The safety app for women who are interested in relationships that has become extremely common and caused a lot of problems
A dating app for women only called Tea is making big news in 2025, both because of what it does and the strong reactions it has gotten. Sean Cook created the Tea app, that came out in 2023. It was made to give women a safe space to talk about their experiences and reviews of men they date. It’s a dating safety app at its core, but its huge popularity, media attention, and recent data breach have made it one of the most talked-about apps of the year.
Let’s talk about what the Tea app does, why it’s popular, how it works, and the problems it has.
What is the app for tea?
Women can use the Tea app to write examines of men they have dated or are interested in with no providing their names. Users can write about their experiences, both good and bad, and upload photos and names. You can use it like a digital whisper network to mark a guy as a “red flag” or “green flag,” or just ask for advice before your first date.
People can also ask things like, “What clubs does he go to?” or “Can I trust him?” to get advice from a lot of people before going out with someone they met on a dating app like Tinder or Bumble.
The app makes sure that all users are women and blocks screenshots, which keeps conversations private within the app.
How does the app work?
The app says that when a woman signs up, she has to take a selfie to confirm who she is, and the selfie is deleted after approval. When users log in, they see profiles of local men that other users have uploaded, along with their first names and pictures.
People can:
- Write about a man (his name, age, location, photo, and caption)
- Use red or green flags to show how you feel.
- Share your thoughts and experiences
- Use a forum to ask general questions or get advice that doesn’t involve images.
- You can do up to five free searches each month.
After those five searches, users have to either pay $15 a month for a subscription or invite friends to get more access. Some of the premium features are:
- Searches without limits
- Checks on the background
- Find phone numbers
- Searches for images in reverse
What made it go viral?
In July 2025, the Tea app became very popular. Sensor Tower, a data company, says that downloads went up by 185% in the first 20 days of July compared to June. The app reached the top spot on the US Apple App Store and got more than 900,000 new user requests in just one week. Tea recently said on Instagram that it had 4 million users around the world.
The buzz grew even faster when women talked about their experiences with the app on TikTok, Reddit, and X (formerly Twitter). Cid Walker, one user, said:
“It’s crazy how many people I know who use the app.” I would never think all of this about them.
Who made Tea?
Sean Cook, who used to work for Salesforce and Shutterfly, made the app. Cook’s mother had bad experiences with online dating, like being catfished and dating men with criminal histories without knowing it. He started Tea in 2023 and paid for it himself. He wanted to make a place where women could look out for each other when they were dating online.
Cook has been in charge of Tea since 2022, according to his LinkedIn page, but he and the company have turned down media interviews so far.
A quick look at the app’s features
- Women rate their experiences using a red flag/green flag system.
- Anonymity: People only know each other by their screen names
- Profile uploads: Pictures and basic information about men
- Comment section: Give advice or share your experiences
- Function to search: Find specific names
- Reverse image search: Helps find people who are catfishing
- For safety checks, background checks and alerts are used.
- Forum section: For more in-depth conversations and dating tips
Controversy, privacy, and morals
The app has been criticised even though it was made to keep women safe. A lot of men are worried about being misrepresented or falsely accused, and some critics say the platform might encourage gossip instead of safety.
There have been ethical questions about the app’s impacts triggered up in online discussions, especially on Reddit. PeakMetrics says that one of the main themes has been the conflict between privacy and accountability, especially when it comes to dating.
People have compared the app to:
- A Facebook group for women called “Are We Dating the Same Guy?”
- The Lulu app, which is no longer available, let women rate men without giving their names.
- Yik Yak and AskFM are two anonymous sites that have been criticised for letting people harass others.
Because the app was so popular, a men-only rival app called Teaborn briefly appeared. It became some attention but was pulled down from the App Store because people were misusing it, such as sharing revenge porn. The creator of Teaborn said that Tea’s success made Apple take it down, but Apple has not said anything publicly.
The data breach that scared people
Tea said in July 2025 that it had a huge data breach.
What got out?
- 13,000 selfies and photo IDs that prove who you are
- 59,000 pictures from posts, comments, and messages
- There were no phone numbers or emails that were made public.
- Only people who signed up before February 2024 were affected by the breach.
404 Media was the first to report the breach, and a 4Chan thread that called for a “hack and leak” campaign is said to have encouraged it. A link to download the stolen content showed up on the internet for a short time before being locked down.
Some of the stolen information was images and comments that users had uploaded, as well as location coordinates (without names or addresses). This made people flood Tea’s Instagram with worries about privacy and data security.
Tea’s answer
Since then, Tea has hired outside cybersecurity experts and said it is working “around the clock” to make its systems safe. The company made it clear:
“Our top priority is to maintain users’ data and privacy safe.“
There is no proof that any other user data has been hacked at this time.
Branding and purpose
Tea says on its website that it is
“It’s not just an app; it’s a sisterhood.”
It says it gives 10% of its profits to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, which some users like. The hotline has confirmed that Tea is a donor, but they have not confirmed any more details.
Even though there has been some controversy, the app is still very popular, especially among younger women who want safety, validation, and a sense of control in the often unpredictable world of online dating.
Is Tea doing more harm than good?
There is no doubt that the app’s goal of giving women tools to vet potential dates is a good one. Tools that make people more accountable may actually keep people safe in a world where online dating can lead to liars, cheaters, and abusers.
But there are still questions:
- Does being anonymous cause cyberbullying or false information?
- Could people use the app to get back at someone or attack them personally?
- Are men unfairly targeted and not able to respond?
Walker and other users believe in its potential but are wary of how it is being used:
“If people used the app the right way, it could keep a lot of women safe.” But right now, it seems more like cyberbullying and gossip.
Last thoughts
Tea is more than just another dating app; it’s a cultural flashpoint in today’s complicated dating scene. The conversations it has started about privacy, ethics, gender dynamics, and online accountability show that it is more than just viral hype. It is intended to help women get around relationships more safely.
The public’s reaction will change as the app changes. How it manages its community, safety rules, and purpose in the coming months will decide whether it becomes an ongoing component of digital dating culture or fades away.
