Grindr (NYSE: GRND) boosts 2026 revenue outlook after strong Q2
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
Grindr Inc. reported second-quarter 2026 revenue of $138 million, up 33% year-over-year. Net income was $18 million, a 13% net income margin, and Adjusted EBITDA was $58 million with a 42% margin, reflecting strong profitability alongside rapid growth.
The company raised its full-year 2026 outlook to approximately $540 million in revenue and $232 million in Adjusted EBITDA. Management highlights AI-driven engineering productivity, a major Madonna partnership, and continued product enhancements as key drivers, while also deploying $210 million toward share repurchases with $300 million remaining authorized.
Positive
- Q2 2026 revenue grew 33% to $138 million, reflecting strong top-line expansion driven by app-based subscriptions, consumables, and higher advertising revenue.
- Profitability remained high with $58 million Adjusted EBITDA and a 42% margin, alongside net income of $18 million at a 13% margin.
- Full-year 2026 guidance increased to approximately $540 million in revenue and $232 million Adjusted EBITDA, indicating confidence in continued growth and AI-driven operating leverage.
- $210 million of share repurchases since December 2025 and about $300 million remaining under authorization demonstrate meaningful capital return capacity.
- AI-enabled engineering output increased about 2.5x from July 2025 to April 2026 with only 15% technical headcount growth, implying roughly $60 million in annual cost savings versus hiring additional engineers.
Negative
- None.
Filing Explained
The company’s Q2 results were furnished in the
8-K Event Classification
2 items: 2.02, 9.01
2 items
Item 2.02
Results of Operations and Financial Condition
Financial
Disclosure of earnings results, typically an earnings press release or preliminary financials.
Item 9.01
Financial Statements and Exhibits
Exhibits
Financial statements, pro forma financial information, and exhibit attachments filed with this report.
Key Figures
Q2 2026 Revenue: $138 million
Q2 2026 Net Income: $18 million
Q2 2026 Adjusted EBITDA: $58 million
+7 more
10 metrics
Q2 2026 Revenue
$138 million
Total revenue for the second quarter 2026, 33% year-over-year growth
Q2 2026 Net Income
$18 million
Net income for the second quarter 2026; 13% net income margin
Q2 2026 Adjusted EBITDA
$58 million
Adjusted EBITDA for Q2 2026; 42% Adjusted EBITDA margin
App-Based Revenue Q2 2026
$113 million
App-based revenue in Q2 2026, up from $87 million in Q2 2025
Advertising Revenue Q2 2026
$25 million
Advertising revenue in Q2 2026, up from $17 million in Q2 2025
Full-year 2026 Revenue Guidance
$540 million
Expected full-year 2026 revenue, raised from $535 million
Full-year 2026 Adjusted EBITDA Guidance
$232 million
Expected full-year 2026 Adjusted EBITDA, raised from $227 million
Share Repurchases Since Dec 2025
$210 million
Capital deployed toward repurchasing common stock via options, forwards and ASRs
Remaining Repurchase Authorization
$300 million
Share repurchase capacity remaining as of the end of Q2 2026
Average App-Based ARPPU
$26.51
Average app-based revenue per paying user; 12% year-over-year growth
Key Terms
Adjusted EBITDA, accelerated share repurchase, AI-native, equity method investee, +1 more
5 terms
Adjusted EBITDA financial
"We use Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin to understand"
Adjusted EBITDA is a way companies measure how much money they make from their core operations, like running a business, by removing certain costs or income that aren’t part of regular business activities. It helps investors see how well a company is doing without distractions from unusual expenses or gains, making it easier to compare companies or track performance over time.
AI-native technical
"terraforming Grindr to be AI-native in how it operates is most evident"
A company or product described as ai-native is built from the ground up around artificial intelligence rather than having AI added on later; its core processes, user experience and decision-making rely on machine learning models and data pipelines. Like a house designed for wheelchair access versus one retrofitted, ai-native firms can move faster, scale more cheaply and offer unique products or cost advantages—information investors use to judge future growth potential and risk exposure to model, data or regulatory failures.
equity method investee financial
"losses from our investment in our equity method investee and credit loss"
An equity method investee is a company in which an investor owns a substantial minority stake and can meaningfully influence its decisions without fully controlling it. It matters to investors because the investor reports its proportionate share of the investee’s profits or losses on its own financial statements and is exposed to the investee’s risks and rewards—like co-owning a bakery where you account for your share of its earnings even if you don’t run day-to-day operations.
bifurcated derivative financial
"change in fair value of the bifurcated derivative in our forward repurchase"
Earnings Snapshot
Revenue: $138 million · Guidance included
quarter ended June 30, 2026
Revenue
$138 million
33% year-over-year growth
Net income
$18 million
13% net income margin
Adjusted EBITDA
$58 million
42% Adjusted EBITDA margin
App-based revenue
$113 million
up from $87 million in Q2 2025
Advertising revenue
$25 million
up from $17 million in Q2 2025
Guidance
Company expects full-year 2026 revenue of approximately $540 million and Adjusted EBITDA of approximately $232 million, both raised from prior guidance of $535 million and $227 million.
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
FAQ
What were Grindr (GRND)'s key financial results for Q2 2026?
Grindr reported Q2 2026 revenue of $138 million, up 33% year-over-year. Net income was $18 million with a 13% net income margin, and Adjusted EBITDA reached $58 million, representing a 42% Adjusted EBITDA margin.
How did Grindr (GRND) change its full-year 2026 financial guidance?
Grindr raised its 2026 guidance, now expecting approximately $540 million in revenue and $232 million in Adjusted EBITDA. This is up from prior guidance of $535 million in revenue and $227 million in Adjusted EBITDA.
What drove Grindr (GRND)'s revenue growth in Q2 2026?
Growth was driven by strong app-based revenue of $113 million, up from $87 million, and advertising revenue of $25 million, up from $17 million. Higher subscription demand, consumables performance, and successful cultural activations contributed to the 33% total revenue growth.
How profitable is Grindr (GRND) and what margins did it report for Q2 2026?
Grindr delivered operating income of $33 million, or 24% of revenue, and net income of $18 million, a 13% margin. Adjusted EBITDA was $58 million with a 42% margin, indicating strong profitability while investing in product and marketing.
What capital return actions has Grindr (GRND) taken recently?
Since December 2025, Grindr has deployed $210 million toward share repurchases using options, forward repurchase transactions, and accelerated share repurchases, including a $60 million ASR in Q2 2026. About $300 million remains available under its repurchase authorization.
How is Grindr (GRND) using AI to improve operations and growth?
Grindr is building an AI-native engineering organization, estimating 2.5x higher engineering output from July 2025 to April 2026 with only 15% headcount growth. This avoids roughly $60 million in annual cost versus hiring 200 engineers and supports faster product delivery.
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
________________________
FORM 8-K
________________________
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): August 6, 2026
________________________
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
________________________
Commission file number 001-39714
________________________
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) | (IRS Employer Identification No.) | |||||||
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) | |||||||
(310 ) 776-6680
Registrant's telephone number, including area code
N/A
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
________________________
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):
| Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) | |||||
| Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) | |||||
| Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) | |||||
| Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) | |||||
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||||||
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Item 2.02 Results of Operations and Financial Condition.
On August 6, 2026, the Company issued a press release and posted a shareholder letter to its website announcing its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2026. A copy of the Company’s press release dated August 6, 2026, and the shareholder letter dated August 6, 2026, are attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and Exhibit 99.2, respectively, and are incorporated herein by reference.
The information contained herein and the accompanying Exhibits 99.1 and Exhibit 99.2 are being furnished under “Item 2.02 Results of Operations and Financial Condition” and shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section or Sections 11 and 12(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission made by us, whether made before or after the date hereof, regardless of any general incorporation language in such filing.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits
| Exhibit No. | Description | |||||||
99.1 | Press release dated August 6, 2026 | |||||||
99.2 | Shareholder Letter dated August 6, 2026 | |||||||
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File, formatted in inline XBRL (embedded within the Inline XBRL document) | |||||||
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Date: August 6, 2026
| GRINDR INC. | ||||||||
| By: | ||||||||
| /s/ John North | ||||||||
| John North | ||||||||
Chief Financial Officer | ||||||||
Exhibit 99.1
Grindr Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2026 Revenue Growth of 33%, Raises Guidance
Second Quarter 2026 Revenue of $138 Million
Net Income of $18 Million, Net Income Margin of 13%
Adjusted EBITDA of $58 Million, Adjusted EBITDA Margin of 42%
Increases expectation of full-year 2026 Revenue to approximately $540 Million and Adjusted EBITDA to approximately $232 Million
LOS ANGELES, CA – August 6, 2026 – Grindr Inc. (NYSE: GRND) (“Grindr” or the “Company”), the Global Gayborhood in Your PocketTM, today posted its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026, in a Letter to Shareholders. The Letter to Shareholders can be accessed on Grindr’s Investor Relations website: https://investors.grindr.com/.
“Driven by strong user engagement and organic momentum, Grindr delivered an outstanding second quarter. Because our users are responding even better than anticipated to the expanded value and capabilities built into the product experience, we are raising our full-year 2026 revenue and Adjusted EBITDA guidance,” said George Arison, Chairman and CEO. “As we continue terraforming Grindr into an AI-native organization, we are unlocking significant operating leverage – allowing us to accelerate our roadmap, including next-generation products like Edge, and improve the core user experience, all within our exceptionally lean operating model. At the same time, Q2’s landmark Madonna partnership demonstrated Grindr’s exceptional cultural and commercial power. We are executing at high velocity, expanding our best-in-class profitability, and building a larger, more essential platform for gay life.”
Earnings Webcast Information
Grindr will host a live webcast today at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time to discuss the Company’s second quarter 2026 financial results. The webcast of the conference call can be accessed as follows:
Event: Grindr Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call
Date: Thursday, August 6, 2026
Time: 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Time)
Live Webcast Site: https://investors.grindr.com/
An archived webcast of the conference call will also be accessible on Grindr’s Investor Relations page, https://investors.grindr.com/.
Forward Looking Statements
Some of the statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including our guidance for 2026. Forward-looking statements relate to expectations, beliefs, projections, future plans and strategies, anticipated events or trends and similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs, current expectations or projections concerning, among other things, results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies and the markets in which we operate. In some cases, you can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of terminology such as “anticipates,” “approximately,” “believes,” “continues,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “goal,” “intends,” “may,” “outlook,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “projects,” “seeks,” “should,” “will,” “would,” or the negative version of these words or other comparable words or phrases.
The forward-looking statements contained in this press release reflect our current views about our business and future events and are subject to numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and changes in circumstances that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. There are no guarantees that any transactions or events described will happen as described (or that they will happen at all). The following factors, among others, could cause actual results and future events to differ materially from those set forth in or contemplated by the forward-looking statements:
•our ability to retain existing users and add new users;
•market perception of our brand;
•the impact of the legal environment and complexities with litigation and regulatory compliance related to such environment, including maintaining compliance with privacy, data protection, consumer protection and online safety laws and regulations, as well as laws that may apply to any new products or services we have introduced and may introduce in the future, including in the health and wellness sector;
•our ability to address privacy concerns and protect systems and infrastructure from cyber-attacks and prevent unauthorized data access;
•our ability to detect and suppress illegal activity;
•our ability to identify and consummate strategic transactions including strategic partnerships, acquisitions, or investments in complementary products, services, or technologies, including outside of our core product; and our ability to realize the intended benefit of such transactions;
•our success in retaining or recruiting directors, officers, key employees, or other key personnel, and our success in managing any changes in such roles;
•competition in the dating and social networking products and services industry;
•our ability to adapt to changes in technology and user preferences in a timely and cost-effective manner;
•our ability to successfully develop and adopt artificial intelligence (“AI”) and machine learning (“ML”) technologies and processes—including generative AI—in our daily operations, including by deploying generative AI and ML in our products and services;
•our dependence on the integrity of third-party systems and infrastructure;
•our ability to protect our intellectual property rights from unauthorized use by third parties;
•whether the concentration of our stock ownership and voting power limits our stockholders’ ability to influence corporate matters;
•the impact of resales of significant volumes of our securities by any of our directors or significant stockholders, including pursuant to one or more margin calls on such stockholders’ loans, on our stock price;
•the timing, price, and quantity of repurchases of shares of our common stock under our repurchase program, and our ability to fund any such repurchases;
•the effects of macroeconomic and geopolitical events on our business, such as health epidemics, pandemics, natural disasters, the impacts of changing tariff policies and trade tensions, and wars or other regional conflicts; and
•the impact of anti-LGBTQ policies and actions by governments and non-state actors around the world, including to block or otherwise restrict access to our app in their countries.
In addition, statements that “Grindr believes” or “we believe” and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subjects as of the date of any such statement. These statements are based upon information available to us as of the date they are made, and while we believe such information forms a reasonable basis for such statements, such information may be limited or incomplete, and such statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all potentially available relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain and investors are cautioned not to unduly rely upon these statements.
While forward-looking statements reflect our good faith beliefs, they are not guarantees of future performance. Except to the extent required by applicable law, we are under no obligation (and expressly disclaim any such obligation) to update or revise our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. For a further discussion of these and other factors that could cause our future results, performance, or transactions to differ significantly from those expressed in any forward-looking statement, please see the section titled “Risk Factors” included under Part I, Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 and in Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q we file thereafter. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which are based only on information currently available to us (or to third parties making the forward-looking statements).
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We use Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin, which are non-GAAP measures, to understand and evaluate our core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures, which may differ from similarly titled measures used by other companies, are presented to enhance investors’ overall understanding of our financial performance and should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP.
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin
Adjusted EBITDA adjusts for the impact of items that we do not consider indicative of the operational performance of our business. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income excluding income tax provision; interest expense, net; depreciation and amortization; stock-based compensation expense; equity method investee losses and related credit loss; change in fair value of warrant liability; and employee transition costs, litigation-related costs, transaction-related costs, and other items, in each case, that are unrelated to our core ongoing business operations. Adjusted EBITDA Margin is calculated by dividing Adjusted EBITDA for a period by revenue for the same period.
Our management uses these measures internally to evaluate the performance of our business and these measures are among the primary metrics by which management and other employees are compensated. We exclude the above items as some are non-cash in nature and others may not be representative of normal operating results. While we believe that Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin are useful in evaluating our business, this information should be considered as supplemental in nature and is not meant as a substitute for the related financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP.
We are not able to estimate net income on a forward-looking basis or reconcile the guidance provided for Adjusted EBITDA to net income on a forward-looking basis without unreasonable efforts due to the variability and complexity with respect to the charges excluded from Adjusted EBITDA. In particular, the measures and effects of our stock-based compensation related to equity grants that are directly impacted by unpredictable fluctuations in our share price. The variability of the above charges could have a significant and potentially unpredictable impact on our future GAAP financial results.
The following table presents the reconciliation of net income to Adjusted EBITDA for the three and six months ended June 30, 2026 and 2025:
| Three Months Ended June 30, | Six Months Ended June 30, | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| ($ in thousands) | 2026 | 2025 | 2026 | 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reconciliation of net income to Adjusted EBITDA | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income | $ | 17,743 | $ | 16,638 | $ | 44,493 | $ | 43,657 | |||||||||||||||
| Interest expense, net | 6,529 | 3,564 | 13,134 | 7,439 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Income tax provision | 5,149 | 4,654 | 14,319 | 9,205 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 895 | 3,068 | 1,878 | 6,545 | |||||||||||||||||||
Litigation-related costs (1) | 2,916 | 754 | 3,483 | 980 | |||||||||||||||||||
Transaction-related costs (2) | 123 | — | 146 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 20,625 | 16,529 | 35,633 | 27,476 | |||||||||||||||||||
Employee transition costs (3) | 740 | — | 437 | 499 | |||||||||||||||||||
Equity method investee losses and related credit loss (4) | 1,909 | — | 1,909 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
Change in fair value of warrant liability (5) | — | — | — | (9,905) | |||||||||||||||||||
Other expense (6) | 1,011 | — | 681 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 57,640 | $ | 45,207 | $ | 116,113 | $ | 85,896 | |||||||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 138,138 | $ | 104,220 | $ | 268,079 | $ | 198,158 | |||||||||||||||
| Net income margin | 12.8 | % | 16.0 | % | 16.6 | % | 22.0 | % | |||||||||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA Margin | 41.7 | % | 43.4 | % | 43.3 | % | 43.3 | % | |||||||||||||||
_________________
(1)Litigation-related costs that are unrelated to our core ongoing business operations primarily represent settlement expenses accrued and external legal fees associated with outstanding litigation or regulatory matters outside of the ordinary course.
(2)Transaction-related costs consist of legal, consulting, and other professional fees related to potential transactions.
(3)Employee transition costs relate to costs associated with the transition of our former Chief Financial Officer, and severance incurred for employees who elected not to relocate or participate in our RTO Plan and certain other severance arrangements.
(4)Equity method investee losses and related credit loss are related to our share of losses from our investment in our equity method investee and credit loss in relation to the loan receivable to our equity method investee.
(5)Change in fair value of warrant liability relates to the warrants that were remeasured upon exercise or redemption. In February 2025, we completed the redemption of all outstanding warrants.
(6)Other expense is related to change in fair value of the bifurcated derivative in our forward repurchase transactions entered into in the first quarter of 2026 that was remeasured as of June 30, 2026.
Trademarks
This press release may contain trademarks of Grindr. Solely for convenience, trademarks referred to in this press release may appear without the ® or TM symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that Grindr will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, its rights to these trademarks.
About Grindr Inc.
With 15 million average monthly active users, Grindr has grown to become the Global Gayborhood in Your PocketTM, on a mission to make a world where the lives of our global community are free, equal, and just. Available in 190 countries and territories, Grindr is often the primary way for its users to connect, express themselves, and discover the world around them. Since 2015, Grindr for Equality has advanced human rights, health, and safety for millions of LGBTQ+ people in partnership with organizations in every region of the world. Grindr has offices in West Hollywood, the Bay Area, Chicago, and New York. The Grindr app is available on the App Store and Google Play.
Investors:
IR@grindr.com
Media:
Press@grindr.com
Q2 2026 Shareholder Letter AUGUST 6, 2026
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Dear Grindr Shareholders, As 2026 has progressed, it has become increasingly clear that our users are responding to the significant product work underway across the Grindr app even better than we had expected, delivering another exceptional quarter. As a result, we are raising our 2026 guidance and now expect full-year revenue to be approximately $540 million, up from $535 million, and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $232 million, up from $227 million. I am particularly excited that we are able to invest aggressively in the future of the business while simultaneously expanding profitability. Given our lean operating model, we entered the year planning only modest headcount growth. As we terraform Grindr into an AI-native company, we are delivering on our product roadmap and expansion efforts with even fewer hires, particularly in engineering. The result is continued improvement in our already best-in- class profitability. We now expect to finish 2026 with meaningfully fewer employees than we had originally planned, while continuing to hire and uplevel our team so Grindr can have among the strongest, leanest, high-performing operating teams of any public technology company. Shareholder Letter 2
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Building an AI-Native Company Terraforming Grindr to be AI-native in how it operates is most evident in our engineering organization. The engineer’s role has changed over the last several quarters from writing code directly to architecting, directing, and reviewing AI synthetics that write code. This fundamentally changes what Grindr is capable of building for our users.
Our conservative estimate is that total engineering output increased approximately 2.5x from July 2025 to April 2026 with minimal growth in the technical team. Before GenAI, producing that much technical output would have required roughly 200 additional engineers and approximately $60 million in annual cost. AI ~$60M ANNUAL SAVED COST Engineering Output (e.g., code shipped) vs. Headcount 2.5× ENGINEERING OUTPUT TECHNICAL TEAM HEADCOUNT July 2025 TECHNICAL TEAM HEADCOUNT 15% growth April 2026 But, the real constraint in software development has never only been dollars. It is the scarcity of exceptional engineering talent. Even if we had wanted to onboard another 200 engineers, we could not have found or hired that much great engineering capacity fast or well enough. Instead, AI allows us to concentrate our exceptional engineers on the work that most benefits from human creativity and judgment, while AI takes on an increasing share of the implementation. As a result, in H1 we were able to invest in the core free experience, continue improving reliability, create special product experiences for the Madonna partnership, and build the next generation of AI-native premium products all at the same time. Not long ago, adding one major initiative usually meant delaying another. That is becoming much less true now.
Over the next year, the goal is to move from AI writing code toward a more complete AI-native software development system that can, without human involvement, take product requirements, break them into engineering tasks, generate code, validate output, and move work toward production-readiness, before engineers review and formally commit the code. Underneath this, we have spent the last several years building an AI-native data infrastructure. Because we had to build our data infrastructure virtually from scratch, we were able to build for the AI era rather than modernize something designed for a pre-AI world – a bit like skipping copper wires and going straight to wireless. We now have a strong platform for developing and deploying machine-learning AI Terraforming That is why I call this AI terraforming. It is a bit like creating oxygen on Mars. The valuable output is not just more code. It is creating a technology organization that simply could not have existed before. Shareholder Letter 3
Shareholder Letter Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ models. Our proprietary AI data system, Data Daddy, allows employees across the company to ask data questions and receive immediate answers and analysis, with privacy safeguards. Better data is becoming the foundation for making the Grindr app more intelligent, personalized, and useful to our users. AI has never been just a future product story for Grindr. Our investment in AI is changing how fast we move, how we build, and how much we can accomplish for our users, while simultaneously delivering exceptional operating leverage for our shareholders, as our raised guidance shows. Product Momentum I am very encouraged that many of the product efforts are beginning to reinforce each other. The free experience is getting stronger, AI and better data are making the product more useful, and users can increasingly feel the impact of the work we have done to rearchitect and simplify the codebase every time they open the app. Overall, the product strategy we have been building toward over the last several years is coming together faster than we anticipated, users are responding positively, and we are seeing powerful organic revenue growth that is surpassing our expectations. 100+ Right Now 410ft Right Now is one of the most important ways to strengthen Grindr’s core hookup use case. Speed matters on Grindr, but the product needs to support more than immediate availability, giving users more control over when and how they show intent. We are broadening Right Now to allow more flexibility, reduce friction, and integrate it more naturally into the core app. We are also directly leaning into the elements that make Grindr unique, including NSFW communication, and pairing these product changes with more proactive marketing. As I’ve shared before, we expect Edge, our AI- native premium tier, to be one of the primary drivers of revenue growth in 2027 and beyond by giving high-intent users better, more personalized outcomes with less effort. In Q2, our focus has been on refining the branding, packaging, and positioning based on user testing. Packaging and marketing a premium experience like Edge is a new muscle for Grindr, and we’re learning how to excel at it. Reply Likely 2 mi Mike 30 Versatile Gaming, Travel Throughout the year, we have continued to improve the health of the Grindr ecosystem, and this quarter we removed a significant number of spammers and other bad actors engaging in illegal behavior. We’ve been investing in in-house AI and ML capabilities that enhance our ability to monitor illegal behavior and proactively suppress it. A healthier ecosystem improves the daily user experience and strengthens the network long-term. 4
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ MADONNA
GRINDRX & the Global Gayborhood Our Madonna partnership is the clearest example yet of how much the perception of Grindr has expanded over the last three years. Not long ago, very few people would have expected one of the most important cultural icons in the world to build such a massive launch moment through Grindr. Today, that choice feels natural. Gay men have always had an outsized influence on culture, and that is especially true with Madonna. They did not just listen to Madonna – they were crucial to building her career. Grindr sits at the center of that audience in a way no other platform does, and that’s why Madonna chose to launch her much anticipated new album on Grindr. Shareholder Letter Photo: Ricardo Gomes, Courtesy of Madonna. 5
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ maybe, what's up just seeing who's around 11:26AM 11:26AM well i'm around 11:26AM noted 11:26AM dogpersonConfessions II bathwater The Immaculate Selection Confessions II Madonna Like a Virgin True Blue Like a Prayer Erotica Bedtime Stories Ray of Light Music American Life Confessions on a Dance Floor Hard Candy MDNA Rebel Heart Madame X IMMACULATE SELECTION : :0 9 2 5 5 7The gays have questions.
motha has answers. IMMACULATE SELECTION HOURS MINUTES SECONDS IMMACULATE SELECTION watch Now Over three months, we embedded Madonna throughout the Grindr experience. The partnership became part of the product itself through artist integrations, custom in-app experiences, chat themes, notifications, profile mechanics, and a variety of other product moments that made it feel native to Grindr rather than simply a marketing campaign. In June, we executed a total takeover of Times Square, turning one of the world’s most iconic public spaces into an incredible experience of Grindr’s Global Gayborhood. looking? 11:26AM CONFESSIONS WITH... MADONNA The results were exceptional. Our user base engaged with Madonna content inside the Grindr app globally. The story reached major business, technology, culture, and entertainment outlets all over the world.
The Madonna partnership demonstrated that Grindr can bring together product, commerce, culture, and real-world experiences in a way that feels native to our users and that no other platform can replicate. Smart partners understand that relevance will beat reach every time. That gives Grindr a role that goes far beyond being a place where people meet and creates opportunities that did not exist for us just a few years ago. Three years ago, this partnership would not have happened. And if it had, I do not think we could have executed on it. Years spent rebuilding the product, rebuilding our engineering organization, and elevating the brand put us in a position to do something that simply would not have been possible before, and the trust of our community enabled it to feel authentic. This partnership will not be the last. It also does not mean we are moving away from our core. The opposite is true. Our position in gay life gives us the right to do more. Shareholder Letter 6
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ The Opportunity Ahead Grindr is performing ahead of what we expected coming into the year, with many of the priorities I laid out in my February letter to shareholders showing up in the business faster and delivering more than we anticipated. Strong AI adoption is creating operating leverage well beyond what we anticipated. This quarter, our partnership with Madonna became the clearest cultural and commercial example of our broader strategy. It made something obvious that has often been overlooked: Grindr has a much bigger role in gay life than most people – particularly people outside the gay community – had previously understood. We are continuing to build in the areas that matter most – Right Now, AI and personalization, Edge, and ecosystem health. Together, these efforts are creating a larger, more useful, and more profitable role for Grindr in gay life. The opportunity ahead is much bigger than what Grindr has historically been given credit for, and we believe we are still in the very early chapters of what Grindr can become. I want to thank our Board for their confidence in appointing me as Chairman, and I am excited to work with the Board as we pursue that opportunity together in the years ahead. Thank you to our shareholders for your continued support, George Arison Chairman and CEO Shareholder Letter 7
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Q2 2026 Financial & Operating Performance Grindr delivered another outstanding quarter in Q2 2026, driven by strong user engagement with product enhancements, higher conversion rates, AI-driven engineering productivity, and successful cultural activations. Total revenue for the second quarter grew 33% year-over-year to $138 million, with net income of $18 million, representing a net income margin of 13%, and Adjusted EBITDA of $58 million, representing an Adjusted EBITDA margin of 42%. Our operational momentum reflects strong execution across the business, underpinned by our AI terraforming efforts, which continue to unlock meaningful operational leverage. Q2 2026 Operational Highlights Average Paying Users ARPPU 1.4M $26.51 +16% Year-Over-Year Growth +12% Year-Over-Year Growth Revenue App-based revenue for Q2 2026 grew to $113 million, up 30% year-over-year from $87 million in Q2 2025. Growth was driven by sustained demand across our XTRA and Unlimited subscription tiers and strong consumables performance. Advertising revenue for Q2 2026 grew to $25 million, up 44% year-over-year from $17 million in Q2 2025. Growth was driven by strength in third-party advertising partnerships and the continuation of a large, year-long brand campaign. We continue to expect advertising revenue to run in the mid-to-high teens as a percentage of total revenue for the full year 2026 and we expect ads to normalize back near historical ranges in 2027. *The graphs presented above are for illustrative purposes and are not to scale. $104M $17M
Advertising $87M
App-Based Q2 ‘25 $116M $19M
Advertising $96M
App-Based Q3 ‘25 $126M $23M
Advertising $103M
App-Based Q4 ‘25 $130M $23M
Advertising $107M
App-Based Q1 ‘26 $138M $25M
Advertising $113
App-Based Q2 ‘26 Revenue $ in millions Shareholder Letter 8
$58M $55M $55M $45M 47% 44% 45%43% 42% Adjusted EBITDA margin Q2 ‘25 Q3 ‘25 Q4 ‘25 Q1 ‘26 Q2 ‘26 *The graphs presented above are for illustrative purposes and are not to scale. Share Repurchase Program During Q2 2026, we entered into another accelerated share repurchase agreement for $60 million. Since December 2025, we have deployed $210 million toward repurchasing our common stock using prepaid written put options, forward repurchase transactions, and accelerated share repurchases. As of quarter end, certain of these transactions remain in progress, and will be completed by the third quarter of 2026. As of the end of Q2 2026, approximately $300 million remains available under our share repurchase authorization. Our repurchase activity will remain more opportunistic than in 2025 as we prioritize Shareholder Letter 9 Q2 2026 Operating Income Operating income for Q2 2026 was $33 million, or 24% of revenue, compared to $24 million, or 23% of revenue in Q2 2025. Operating expenses, excluding cost of revenue, were $71 million in Q2 2026, up from $53 million in Q2 2025, with a portion of the increase attributable to higher one-time marketing expenses related to the Madonna partnership. The strong revenue growth in the quarter more than offset the uptick in expenses. We ended the second quarter with 172 full-time U.S. employees and expect to conclude 2026 with lower overall headcount than originally planned at the outset of the year. Net Income Net income for Q2 2026 was $18 million, representing a net income margin of 13%, compared to $17 million, or 16% of revenue in Q2 2025. Net income for the quarter reflects ongoing discipline in managing core operations offset by increased tax obligations, interest expense, and non-cash stock- based compensation. Diluted earnings per share was $0.10 compared to $0.08 per share in Q2 2025. Adjusted EBITDA Adjusted EBITDA for Q2 2026 was $58 million, or 42% of total revenue, compared to $45 million or 43% of revenue in Q2 2025. Our profitability demonstrates that we can aggressively invest in our core app, ensure ongoing ecosystem health, and prioritize long-term expansion initiatives while maintaining strong margins. Adjusted EBITDA $ in millions $58M The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ disciplined capital allocation, emphasizing internal investment in the business. We will, however, continue to maintain the flexibility to repurchase shares as market conditions warrant. Guidance Given our strong performance through the first half of 2026, positive user response to core app improvements, and higher than anticipated AI-driven operational leverage, we are raising our full-year 2026 outlook. We now expect full year 2026 revenue to be approximately $540 million and full-year 2026 Adjusted EBITDA to be approximately $232 million. Conference Call Grindr will host a conference call to discuss these results at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Time), August 6, 2026. The live audio webcast, along with the press release, will be accessible at https:// investors.grindr.com/. A recording of the webcast will also be available on our website following the conference call. Shareholder Letter 10
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin (in thousands) Shareholder Letter 11
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin (in thousands) Shareholder Letter 12
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands, except for share data) Shareholder Letter 13
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations (in thousands) Shareholder Letter 14
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows (in thousands) Shareholder Letter 15
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows Continued (in thousands) Shareholder Letter 16
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ Forward Looking Statements This letter contains “forward looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding, among other things, Grindr’s current views with respect to our industry, operations, and future business plans, expectations and performance. These forward-looking statements can generally be identified by the use of forward- looking terminology, such as “anticipates,” “approximately,” “believes,” “continues,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “goal,” “intends,” “may,” “outlook,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “projects,” “seeks,” “should,” “will,” “would,” or the negative version of these words or other comparable words or phrases, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements include, among others, statements regarding our annual revenue and Adjusted EBITDA guidance for 2026; expectations regarding advertising revenue as a percentage of total revenue for 2026 and any subsequent period; statements regarding capital allocation and investment, share repurchase plans and expectations,, business expansion, future strategic partnerships, drivers of revenue growth and cost reduction, and expectations for profitability; plans related to headcount; AI-related plans and goals including plans to create an AI-native software development system; plans and expectations regarding development of new and existing products and features, including AI-driven features; and expectations regarding product launches, and timing. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations discussed in the forward-looking statements. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: (i) our ability to retain existing users and add new users; (ii) market perception of our brand; (iii) the impact of the legal environment and complexities with litigation and regulatory compliance related to such environment, including maintaining compliance with privacy, data protection, consumer protection, and online safety laws and regulations as well as laws that may apply to any new products or services we have introduced and may introduce in the future, including in the health and wellness sector; (iv) our ability to address privacy concerns and protect systems and infrastructure from cyber-attacks and prevent unauthorized data access; (v) our ability to detect and suppres sillegal activity; (vi) our ability to identify and consummate strategic transactions including strategic partnerships, acquisitions, or investments in complementary products, services, or technologies, including outside of our core product; and our ability to realize the intended benefit of such transactions; (vii) our success in retaining or recruiting directors, officers, key employees, or other key personnel, and our success in managing any changes in such roles; (viii) competition in the dating and social networking products and services industry; (ix) our ability to adapt to changes in technology and user preferences in a timely and cost-effective manner; (x) our ability to successfully develop and adopt AI and machine learning technologies, and processes – including generative AI – in our daily operations, including by deploying generative AI and machine learningin our products and services; (xi) our dependence on the integrity of third-party systems and infrastructure; (xii) our ability to protect our intellectual property rights from unauthorized use by third parties; (xiii) whether the concentration of our stock ownership and voting power limits our stockholders’ ability to influence corporate matters; (xiv) the impact of resales of significant volumes of our securities by any of our directors or significant stockholders, including pursuant to one or more margin calls on such stockholders’ loans, on our stock price; (xv) the timing, price and quantity of repurchases of shares of our common stock under our Shareholder Letter 17
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ repurchase program, and our ability to fund any such repurchases; (xvi) the effects of macroeconomic and geopolitical events on our business, such as health epidemics, pandemics, natural disasters, the impacts of changing tariff policies and trade tensions, and wars or other regional conflicts; and (xvii) the impact of anti-LGBTQ policies and actions by governments and non-state actors around the world, including to block or otherwise restrict access to our app in their countries. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. Further information on these and additional risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those included in or contemplated by our forward- looking statements are included in the section titled “Risk Factors'' included under Part I, Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025 and in Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q we file thereafter. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, Grindr assumes no obligation, and does not intend, to update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Non-GAAP Financial Measures We use Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA margin which are non-GAAP measures, to understand and evaluate our core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures, which may differ from similarly titled measures used by other companies, are presented to enhance investors’ overall understanding of Grindr’s financial performance and should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Adjusted EBITDA adjusts for the impact of items that we do not consider indicative of the operational performance of our business. We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income excluding income tax provision; interest expense, net; depreciation and amortization; stock-based compensation expense; equity method investee losses; change in fair value of warrant liability; and related credit loss; change in fair value of derivative instruments; and employee transition costs, litigation-related costs, transaction- related costs, and other items, in each case, that are unrelated to our core ongoing business operations. Adjusted EBITDA Margin is calculated by dividing Adjusted EBITDA for a period by revenue for the same period. Our management uses these measures internally to evaluate the performance of our business and these measures are among the primary metrics by which management and other employees are compensated. We exclude the above items as some are non-cash in nature and others may not be representative of normal operating results. While we believe that Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin are useful in evaluating our business, this information should be considered as supplemental in nature and is not meant as a substitute for the related financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. A reconciliation of Grindr’s non-GAAP financial measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures are presented above. We are not able to estimate net income on a forward-looking basis or reconcile the guidance provided for Adjusted EBITDA to net income on a forward-looking basis without Shareholder Letter 18
Q2 2026 The Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™ unreasonable efforts due to the variability and complexity with respect to the charges excluded from Adjusted EBITDA. In particular, the measures and effects of our stock-based compensation related to equity grants that are directly impacted by unpredictable fluctuations in our share price. The variability of the above charges could have a significant and potentially unpredictable impact on our future GAAP financial results. Key Operating Measures Our key operating measures include Average Paying Users and Average App-Based Revenue per Average Paying User (ARPPU). We define our key operating measures and how we calculate them in the section titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations —Operating and Financial Metrics” included under Part I, Item 2 in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026. Trademarks This letter may contain trademarks of Grindr. Solely for convenience, trademarks referred to in this letter may appear without the ® or TM symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that Grindr will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, its rights to these trademarks. About Grindr With 15 million average monthly active users, Grindr has grown to become the Global Gayborhood in Your Pocket™, on a mission to make a world where the lives of our global community are free, equal, and just. Available in 190+ countries and territories, Grindr is often the primary way for its users to connect, express themselves, and discover the world around them. Since 2015, Grindr for Equality has advanced human rights, health, and safety for millions of LGBTQ+ people in partnership with organizations in every region of the world. Grindr has offices in West Hollywood, the Bay Area, Chicago, and New York. The Grindr app is available on the App Store and Google Play. Shareholder Letter 19