Tea App status: where it stands (October 8 update)
Updated October 8, 2026 · We refresh this page every month
Intel is back, and so are the old posts
- Intel is back on the web and Android, as its own section on the Communities home page.
- The old posts were restored, three days after they were hidden on October 5.
- Still off the App Store. Apple pulled it again on October 7, because the App Store doesn’t allow Intel.
- iPhone users are spilling tea on the website, Intel included.
- Local communities stay, so posts about men can be in Intel and in communities.
How “it's gone” became the story
Most men who think the Tea App is finished heard one headline: Apple pulled it. That's true. What didn't travel nearly as far is what happened three months later.
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Jul 2025 | The Tea App goes viral and hits No. 1 on Apple's App Store. |
| Jul 2025 | A data breach exposes around 72,000 images, including selfies and IDs women used to verify their accounts. Private messages are exposed soon after. |
| Aug 2025 | Users file class-action lawsuits over the breach. |
| Oct 2025 | Apple removes the Tea App from the App Store, citing content moderation and privacy. |
| Jan 2026 | Tea relaunches on the web, nationwide, and calls the website its main hub. The Android app stays live. |
| Sep 2026 | Website still open, Android app still being updated. |
| Oct 5, 2026 | Tea 2.0: the intel feed is removed, old posts are hidden, Tea is reinstated on the App Store as Tea Dating Advice, and local communities launch. |
| Oct 7, 2026 | Apple removes the Tea App from the App Store again, citing photos shared in communities. The web and Android versions keep running. |
| Oct 8, 2026 | Intel returns on the web and Android, and the old posts are restored. Apple’s App Store doesn’t allow Intel, so iPhone users use Tea’s website. |
4 myths men still believe about the Tea App
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“It got shut down.”
Apple has pulled it twice, in October 2025 and again on October 7, 2026, two days after it came back. But it never stopped running: the website and the Android app stayed up the whole time.
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“Old posts were deleted.”
They were hidden on October 5, not deleted, and on October 8 Tea restored them. Old posts about men can be read again on the web and Android. And screenshots can travel no matter what happens on the app.
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“After the hack, nobody uses it.”
The breach was a scandal, and the lawsuits are real. But the community kept going, and in the new local communities, posts about men are already showing up again, city by city.
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“Now that it's a website, I can just look.”
A website isn't a public page. It's still women-only, still behind a verified sign-in, and still invisible to Google. You're no closer to seeing it than you were before.
What Tea offers women now — and why it matters to you
The relaunch didn't just move the app. According to Tea's own announcement, it now offers women background checks, reverse image search and catfish detection alongside the posts.
In plain terms: the photos on your dating profile are exactly the kind of thing that gets searched, compared and talked about. If you've been dating in the last year, it's fair to wonder whether you've come up.
Nothing about your side changed
You still can't see what's written about you. Posts are still anonymous. And the only way to know is still to have someone look. The good news is the other half hasn't changed either: removal still works, and it's still free.
Some websites claim they use AI to scan the Tea App or the AWDTSG groups. Don’t fall for it: the only way to search is by hand. Before you pay any search site, read how to spot the scams.
It's still running. Are you on it?
A real person searches the Tea App and the AWDTSG group covering your region by hand, and sends you screenshots, the direct links, and proof of every place they looked. Answered in hours, not days.
Find out where you're posted →Sources: Apple's removal as reported by TechCrunch; Tea's relaunch announcement on PR Newswire (January 2026); Tea’s “welcome to tea 2.0” announcement to members (October 5, 2026); Tea’s “Intel is now a community” update to members (October 8, 2026); the data breach as reported by NBC News; the Tea Dating Advice listing on Google Play; the lawsuit status from federal court filings and MLex. Shield Date is not affiliated with the Tea App. This page is updated monthly and is not legal advice.