Sam Smith says dating apps banned them over fears of catfishing

Watch: Sam Smith admits they got kicked off dating apps

Sam Smith has explained that they were banned from some of the biggest dating apps because it was assumed that they were someone else making a fake profile.

The 30-year-old star told ET Canada that they have "always been able to date" but have a somewhat varied history when it comes to the apps.

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"I never did Grindr. I did Tinder once, I think I got chucked off of Tinder," the Oscar-winning singer said.

They added: "I got chucked off of Hinge because they thought that I wasn’t me. Well, I didn’t verify my profile, so I should have done that."

Smith has been in relationships with actors Jonathan Zeizel and Brandon Flynn in recent years, but said the most important bond in their life is with dog Velma.

The singer, who also owns tortoises called Paprika and Nutmeg, said that puppy Velma "taught me how to love".

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They added: "I really feel like I don’t think I loved anyone other than my family and friends and stuff… she’s really taught me that.

"I miss her loads by the way, I haven’t seen her in ages."

Smith is currently promoting Gloria — their fourth studio album — ahead of its release this week.

The lead single from the album — Unholy, featuring German singer Kim Petras — went to number one on the singles charts in both the UK and the US.

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Smith came out as non-binary in 2019 and said that, although they have been greeted by enormous support, there have been many downsides.

They said: "It's been amazing but it's also really, really hard to see all the backlash and the amount of people that are still so unsupportive of gender non-conforming people and trans people all around the world."

Watch: Sam Smith struggles with dating as a famous person