A TikTok user recently gained attention after an eye-opening experiment with a dating app left her far more sympathetic to the challenges men often face online. The woman, who posts under the name ok.jo.anna, had confidently told her male friend Pete that dating apps were “easy.” Pete disagreed, so she offered to manage his Hinge profile herself to prove her point.

With his permission, she created and ran his account for three days. The experience, she later admitted, was nothing like she expected. Instead of finding quick connections, she said she struggled to get responses, felt discouraged by repeated rejection, and even found herself questioning her earlier assumptions.

In a video recounting the experiment, she explained that she had “never felt this bad” about online dating. She described how difficult it was to initiate conversations and how surprised she was when even users she considered unlikely matches did not respond. The experience left her saying she understood Pete’s frustration more clearly than ever.

Her candid reflection prompted thousands of comments. Many viewers thanked her for acknowledging how different dating-app experiences can be depending on gender. Others added their own observations, noting that height, appearance, and the sheer competitiveness of online platforms contribute to the difficulty many men report.

Commenters also emphasized that empathy on both sides could help make dating less stressful overall. While her experiment lasted only a few days, the TikToker said it permanently changed the way she views online dating and the assumptions people bring to it.