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    MTCH
    Earnings call· Jun 2026(Q2 FY26)

    Match Group Q2 FY26 earnings call MTCH

    Aug 4, 2026 Source

    Executive summary

    Match Group Q2 FY26 — Tinder Product Turnaround and Hinge Growth

    Match Group delivered a strong quarter with adjusted EBITDA exceeding expectations, driven by a significant product turnaround at Tinder and continued robust growth from Hinge. The company is leveraging AI to accelerate product development and enhance user engagement, particularly through new social features like Events, while also streamlining its E&E portfolio. Despite some revenue headwinds from user experience tests and the Azar app redesign, management is confident in Tinder's path to MAU growth and sustained profitability, supported by disciplined capital allocation.

    Highlights

    5

    • Match Group adjusted EBITDA grew 14% year-over-year to $331 million, exceeding expectations.

    • Tinder's DAU improved to down 4% year-over-year in Q2, its best result in 10 quarters, and is expected to turn positive year-over-year any day now.

    • Hinge direct revenue grew 22% year-over-year to $204 million, with global MAU up 13% year-over-year.

    • Match Group repurchased 7.3 million shares for $245 million and paid $91 million in dividends, returning 81% of free cash flow to shareholders.

    • Alternative payment savings for 2026 are now expected to be $130 million, $20 million better than initial expectations.

    Concerns

    5

    • Match Group total revenue was down 1% year-over-year to $853 million, or down 2% on an FX-neutral basis.

    • Match Group payers declined 6% to $13.3 million.

    • Tinder direct revenue was down 1% year-over-year to $457 million, including an $8 million negative impact from user experience tests.

    • E&E direct revenue was down 17% year-over-year to $179 million, with payers declining 21%.

    • Indirect revenue was down 28% to $13 million due to lower advertiser spend and reallocation.

    Guidance & targets

    14
    CategoryTargetConfidence
    Q3 FY26 Total Revenue
    $885 million to $895 million
    high materiality
    High
    Q3 FY26 Adjusted EBITDA
    $330 million to $335 million
    high materiality
    High
    FY26 Total Revenue
    near the midpoint of the guidance range provided in February
    high materiality
    High
    FY26 Adjusted EBITDA
    at or above the high end of our guidance range provided in February
    high materiality
    High
    FY26 Tinder Direct Revenue
    decline in the low single-digit percents
    medium materiality
    High
    FY26 Hinge Direct Revenue
    in line with our full year guidance provided in February
    medium materiality
    High
    FY26 E&E Direct Revenue
    decline in the mid-teens percent
    medium materiality
    High
    FY26 E&E Adjusted EBITDA Margin
    high 20%
    medium materiality
    High
    FY26 Free Cash Flow
    at the high end of our guidance range provided in February
    high materiality
    High
    FY26 SBC expense
    $230 million to $240 million
    medium materiality
    High
    Tinder MAU
    flat
    high materiality
    High
    Tinder Payers
    return to growth
    high materiality
    High
    Tinder FY27 Revenue
    up over 2026
    high materiality
    High
    Hinge Revenue
    $1 billion
    high materiality
    High

    Segment performance

    4
    SegmentRevenueYoYQoQMargin
    Match Group (Consolidated)
    Total revenue down 2% on a foreign exchange-neutral basis. FX was $2 million worse than expected.
    Payers: $13.3 million (down 6% YoY)RPP: $21.13 (up 6% YoY)Indirect revenue: $13 million (down 28% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA: $331 million (up 14% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA margin: 39%
    		$853 milliondown 1%——
    Tinder
    Direct revenue down 2% FXN. Q2 direct revenue includes an approximately $8 million negative impact from user experience tests and product changes.
    Payers: $8.5 million (down 5% YoY)RPP: $17.90 (up 4% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA: $233 million (down 5% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA margin: 50%
    		$457 milliondown 1%——
    Hinge
    Direct revenue up 20% FXN.
    Payers: $2 million (up 17% YoY)RPP: $33.11 (up 4% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA: $79 million (up 48% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA margin: 39%
    		$204 millionup 22%——
    E&E (Everyone Everywhere)
    Direct revenue down 17% FXN. The revenue impact from Azar's app redesign was approximately $5 million better than anticipated.
    Payers: $2.7 million (down 21% YoY)RPP: $22.24 (up 4% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA: $54 million (up 69% YoY)Adjusted EBITDA margin: 30%
    		$179 milliondown 17%——

    Operational metrics

    33
    Total Operating Expenses
    down 9%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Including stock-based compensation expense.

    Cost of Revenue
    down 16%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Primarily driven by alternative payment savings.

    Selling and Marketing Costs
    $10 millionup 7% YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Result of increased marketing spend at Tinder and Hinge, partially offset by reduced marketing spend at E&E.

    General and Administrative Costs
    down 22%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Driven by lower headcount-related costs, including SBC and lower legal expenses.

    Product Development Costs
    flatYoY
    Q2 FY26
    Depreciation and Amortization
    $24 milliondown $5 million
    Q2 FY26
    Trailing 12-month gross leverage
    2.7x
    Q2 FY26
    Net leverage
    2.2x
    Q2 FY26
    Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments
    $584 million
    Q2 FY26 end

    Used $424 million of cash to pay off exchangeable notes that matured in June.

    Shares repurchased
    $245 million
    YTD through Q2 FY26
    Dividends paid
    $91 million
    YTD through Q2 FY26
    Cash for net settlement of employee equity awards
    $92 million
    YTD through Q2 FY26
    Shares repurchased
    $16 million
    July 1-31, 2026
    Diluted shares outstanding
    down 5%YoY
    July 31, 2026
    Alternative payment savings (Apple)
    $130 millionup $20 million vs. initial expectation
    FY26

    Expected savings from 0% commissions on alternative payments.

    Google Play new fee structure benefit
    $5 million
    FY27

    Estimated small benefit for new installs, disappointing outcome.

    Tinder Matches
    up 14%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Up 7% YoY last quarter.

    Tinder Unique people with Sparks
    down 4%YoY
    Q2 FY26
    Tinder Sparks Coverage
    up 2%YoY
    Q2 FY26
    Tinder MAU
    down 7%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    1 point better than Q1, with biggest gains in important markets and user demos.

    Tinder MAU among women
    down 8%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    3 points better than Q1, improved across all major geographic regions and age groups.

    Tinder Payer penetration
    upYoY
    Q2 FY26
    Tinder Direct revenue per MAU
    up 6%YoY
    Q2 FY26
    Hinge MAU
    up 13%YoY
    Q2 FY26

    Driven by strong growth in expansion markets; core markets MAU relatively flat.

    Hinge Direct revenue growth in European expansion markets
    86%YoY
    Q2 FY26
    Hinge new European countries entered
    6
    Q2 FY26
    Hinge new LatAm countries entered
    4
    Q2 FY26
    Tinder Events engagement (18-24 year olds)
    71%
    LA pilot

    Of eligible users aged 18 to 24 engaged with the in-app Events tab; more than half of users who visited the tab returned the following week.

    Tinder Events cities
    10
    current

    Includes US and Europe.

    Tinder Search feature adoption
    10%
    first few weeks

    Of exposed users submitting a Search, tens of thousands of searches generated.

    Tinder user experience tests and product changes negative impact
    $8 million
    Q2 FY26

    Less than the $60 million impact included in initial guidance.

    Azar app redesign negative impact
    $15 million
    Q3 FY26

    Expected negative impact to Match Group revenue each quarter.

    Hinge Signals selfie verification increase
    15%
    tests

    Increase in selfie verification for existing users.

    Industry KPIs

    3
    MetricValueDetails
    Family dap daudown 4%%
    Share buyback capital returned$245 millionUSD
    Ai feature adoption monetizationAI accelerated execution across product development life cycles

    Product announcements

    9
    ProductTypeDetails
    Eventslaunch
    Missed Connectionslaunch
    Text-based Searchlaunch
    Tinder Rebrandupdate
    Friend's Takelaunch
    Your Type Latelylaunch
    Prefilled Basicslaunch
    Signalslaunch
    Hinge new subscription tierlaunch

    Deals & partnerships

    1
    SniffiesInvestment in a dating app, following the shutdown of Archer.

    Match Group made an investment in Sniffies after shutting down Archer, focusing on a smaller number of brands within E&E.

    Risks & headwinds

    6
    Match Group Total Revenue DeclineQ2 FY26

    down 1% year-over-year ($853 million), down 2% FXN

    Mitigation: Product improvements at Tinder, Hinge growth, E&E strategy sharpening.

    Match Group Payers DeclineQ2 FY26

    down 6% to $13.3 million

    Mitigation: Continued MAU improvement expected to support better payer and revenue results over time; payer declines expected to lessen in H2.

    Indirect Revenue DeclineQ2 FY26

    down 28% to $13 million

    Mitigation: Reflecting lower spend from top advertisers compared to a strong Q2 last year, as well as some reallocation of spend during the World Cup.

    Tinder User Experience Tests and Product ChangesQ2 FY26, Q3 FY26, FY26

    approximately $8 million negative impact to direct revenue in Q2; $10 million negative impact in Q3; $30 million to $40 million negative impact for FY26

    Mitigation: These tests are considered necessary for long-term revenue growth and user engagement improvements.

    Azar App Redesign ImpactQ3 FY26 and ongoing

    approximately $15 million negative impact to Match Group revenue each quarter

    Mitigation: Team did a fantastic job getting back in the App Store, but at a much lower revenue base. E&E strategy sharpening and leveraging 1MG capabilities.

    Google Play New Fee StructureMarch 1, 2027 (US), then other geographies through 2026-2027

    very small benefit to us in '27, maybe $5 million

    Mitigation: No significant economic benefit for alternative payments once payment processing fees are considered; could change from other legal or regulatory reasons.

    What to watch in Q3 FY26

    5

    Tinder DAU growth

    any day now
    Currentdown 2.5% YoY in July, almost positive in August
    Targetpositive year-over-year

    Why it matters

    Positive DAU growth is a key milestone for Tinder's turnaround, indicating improved product engagement and retention.

    Daily active users or DAU trends have also improved meaningfully, and we expect them to turn positive year-over-year any day now.

    Q&A highlights

    5

    What specific initiatives are driving Tinder's DAU to turn positive, and why is DAU improving faster than MAU?

    Spencer attributed DAU improvement to a comprehensive product overhaul, including recommendation algorithm updates, new features like Double Date and Events, and a rebrand. He highlighted that the current focus is on improving the experience for existing users, while Events is designed to drive new MAU. He cited specific metrics like matches up 14% YoY and Sparks Coverage up 5% YoY in July.

    “If I had to choose one, which is difficult, the one I would choose would be a recommendation algorithm improvements, where we are showing more people, the people that would be good matches for them, and that is driving better user retention.”

    asked by James Heaney · answered by Spencer Rascoff

    2 min read6 chapters

    Detailed Narrative

    01

    Tinder's Product-Led Turnaround

    Tinder has undergone a comprehensive product overhaul, focusing on improving recommendation algorithms, introducing social features like Double Date and Modes, and enhancing Trust and Safety. These efforts have significantly narrowed MAU declines and are expected to drive positive year-over-year DAU growth soon, a milestone not seen in over three years. The rebrand, now live globally, provides a fresh identity, contributing to improved engagement metrics post-rollout.

    02

    AI Acceleration in Product Development

    AI has played a crucial role in accelerating Tinder's product development life cycles, enabling rapid execution of new features. For instance, AI helped the team move Missed Connections from idea to product in weeks, compressing a typical multi-month process. Hinge is also leveraging AI to build its first reinforcement-learning model for personalized user assistance, aiming for a broader personalization layer.

    03

    Hinge's Continued Strong Growth

    Hinge maintains strong product-market fit with intentioned daters, driving global MAU growth of 13% year-over-year in Q2 and direct revenue up 22%. The brand is expanding internationally, entering 6 new European and 4 new Latin American countries in Q2, with India being a key focus in Asia. Hinge is on track to reach $1 billion in revenue by 2027, supported by product innovation, international expansion, and monetization runway, including a new subscription tier test in Q3.

    04

    Events Feature for Reconsideration

    Tinder's new Events feature, piloted in Los Angeles and now expanding to 26 cities by September, aims to drive reconsideration among non-users and lapsed users. Early data shows 71% engagement among 18-24 year olds in the LA pilot, with over half returning weekly. The company believes Events will shift brand perception and attract new users by offering lower-pressure, real-world connection opportunities, with 60% of non-Tinder users indicating they would be more likely to use the app because of it.

    05

    E&E Portfolio Re-evaluation

    The E&E segment, now including Azar and Pairs, has undergone a deep review to sharpen its strategy. The focus is on brand-by-brand priorities, deliberate investment choices, and leveraging Match Group's shared capabilities (1MG approach) for Trust and Safety, recommendations, and marketing. While facing headwinds from the Azar app redesign, early progress gives confidence in the segment's direction, with plans to extend Tinder Events capabilities to E&E brands like BLK.

    06

    Capital Allocation and Shareholder Returns

    Match Group continues its strategy of prioritizing business investment, returning capital to shareholders, and selective M&A. The company repurchased $245 million of shares and paid $91 million in dividends year-to-date, equating to 81% of free cash flow. Diluted shares outstanding were reduced by 5% year-over-year as of July 31, 2026, demonstrating a commitment to attractive free cash flow per share.

    AI-generated summary of the company’s earnings call. Not investment advice.