SwipeReport/About
About Alex Mercer
I'm Alex. 35, based in Melbourne, work in tech.
I started SwipeReport because I was looking for something that didn't exist: an honest, Australia-specific guide to dating apps based on actually using them, not summarising their App Store descriptions.
I've been on and off dating apps for most of my 30s. Long relationship ended in my late 20s, then a period of figuring things out, then several years of genuinely trying to navigate the app landscape as an adult who knew what he was looking for. I've lived in Sydney, Melbourne, and spent time in Brisbane. That matters more than it sounds. The experience of using Tinder in Melbourne and using it in Sydney is genuinely different. Different density, different culture around what the app is for, different gender ratios in different parts of each city.
Most of what I found when I was looking for information about this was either American (irrelevant), written by someone who'd clearly never signed up (useless), or ranking whatever paid the highest commission (obvious). So I started testing properly and writing it up.
Every review on SwipeReport comes from a 30-day personal test. The methodology is documented and you can read exactly how I score things and what I'm measuring. The affiliate relationships are disclosed upfront. When a platform is bad I say so, even when I'm earning from it.
My tech background shapes how I write. I care about whether UX creates unnecessary friction, whether a business model creates incentives that work against users, and whether cancellation flows are designed to confuse people. Some of the dark patterns I've documented on adult dating platforms are genuinely impressive in a grim way.
Get in touch
If something in a review is wrong, out of date, or if you have experience with a platform I should know about, I want to hear it. Dating app landscapes shift faster than most people realise and I rely partly on reader feedback to keep things current.