Presbyopia Solutions Boost Middle-Senior Matching App Dating Trends

I want to find my last partner in life

“After my divorce, I wanted to settle down and focus on dating. So I decided to take the plunge and make the first move.”

This is what Ms. A, a single woman in her early 50s from the Kanto region, says. She divorced her ex-husband in 2020, and now she leads a comfortable life as a manager while enjoying her piano hobby. Now, she is searching for a partner with the mindset of wanting to enjoy love freely, not as part of marriage hunting. The tool she relies on for this is, surprisingly, a matching app. Since registering about four years ago, she regularly enjoys meeting new men.

Recently, the dating and marriage market for middle seniors, people in their 40s to 60s, has been gaining momentum.

“This year marks the beginning of the ‘2025 Problem,’ where one in four citizens will be over the age of 75. According to the national census, the lifetime single rate in 2020 was about 28% for men and 18% for women. Furthermore, by 2030, it is predicted that one in three men and one in four women will remain single for life.

While younger people are becoming less enthusiastic about finding partners, the presence of middle-aged and senior people in the market is growing. Many are not just unmarried, but also single due to divorce or widowhood. Many are longing for a partner, expressing concerns like, ‘I’m worried about spending my old age alone’ or ‘I want my last partner in life, making dating and marriage hunting a huge trend.” (Cultural reporter for a national newspaper)

The rise of romance among middle seniors is influencing many areas. For example, Netflix’s dating reality show for middle-aged people, Aino Sato, has become a massive hit. The second season, which started streaming on November 5, 2024, debuted by topping Japan’s Weekly TV Top 10.

“‘Aino Sato’ is a reality dating show featuring eight men and women aged 35 to 60 living together in a traditional house and working to find their last love. The first season, which aired in May 2023, stayed in Japan’s top 10 for six consecutive weeks. The second season, set in Okinawa, captured the public’s attention with the unique personalities of its residents.” (TV magazine writer)

The success of such shows has led to a surge in demand for matching apps. Ms. A, who uses an app instead of a marriage-hunting site, explains why she prefers this approach.

While convenient, there are also risks such as romance scams and other forms of exploitation.

A-san explains:

“The reasons are the same as for younger people: convenience and the ability to meet immediately. I’ve used about eight types of apps, including Pairs, with, and Tinder.nWith dating sites, they ask for detailed conditions and requests, and it takes time to meet. For me, I use the app when I want to meet for tea or go drinking on the weekend, so I prefer apps without formal procedures. When it comes to choosing someone to meet, I might select based on income or hobbies, which is no different from younger people. I’ve interacted with nearly 100 men and met with over 50. Out of those, about 10 were people I dated for a period of time.”

On the other hand, there are also drawbacks unique to apps. Romance scams, where people create fake romantic feelings through SNS or apps to scam money, are on the rise. A-san herself has fallen victim to one of these scams.

“I spoke on the phone but the person wouldn’t meet up, and used the usual tactic of claiming that their parents were in the hospital and they needed money, which made me suspicious, so I blocked them. We exchanged a few sexy pictures, but then they found my ex-husband’s and friends’ SNS accounts and threatened to spread the photos. At first, I was scared, but then I realized that no one would gain anything from middle-aged naked photos being spread, so I just ignored it and moved on (laughs). I managed to get through it, but I was honestly scared.”

Just like with SNS, the world of app-based romance requires high literacy. In response to the rising demand, apps for middle-aged and senior users are being developed. A spokesperson from Isaac Co., the company behind the dating and marriage app ‘Ras Koi’ for middle-aged users, shares:

“Many of our users have experienced major life changes such as divorce or the loss of a spouse. They seem to prioritize meeting a partner who shares their values over aiming for marriage as the ultimate goal. For those who seek to share the joys and experiences of daily life with someone, using an app is one option.”

Ras Koi, where 75% of users are in their 50s to 70s, has incorporated several features specifically for older users.

“Existing matching apps are designed for people in their 20s and 30s, but we’ve made adjustments for issues unique to middle-aged and senior users, such as difficulty seeing text due to presbyopia and trouble taking selfies. For example, we made the text and buttons larger so users can operate them intuitively, and for the most important profile picture, we’ve added a feature where the app’s camera helps take the best picture using AI. Additionally, we’ve developed our own AI system to prevent fraud.”

App-based romance is no longer just a trend for young people.