Grindr is testing a premium AI tier with prices up to $499 a month

• Grindr is testing a new AI subscription tier called "Edge." The pilot prices are steep, ranging from $80 to $200 a week.
• Other subscription price points being tested include monthly plans for $349.99 and $499.99.
• Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge often keep their most expensive subscriptions below $100 monthly.

Want to use Grindr's AI products? You might have to cough up almost $500 a month.

Grindr is in early testing for a new, higher-priced subscription tier called "Edge," the company confirmed to Business Insider. The company has already piloted this tier in Australia and New Zealand, and is now bringing it to select American cities.

As part of this testing, Grindr is trying different price points that vary from user to user. Test pricing starts at $80 a week and goes into the hundreds.

Screenshots posted online show monthly subscription rates of $349.99 and $499.99. At those prices, one year of Grindr Edge would cost between $4,199.88 and $5,999.88.

"This early-stage pilot is part of our broader strategy to make Grindr smarter, faster, and drive more meaningful connections," a Grindr representative wrote to Business Insider.

So what does spending that much get you?

The three main AI features of Edge will be Discover (personalized matches), Insights (a "signal before messaging"), and A-List (a recommendation feed for old chats). It also includes all the features of Grindr Unlimited — currently Grindr's most expensive tier — including no third-party advertisements.

For reference, Grindr Unlimited's price varies user-to-user, but the App Store lists monthly costs between $27.99 and $44.99. That's hundreds of dollars less than the Edge test price points.

Grindr's competitors also change prices user-to-user, making a direct comparison difficult. On my own accounts, I found that Tinder, Hinge, and Bumble's most expensive tiers all landed under $100, at $49.99, $54.99, and $99.99 a month, respectively.

Edge is another step toward Grindr's mission of bringing "gAI" — pronounced "gay-I" — to its nearly 15 million monthly active users.

The pilot comes as Grindr needs momentum. The app company's stock, which spent over two years largely ticking up after a post-IPO drop-off, is now on the decline, down 38.06% in the last six months.