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Google bans ‘sugar’ dating apps, but not Tinder (Update: Google statement)
June 21, 2025
Update, August 08, 2025 (10:50 AM ET):Google has issued a response toAndroid Police’soriginal articleon the banning of sugar daddy apps. The response is below:
Essentially, Google is saying it doesn’t want apps that “facilitate sexual acts in exchange for compensation” on the Play Store. This likely means that sugar daddy apps will need to take the route of Seeking Arrangement and keep their true nature as vague as possible. After all, if it’s just a dating app that connects people of different wealth categories, that wouldn’t fall under Google’s explanation here.
Of course, this still doesn’t address the fact that sugar relationships can happen on all types of apps, including Tinder and even Instagram.
Original article, June 24, 2025 (12:58 PM ET):There are hundreds (if not thousands) of dating apps on the Google Play Store. You probably already know the heavy hitters, such as Tinder, Bumble, and OkCupid. You might not know about some other apps, though, such asSeeking Arrangement,Elite, orSpoil.
See also:The best dating apps for Android
That’s because those last three apps are so-called sugar daddy apps. A “sugar” relationship is defined as incentivized companionship. A common example is a young woman dating an older, wealthy man, with the man gifting expensive items or even cash to the woman. In that situation, the man would be called a sugar daddy. However, sugar mommies exist as well, and people who don’t want to throw genders onto everything just use the term “sugar.”
Google, however, doesn’t seem to approve of people procuring these arrangements through the Play Store. Ina new policy changefirst spotted byAndroid Police, Google puts the hammer down on sugar daddy apps. The terminology change includes the removal of “compensated sexual relationships (i.e., sugar dating).” Google says this app category now falls under its Inappropriate Content policy.
As such, unless Google changes its mind, all sugar dating apps will go missing from the Play Store on July 29, 2025.
Tinder is also a sugar daddy app, Google
The problem with Google’s policy change here is that it appears to be overly selective. Yes, the Seeking Arrangement app, for example, lays out that it is a way to find “mutually beneficial relationships.” But that doesn’t mean you couldn’t also find those relationships on other apps, such as Tinder.
Chances are good that nearly every attractive woman on Tinder has been offered a sugar daddy arrangement through that app. Sure, maybe only a few actually follow through, but it certainly happens. But Google isn’t about to ban Tinder —we’re certain of that.
Ultimately, this policy change might just be a way for Google to crack down on apps that explicitly promote themselves as sugar daddy apps. The Seeking Arrangement app does not use the term “sugar” anywhere in its description, so it’s possible it won’t see a ban on September 1. Still, if you are looking for a mutually beneficial relationship, you might need to learnhow to sideload Android appscome September.
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