of Fish for?
Match Group paid $575 million to acquire Plenty of Fish in 2015. Founder Markus Frind was the largest shareholder at the time.
