Hinge vs. Bumble vs. Tinder

Whether you’re looking for a fling or a forever companion, navigating all the dating apps out there today can be hard. How do you initiate a conversation on each? Which one is best known for hookups? What apps are best for serious relationships? Before you give up, get educated. Here’s everything you need to know on Hinge vs. Bumble vs. Tinder, including some handy tips on how to use each.

Hinge

“I've had fewer matches on it than I've had on other apps, but the matches have been better.”  
– Reddit user

“Great app! Just be patient with matches. It will happen eventually.”
– App Store user

Always had a crush on your 10th-grade classmate’s older brother? Hinge is a dating app that matches you with people you’re connected to through friends on social media. The app received a 4.5 rating on the App Store, but if you’re the kind of person who thrives on variety, this may not be the choice for you.

Journalist Hannah Noyes wrote in 34th Street, “For someone who’s looking for instant swipe gratification, it can be annoying,” while Vox put it this way: “If Tinder feels like meeting a stranger at a bar, Hinge feels like getting warmly introduced at a cocktail party.” In that sense, it seems Hinge is used mostly for securing more serious relationships rather than casual hookups.

How to Use:

• Download the app to the device of your choice.
• Set up your profile and add photos. You can use Facebook to make this process easier, as it uploads some information for you. 
• One of the unique aspects of this app is the profile prompts, which allow you to add some personalized flavor to your profile.
• Start sending likes and comment on other profiles. If they like you back, you’re a match.

Bumble

“I get more matches than Tinder, but the girls usually are not very serious about dating.”
– Reddit user

“It helps me work up the courage to approach the guy for a change.”
– App Store user

Bumble puts women in charge. Only they can initiate a conversation with a match, and if it doesn’t happen within 24 hours, the match expires. If she does initiate conversation, but the match doesn’t respond, it expires then as well. For same-sex matches, there’s no rule on who gets to send a message first.

Created by former Tinder employees, this app is nearly identical to its forefather, but with a lady-friendly vibe that aims to prevent sexual harassment. Users are split on whether the app is best for hookups or serious relationships. Some have met their spouses on the app, others have met flings, and still others have used the app for building friendships or furthering their career. It’s a Jack-, or rather Jill-of-All-Trades kind of app.

How to Use:

• After downloading the app, set up your profile with a photo and personalized description.
• Browse photos of potential matches and swipe right if you’re interested or left if you’re not. If you’ve both swiped right, you’re a match.
• If you’re a woman and you want to initiate conversation, the ball’s in your court. A match will expire after 24 hours if you do nothing.
• If you’re a man, swipe, and watch your inbox.

Tinder

“I met my current girlfriend on tinder, we just moved in together and I look forward to asking her to marry me in a year or two.”
– Reddit user

“Culturally, Tinder is known as a hook up app and it’s really just that, DO NOT EXPECT TO FIND LOVE.”
– App Store user

Since its inception in 2012, Tinder has been known as a hookup app, but this may be changing. Like Bumble, some users have met spouses or long-term partners on the app, while others use it strictly for casual flings. What everyone can agree on is that Tinder is great for ego-boosts and is largely based on looks. After all, Tinder invented the “swipe right” or “swipe left” concept in dating.

One of its most-praised aspects is its variety. “It's a cross-section of humanity,” wrote journalist Samantha Melamed in The Inquirer. “So, I kind of like it, for the same reasons I love living in a city. I had some terrible conversations, and also some pretty good ones.”

How to Use:

• After downloading the app, set up your profile, add photos, and edit your bio.
• Swipe right to meet people or left to remove them from your view. If you’ve both swiped right, you’re a match.
• Messaging users is a great way to initiate a hookup, flirt or get to know someone a little better. But the Block button is always there if you suddenly change your mind.

Happy dating!

Written by Erica Garza for Knockaround