What Happened to the Lumen Dating App? Why It Closed and the Best Over-50s Alternatives

Lumen was one of the first swipe-style dating apps built only for people over 50, and in its short life it grew quickly. If you have come looking for it, the key fact is that Lumen no longer exists. This page explains what it was, why it closed, and which over-50s sites to use instead, including our SilverSingles review and other options for mature daters.

Lumen at a glance

What was Lumen?

Lumen was a mobile dating app for singles over 50, co-founded by Antoine Argouges and Charly Lester and launched in the UK in 2018. It brought the simple swipe-and-match format of younger apps to an older audience, with extra safety checks and rules designed to encourage better conversations. Lumen grew past 1.5 million users in under a year, a sign of how underserved over-50s were by mainstream apps.

Its backer, Badoo founder Andrey Andreev, also controlled the group behind Badoo and Bumble, which is why Lumen sat in the same family as Bumble’s women-first dating app.

How did Lumen work?

1. You downloaded Lumen and confirmed you were over 50.
2. You took a live selfie, which was compared with your profile photos to verify you were real.
3. You built a short profile and browsed other over-50s nearby, liking the people you were interested in.
4. When the interest was mutual you could chat, with opening messages expected to be thoughtful rather than a one-word “hi”.
5. Optional premium features added extra filters such as height, children, smoking and politics, plus a view of who had favourited you.

Lumen’s features

Lumen timeline

Why did Lumen shut down?

Lumen shut down in November 2020, about a year after Blackstone acquired MagicLab, the group that owned Badoo and Bumble. No detailed public reason was given, but the closure came as the new owners focused on their biggest brands ahead of Bumble’s stock market listing, and industry databases describe Lumen as folded into its sister app Bumble. A small, free niche app was easy to cut in that restructuring.

Best alternatives to Lumen for over-50s

The best replacement for Lumen depends on what you liked about it: a dedicated over-50s site gives you the same age focus, while a compatibility-led service suits people looking for a long-term partner.

For a close match to Lumen’s audience, OurTime’s over-50s community і SeniorMatch for 50+ singles are the obvious places to start, while eharmony’s compatibility questionnaire suits anyone who wants a slower, more serious approach.

Safety tips for over-50s dating online

Over-50s are a common target for romance scams, so a few habits go a long way.

• Never send money, gift cards or crypto to someone you have only met online, whatever the emergency.
• Video call before meeting to confirm the person matches their photos.
• Be wary of anyone who cannot meet because they are always working abroad or at sea.
• Meet in a public place and tell a friend or relative your plans.
• Use sites with verification and report suspicious profiles.
• 18+ only. All dating sites and apps are for adults.

If you would simply like to talk to someone new without signing up anywhere, our free video chat with strangers is free and needs no account (18+).

Frequently asked questions

Is the Lumen dating app still available?

No. Lumen closed in November 2020 and is no longer available. Any site using the Lumen name today is not the original over-50s app.

Why did Lumen close?

Lumen closed about a year after Blackstone acquired MagicLab, the group behind Badoo and Bumble. No detailed reason was published, but the owners focused on their biggest brands and Lumen was folded into its sister app Bumble.

Who founded Lumen?

Lumen was co-founded by Antoine Argouges and Charly Lester and launched in the UK in 2018 with seed funding from Badoo founder Andrey Andreev.

Was Lumen free?

Yes. Lumen was free to use, with optional premium features such as extra search filters and seeing who had favourited you.

What is the best alternative to Lumen?

SilverSingles, OurTime and SeniorMatch are the closest alternatives because they focus on singles over 50. eharmony is a good choice for anyone over 50 who wants a serious, compatibility-based relationship.

How old did you have to be to use Lumen?

Lumen was designed for people aged 50 and over.

The bottom line

Lumen showed there was real demand for a modern, safety-first dating app for people over 50, reaching more than 1.5 million users in under a year. But it was closed in November 2020 after Blackstone took over the Badoo and Bumble group, and it is no longer available. Today, SilverSingles, OurTime, SeniorMatch and eharmony are the best places for over-50s to pick up where Lumen left off.