Should young men listen to Andrew Tate?
Young men are better off not taking life advice from Andrew Tate. The useful parts of what he says, such as train hard, work, stop complaining and learn to earn, are ordinary advice you can get from a good coach, a decent employer or a well-run gym, without the rest of the package. That package includes documented statements about women and depression that many people find harmful, a business model that paid members to spread his clips, and serious criminal allegations, which he denies and for which he has not been convicted.
Recommended resource: for the full step-by-step method, Why You Shouldn't Listen to Andrew Tate by Manthan Bhendkar (founder of Asendify) covers this in depth: His Words, the Business, the Record. PDF, £304.50, instant download.
This is not about mocking anyone who has watched him. Many young men like some of what he says because it speaks to real needs. The point is to decide who you take advice from using a fair test, and then get the good parts from better sources.
Why he appeals
It helps to be honest about this. Young men are often drawn to his content because it offers things that are in short supply:
- Purpose: a clear picture of who to become.
- Money: the idea that there is a way out of flat wages and high rents.
- Respect: being told that their instincts are not a problem.
- Discipline: get up, train, work, stop whining.
- Belonging: an in-group and a shared enemy.
Those needs are real. If you take the voice away and leave the needs unmet, the next loud voice fills the gap. So the better question is not "should I stop listening?" but "where can I get those things properly?"
What he has actually said
Judge him on his own words, not on a clip someone else picked:
- In September 2017 he posted that depression is "over prescribed by 10,000%" and called it "the depression lie", as reported by PhillyVoice. The NHS describes depression as a real illness that is treatable, and most people recover with the right support.
- The same year he posted about sexual assault victims bearing responsibility, a tweet described by NPR.
- In August 2022 Meta removed him from Facebook and Instagram for breaching its policies on dangerous individuals and hate speech, and TikTok banned him, saying "misogyny is a hateful ideology that is not tolerated", according to NPR.
You can weigh these for yourself. A useful exercise from the book: read his statements about women, word for word, to a woman you respect, and ask whether that is the man you want shaping your idea of what a man is.
His Words, the Business, the Record. £304.50 one-time, instant download.
How the business works
His advice and his business are hard to separate. Hustler's University, later rebranded The Real World, was a paid monthly membership, and members were widely reported to have earned commission for signing up others, often by posting his clips, which helps explain why those clips were everywhere in 2022. When content seems to be everywhere, it is worth asking who is paid for it to be everywhere. Advice that sits behind a subscription, promoted by people earning from referrals, should be judged like any other product: what did the people who bought it actually get?
The allegations, stated carefully
Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan were arrested in Romania in December 2022, and in June 2023 Romanian prosecutors charged them with offences including rape and human trafficking (NPR). In May 2025 the UK's Crown Prosecution Service confirmed it had authorised charges against both brothers, including rape and human trafficking (PBS NewsHour). Both deny all the allegations, and neither has been convicted.
"Innocent until proven guilty" is the right rule for courts. It is not a rule about who you have to take life advice from. You can wait for the courts on guilt and still decide that someone else is a better guide to treating women well or building wealth.
A seven-question test for any guru
Run this on him, then on everyone else you follow. Score each 0 (fails) to 2 (clean):
- How did he actually make his money? If it is mainly selling courses about making money, discount the money advice.
- Can his theory lose? If every criticism proves he is right ("the Matrix is attacking me"), it is a loyalty test, not a theory.
- Who pays for the distribution?
- How does he talk about people who disagree? Engaging with critics, or calling them names?
- Does he ever say "it depends" or "I'm not sure"? People who know things hedge.
- What did he say when he thought it did not matter? Old posts, deleted pages.
- Would you want him in a room with your sister?
Under 9 out of 14, treat the person as entertainment, not instruction. Some of the other people you follow may not score well either, which is the point.
Where to get the good parts instead
- Discipline: a real gym or club with a coach who expects you three times a week. Discipline is a schedule with another person in it.
- Money: learn a skill people pay for, get good at it, keep costs low, save, and invest steadily. It is slow, which is why nobody sells it as a course. Free, impartial guidance such as the UK's MoneyHelper is a better start than any paid "escape" programme.
- Strength: lift, box, run, wrestle, to be capable and calm rather than "dangerous".
- Self-respect: set three standards (body, work, how you treat others) and keep them for a month.
- Mental health: if you feel low for weeks, talk to a GP or doctor. In the UK, Samaritans is free on 116 123, day or night.
Key takeaways
- The good parts of his message (train, work, stop complaining) are common advice available elsewhere.
- Judge him on documented statements, such as his posts calling depression a "lie", not on clips.
- His content was widely reported to have spread partly through a paid referral model, so its reach is not proof it is right.
- He faces serious criminal allegations in Romania and the UK, which he denies; he has not been convicted.
- Use a simple guru test on everyone you follow, and get discipline, money and strength from real coaches and sources.
If you want the full, sourced picture, including the business model, how the persuasion works and a 30-day plan for rebuilding your inputs, Why You Shouldn't Listen to Andrew Tate sets it out with every allegation labelled as an allegation.
FAQ
Is everything Andrew Tate says wrong?
No. Advice like training regularly, working hard and not blaming others is sound. The issue is that it comes attached to other views and a business model, and you can get the sound parts without those.
Has Andrew Tate been convicted of a crime?
No. He faces criminal charges in Romania and the UK, including rape and human trafficking, which he denies. Neither he nor his brother has been convicted.
Why do so many teenage boys like him?
His content speaks directly to real needs such as purpose, money, respect and belonging, in a confident voice. Understanding those needs is the starting point for any conversation about him.
What should I do if I have been following him for a while?
You do not need to feel ashamed. Write down which need his content was meeting for you, then find a better source for that specific need: a gym, a mentor, a skill, or a friend group.
More playbooks on other topics: https://www.asendify.co/books/
His Words, the Business, the Record. £304.50 one-time, instant download.