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Open Grind: an unofficial open-source Grindr client for Android, Linux, macOS and Windows
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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
Quote

I've been working on reverse-engineering Grindr and creating an open source client implementation for it since March.

When GrindrPlus closed, my project turned out to be its de-facto successor and immediatelly several thousands of people started following it. Now it has 70k+ downloads on Forgejo and the authorship is dedicated to public domain :)

  • MIT licensed, no ads, no analytics, no trackers, no diagnostics, no statistics, no telemetry, only opt-in updates checking
  • Signed releases, reproducible builds on all four platforms, full transparency
  • And it's now in Google Play (for the time being) and being reviewed for F-Droid!

Already applied for Apple developer enrollment and going to publish this to EU alt stores as well as in the TestFlight. Then a classic unsigned ipa and also going to attempt Apple AppStore just for completeness.

You need an existing Grindr account. Downloads: https://opengrind.org/download

Questions and criticism welcome.

255   Original
rotkehle feddit.org rotkehle@feddit.org
Joined: 2024-06-23
#2 · Quote Reply

awesome work.

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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#3 · Quote Reply

awesome work.

tysm <3

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bugbear lemmy.sdf.org bugbear@lemmy.sdf.org
Joined: 2026-08-08
#4 · Quote Reply

Something about MIT licensed Grindr client tickles me lol. Great job!

I assume Google (on Grindr's instructions) will take it down eventually, but I guess you're prepared for that by trying to put it on F-Droid

32
erotador lemmy.blahaj.zone erotador@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2024-10-16
#5 · Quote Reply

i have actually been using this for a while now, found it on my own when i discovered grindr and grapheneos dont play nice, its been very cool so far, no complaints

22
poVoq slrpnk.net poVoq@slrpnk.net
Joined: 2022-09-19
#6 · Quote Reply

How much work do you think would it be to also create a FOSS backend, maybe utilizing an existing xmpp server for federation?

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kinship lemmy.sdf.org kinship@lemmy.sdf.org
Joined: 2023-07-05
#7 · Quote Reply

Does something like this for heterosexual people exist? Like an open-source Tinder like app?

17
Bombastic sopuli.xyz Bombastic@sopuli.xyz
Joined: 2023-06-22
#8 · Quote Reply

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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#9 · Quote Reply

Something about MIT licensed Grindr client tickles me lol. Great job! I assume Google (on Grindr's instructions) will take it down eventually, but I guess you're prepared for that by trying to put it on F-Droid

The recommended link to download is still https://opengrind.org/guides/download as well as Forgejo https://git.opengrind.org/open-grind/open-grind/releases

F-Droid is a backup for people who don't want to egress to Open Grind infra (even though the promise not to log, analyze any IPs is legally binded by the Privacy Policy, but I understand them) or those who want to be sure every new release is reproducible (if they don't trust Open Grind CI that verifies this automatically before each release).

Google Play is temporal listing that will get taken down soon, but it does add credibility.

8
Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#10 · Quote Reply

i have actually been using this for a while now, found it on my own when i discovered grindr and grapheneos dont play nice, its been very cool so far, no complaints

Nice to hear that it works on GrapheneOS. If you do encounter any issues, please report them anywhere you want — Forgejo issues, Matrix chat, or even personally to me so I can relay them properly. I can't test on GrapheneOS because don't have a compatible device, but I assume many Open Grind users are running it on GrapheneOS.

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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#11 · Quote Reply

How much work do you think would it be to also create a FOSS backend, maybe utilizing an existing xmpp server for federation?

Someone in the community already works on it. I personally don't see a point in it — Grindr sucks in every way, all other apps are better experience-wise. Grindr is gay culture, mentioned in songs, memes, essentially every gay man in the world who has internet knows what Grindr is. 100 M profiles dating pool. It's not realistic even for competitors to reach a fraction of this, let alone a federated social. And if you do know what federation, decentralization and XMPP are — why would you use a hookup app anyway instead of utilizing existing federation apps and social networks to find someone you like? ;)

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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#12 · Quote Reply

Does something like this for heterosexual people exist? Like an open-source Tinder like app?

Not that I know of. Tinder is pretty hard to reverse-engineer, Meta-levels of bot automation detection (where bot automation means anything that doesn't go through their official client in a way they intended)

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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#13 · Quote Reply

gayest and proudest 💅

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doubtingtammy lemmy.ml doubtingtammy@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2024-02-27
#14 · Quote Reply

Something about MIT licensed Grindr client tickles me lol. Great job! I assume Google (on Grindr's instructions) will take it down eventually, but I guess you're prepared for that by trying to put it on F-Droid

KDE gonna start shipping with Krindr

40
maxihuenu lemmy.ml maxihuenu@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2026-07-23
#15 · Quote Reply

they are making opensource-things about anything these days

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explodicle sh.itjust.works explodicle@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2024-04-11
#16 · Quote Reply

Not that I know of. Tinder is pretty hard to reverse-engineer, Meta-levels of bot automation detection (where bot automation means anything that doesn't go through their official client in a way they intended)

It would be nice if there was an integrated dating platform, so bi people could easily be in both major dating pools.

3
schmak201 lemmy.zip schmak201@lemmy.zip
Joined: 2026-10-04
#17 · Quote Reply

Can’t wait to see the iOS release

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ayyy sh.itjust.works ayyy@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2024-06-20
#18 · Quote Reply

Does something like this for heterosexual people exist? Like an open-source Tinder like app?

Guess I have to update my orientation to preserve my commitment to FOSS options.

This is the Gay Agenda the bible bashers have been warning me about…

17
dorkage lemmy.ca dorkage@lemmy.ca
Joined: 2023-06-15
#19 · Quote Reply

Just tried it out.

Works great so far.

Appreciate the not gatekeeping on the tags and people showing up like the official app does.

10
eldavi lemmy.ml eldavi@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2023-07-18
#20 · Quote Reply

i have actually been using this for a while now, found it on my own when i discovered grindr and grapheneos dont play nice, its been very cool so far, no complaints

did you figure out the problem between grindr and graphene?

2
eldavi lemmy.ml eldavi@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2023-07-18
#21 · Quote Reply

gayest and proudest 💅

i haven't used grindr since 2012 -- thanks for giving me an excuse to give it a try again. lol

6
BladeFederation piefed.social BladeFederation@piefed.social
Joined: 2026-02-18
#22 · Quote Reply

they are making opensource-things about anything these days

Should be the default!

6
Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#23 · (edited) Quote Reply

they are making opensource-things about anything these days

there was a huge demand after grindrplus with hundreds of thousands of users got shutdown ¯\(ツ)/¯

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anon_8675309 lemmy.world anon_8675309@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-09-01
#24 · Quote Reply

Send a link to Mike Johnson.

5
Scroll Responsibly lemmy.sdf.org scroll_responsibly@lemmy.sdf.org
Joined: 2023-06-12
#25 · Quote Reply

KDE gonna start shipping with Krindr

And then expand to a Feeld client called “Kinky”

…I’ll see myself out

8
Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#26 · Quote Reply

3
Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#27 · (edited) Quote Reply

Send a link to Mike Johnson.

the lawyer?
oh ok i got it 💀

2
cinoreus lemmy.world cinoreus@lemmy.world
Joined: 2026-01-20
#28 · Quote Reply

I wish the straights were as dedicated as our homosexual bros.

33
altphoto lemmy.today altphoto@lemmy.today
Joined: 2025-04-14
#29 · Quote Reply

I assume anyone else can also use the app. You don't have to be gay to use a gay app.

3
Ecarus pawb.social Ecarus@pawb.social
Joined: 2026-02-11
#30 · Quote Reply

Does something like this for heterosexual people exist? Like an open-source Tinder like app?

Maybe check Alovoa

2
Bipauler sh.itjust.works Bipauler@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2026-06-04
#31 · Quote Reply

Maybe check Alovoa

It kind of sucks. At least in my area. I only get spam.

2
Leviathan lemmy.world Leviathan@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-06-10
#32 · Quote Reply

I assume anyone else can also use the app. You don't have to be gay to use a gay app.

-Republican Senators

11
altphoto lemmy.today altphoto@lemmy.today
Joined: 2025-04-14
#33 · Quote Reply

-Republican Senators

Oh shit! Am I a senator for thinking about it? Or a candidate?

What am I going to say to my constituents?

3
Leviathan lemmy.world Leviathan@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-06-10
#34 · Quote Reply

Oh shit! Am I a senator for thinking about it? Or a candidate? What am I going to say to my constituents?

What am I going to say to my constituents?

You don't have to be gay to use a gay app.

That probably works.

3
altphoto lemmy.today altphoto@lemmy.today
Joined: 2025-04-14
#35 · Quote Reply

What am I going to say to my constituents? You don't have to be gay to use a gay app. That probably works.

This makes sense. I'll have to come clean.... What??? What happened?? I'm not a politician anymore!

1
muusemuuse sh.itjust.works muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2025-06-25
#36 · Quote Reply

I assume anyone else can also use the app. You don't have to be gay to use a gay app.

Honey, it’s a gay hookup app. If you are a man looking for sex with a woman you are going to be disappointed.

5
muusemuuse sh.itjust.works muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2025-06-25
#37 · (edited) Quote Reply

Really I’m surprised decentralized, ad-free, non-surveillance gay dating apps aren’t a thing. A federated dating app could be amazing.

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Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#38 · Quote Reply

Really I’m surprised decentralized, ad-free, non-surveillance gay dating apps aren’t a thing. A federated dating app could be amazing.

we have the majority of users struggling to register in Matrix to join the discussion chat. how many technically-skilled open gays (and queers) ready to publicly broadcast their sexual orientation & gender and the fact they're dating as well as their full dating profile by self-hosting some decentralized dating server do you think on average are in each city in the world? maybe a handful in the most developed countries. I doubt there'll be even a dozen in my city (Madrid) though

4
thevoidzero lemmy.world thevoidzero@lemmy.world
Joined: 2024-01-25
#39 · (edited) Quote Reply

I wish the straights were as dedicated as our homosexual bros.

Most problems with straight dating apps is too many guys and very small amount of girls. So if someone is dedicated enough to make something like, they don't have the reach to get to girls to sign up. Unless they are marketing minded, then they just wanna make money with their "idea"

3
altphoto lemmy.today altphoto@lemmy.today
Joined: 2025-04-14
#40 · Quote Reply

Honey, it’s a gay hookup app. If you are a man looking for sex with a woman you are going to be disappointed.

Everyone needs love. I'm taken but I would be happy to be in a shared space. But I also understand the need for exclusivity.

-1
UltraGiGaGigantic lemmy.ml UltraGiGaGigantic@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2024-08-23
#41 · (edited) Quote Reply

It wont be hard to out do the grindr app. I swear they've done zero optimizations throughout my years of using it.

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UltraGiGaGigantic lemmy.ml UltraGiGaGigantic@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2024-08-23
#42 · Quote Reply

Noice

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UltraGiGaGigantic lemmy.ml UltraGiGaGigantic@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2024-08-23
#43 · Quote Reply

i haven't used grindr since 2012 -- thanks for giving me an excuse to give it a try again. lol

The dudes are always hot and ready.

2
UltraGiGaGigantic lemmy.ml UltraGiGaGigantic@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2024-08-23
#44 · Quote Reply

I assume anyone else can also use the app. You don't have to be gay to use a gay app.

lgTB+

2
Cethin lemmy.zip Cethin@lemmy.zip
Joined: 2023-07-01
#45 · Quote Reply

Most problems with straight dating apps is too many guys and very small amount of girls. So if someone is dedicated enough to make something like, they don't have the reach to get to girls to sign up. Unless they are marketing minded, then they just wanna make money with their "idea"

Also, this may be wrong, but I expect far more men to be searching for an open source alternative than women. Not only is it harder to attract more women to the apps in general, and open source one is already targeting a market that I think is even more male dominated.

3
muusemuuse sh.itjust.works muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2025-06-25
#46 · Quote Reply

I have to wonder if I put the Linux version of the app in KDE mobile session on my Linux server, headless, and stream that to my phone, I won’t have to wait for this project to come to the App Store.

1
possumparty lemmy.blahaj.zone possumparty@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2025-06-05
#47 · Quote Reply

it looks great! much better than the official app- one note though, for some reason trans isn't showing up in the tribes list

1
sudoer777 lemmy.ml sudoer777@lemmy.ml
Joined: 2021-02-18
#48 · Quote Reply

I tried another third party Grindr client and my account got instantly banned, and the official app doesn't support GrapheneOS. So not sure how to create an account.

1
SCmSTR lemmy.blahaj.zone SCmSTR@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2023-07-24
#49 · Quote Reply

Most problems with straight dating apps is too many guys and very small amount of girls. So if someone is dedicated enough to make something like, they don't have the reach to get to girls to sign up. Unless they are marketing minded, then they just wanna make money with their "idea"

There are girls on grindr, both trans and cis. But... Are you really saying you expect there to be less dudes.... on grindr?? It was originally just dudes - the literal opposite of less dudes lmao

0
SCmSTR lemmy.blahaj.zone SCmSTR@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2023-07-24
#50 · Quote Reply

The dudes are always hot and ready.

And occasionally bathed and sober!

1
Viktor Shchelochkov lemmy.blahaj.zone hloth@lemmy.blahaj.zone
Joined: 2026-10-04
#51 · Quote Reply

I tried another third party Grindr client and my account got instantly banned, and the official app doesn't support GrapheneOS. So not sure how to create an account.

For now you have to do that via the official app. You could attempt to register directly with raw APIs using https://git.opengrind.org/open-grind/grindr-api-dev-tool too, but it requires a reCAPTCHA enterprise token, which you have to mint somehow.

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