No apartment in Korea? You can't join this dating app

Housing status is emerging as a new yardstick in South Korea’s dating scene, with even a dating app now requiring users to verify they live in an apartment before signing up, news reports said Monday.

The app Apting has been generating buzz online for being exclusively open to apartment residents in their 20s and 30s, regardless of whether they own or rent their homes. Residents of villas, officetels and other types of housing are not eligible.

Connect Seoul, the app’s operator, verifies applicants’ apartment residency through resident registration records before approving memberships.

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Once registered, users can browse profiles showing other members’ apartment complexes, neighborhoods, ages and photos. The app also features a community space where members living in the same apartment complex can share neighborhood news and updates.

Since its launch on June 22, Apting has attracted more than 1,000 membership applications with users joining from beyond the Seoul metropolitan area, including Daegu and Busan, according to company officials.

Reactions have been mixed.

“Housing inequality is already bad enough. We don’t need an app that makes it even worse. Where you live doesn’t define who you are, but this app makes it feel like your address determines your value,” one user wrote on Threads.

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Another post supporting the app reads: “There’s a difference between preference and discrimination. Wanting to date or marry someone with a similar financial background isn’t wrong. It’s a reasonable choice, and this app is simply responding to that demand. The real problem is discriminating against people because of their financial situation.”

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The idea of using a residential address as a dating criterion is not completely new. In fact, it has gained traction in the local matchmaking industry.

Raemian One Bailey, a luxury high-rise apartment complex in Seoul’s Seocho-gu, launched a matchmaking agency, One Bailey Nobility, in July 2025 to connect singles living in nearby affluent neighborhoods like Apgujeong-dong.

A matchmaking agency named after Helio City, one of Seoul’s largest apartment complexes, also opened in the complex’s commercial area in Songpa-gu.

The agency said it attracted 200 members within three months of opening last year, with about two-thirds of them being Helio City residents.

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“As upscale apartment complexes started forming their own matchmaking groups, we also began organizing small meetups for members living in the same apartment complex or neighborhood to retain existing members and attract new ones. We typically host wine parties or buffet-style events,” an official at a Seoul-based matchmaking agency told a local news outlet. /dl