Lumen
In short: Lumen is a dating app for people over 50, launched in the United Kingdom in 2018 and co-founded by Antoine Argouges and Charly Lester. It is listed as London-based. It matters to the dating industry as an early app built for older singles, with a selfie check at sign-up and a cap on new conversations to limit spam.
Key facts
| Type | Dating app |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Founders | Antoine Argouges, Charly Lester |
| Launch | Debuted in the UK in 2018 as a dating app for singles over 50 [Yahoo Finance, 2018] |
| Founder | Charly Lester is a co-founder of Lumen [Yahoo Finance, 10 June 2019] |
| Founder | Founded by Antoine Argouges and Charly Lester [Wikipedia, 2018] |
| Fact | Requires a selfie at sign-up; users can start three new conversations per day [Yahoo Finance, 10 June 2019] |
| Users | Reported more than 1.5 million users within less than a year of launch [Wikipedia, 2018] |
| Headquarters | Listed as headquartered in London, United Kingdom [Dealroom, 2018] |
| Fact | Described by DII as an over-50s dating app launched in 2018 with photo verification [Dating Industry Insights, 19 March 2026] |
About Lumen
Lumen is a dating app aimed at singles over 50. It debuted in the United Kingdom in 2018 and was co-founded by Antoine Argouges and Charly Lester. The business is listed as based in London.
The app used a freemium model, with free sign-up and paid premium features such as seeing who had marked a member as a favourite. It offered search filters for height, children, smoking habits, political views and star sign. Users took a selfie at sign-up, which was checked against their profile photos. Co-founder Charly Lester said in 2019 that no other dating app did this and that the company put user safety ahead of user volume. Members could start three new conversations a day, a limit intended to curb spam-like messaging.
Lumen was reported to have passed 1.5 million users within a year of launch. Dating Industry Insights (DII) cited Lumen in a March 2026 story on Sequel as an over-50s app launched in 2018 with photo verification. The app's current operating status is unconfirmed.
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Questions about Lumen
What is Lumen?
Lumen is a dating app for people over 50 that launched in the United Kingdom in 2018.
Who founded Lumen?
Lumen was founded by Antoine Argouges and Charly Lester.
How does Lumen check members?
Members take a selfie at sign-up, and new conversations are limited to three a day.
Where is Lumen based?
Lumen is based in London, United Kingdom.
When was Lumen founded?
Lumen was founded in 2018.
Also known as: Lumen App, Lumen Dating.