Hinge has carved out a unique space in the crowded online dating landscape by marketing itself as “the dating app designed to be deleted.” This tagline signals a focus on helping users find lasting relationships rather than fleeting encounters, setting it apart from apps known for casual dating like Tinder or Bumble.
But beyond the marketing, how does Hinge actually function? At its core, Hinge operates similarly to other popular dating apps: you browse profiles, express interest, and connect with those who reciprocate. However, Hinge introduces distinct features like “Prompts” and “Standouts” to foster more thoughtful interactions and potentially better matches.
This guide will delve into the workings of Hinge, explaining its key features and how to get started on your journey to finding meaningful connections.
Getting Started with Hinge: Sign-up and Profile Creation
Hinge is readily accessible and free to download from both the iPhone App Store and the Android Play Store. While the app is free to use, Hinge also offers premium subscription options for users seeking enhanced features.
The initial sign-up process on Hinge is straightforward, requiring standard information to create your profile.
Providing Basic Information and Personal Details
Upon signing up, Hinge will prompt you for essential details such as your name, email address, date of birth, and location. You’ll also have the opportunity to enrich your profile by adding further personal information. This can include details like your height, religious beliefs, political views, whether you have children, and your education level.
You have control over the visibility of much of this information. If you prefer to keep certain details private, Hinge allows you to hide them from your profile by simply tapping the lock icon located to the left of each category. This feature enables you to customize what you share and maintain a level of privacy that feels comfortable for you.
Crafting Your Profile with Hinge Prompts
One of Hinge’s most distinctive features, and a mandatory step in setting up your account, is the use of “Prompts.” These are personal questions designed to reveal more about your personality, interests, and what you’re looking for in a partner. You are required to answer three Prompts to complete your profile, and these answers are prominently displayed for other users to see.
Hinge provides a diverse selection of Prompts, ranging from lighthearted conversation starters to more introspective questions about your life experiences and aspirations. Examples include prompts like “A fact about me that surprises people…” which invites you to share an intriguing tidbit, or “The one thing I’d like to know about you is…” encouraging potential matches to initiate conversation.
The Prompts system is central to the Hinge experience. With a wide array of options available, it’s uncommon to encounter two profiles with identical prompt sets, let alone the same answers. This encourages individuality and helps users showcase their unique personalities beyond just photos. Once your profile is complete with your chosen Prompts and photos, you can begin exploring potential matches.
Navigating Hinge: Liking, Rejecting, and Making Connections
Similar to other swipe-based dating apps, Hinge presents profiles one at a time for you to review. You can scroll through a user’s photos and Prompt responses to get a sense of their personality and interests. After reviewing a profile, you decide whether to express interest or move on to the next profile.
The Basics of Liking and Rejecting Profiles
To indicate interest in a profile, you tap the heart icon, effectively “liking” the user. Conversely, if you’re not interested, you tap the ‘X’ icon to reject the profile. This basic functionality is consistent with the familiar mechanics of many dating apps.
Unique Feature: Liking Specific Profile Elements
Hinge deviates from the typical “like the whole profile” approach by allowing you to interact with specific content within a profile. Instead of just liking an entire profile, you can choose to like a particular photo or a specific answer to a Prompt that resonates with you.
This feature adds a layer of intentionality to the liking process. By liking a specific element, you signal to the other person what specifically caught your attention, demonstrating that you’ve genuinely engaged with their profile rather than mindlessly liking everyone.
When you like a part of someone’s profile, you also have the option to include a comment. This is a significant departure from apps where communication is only possible after a mutual match. On Hinge, you can initiate a conversation right from the like stage, increasing your chances of making a meaningful first impression. All the likes you receive are compiled on your personal “Likes You” page, allowing you to see who has expressed interest in your profile.
Using Roses to Stand Out
For users who want to make an even stronger impression, Hinge offers the “Rose” feature. Sending a Rose is essentially a super-like, signaling a high level of interest. When you send a Rose, your profile is prioritized and placed at the top of the recipient’s feed, increasing the likelihood of them seeing and engaging with your profile.
Every Hinge user receives one free Rose each Sunday. For those wanting to send more Roses, they are available for purchase in packs of three, 12, and 50. Using Roses strategically can be a way to stand out from the crowd and show someone you’re genuinely interested in connecting.
Hinge’s algorithm learns from your liking and rejection patterns. It uses this data to refine its recommendations and present you with profiles that are increasingly aligned with your preferences. This data-driven approach also plays a role in Hinge’s “Standouts” feature.
Exploring Standouts: Your Curated Daily Matches
“Standouts” is another unique Hinge feature designed to streamline your search for compatible matches. Each day, Hinge generates a curated list of profiles labeled “most your type.” This selection is based on users whose Prompt answers and profile characteristics align with your expressed preferences and past interactions on the app.
Accessing your Standouts list is simple – just tap the star icon located in the bottom toolbar. Browsing through Standouts offers a shortcut to potentially high-quality matches, saving you time from sifting through the general feed.
However, there’s a slight catch to interacting with Standouts. Unlike regular profiles where you can simply send a like, engaging with Standouts requires sending a Rose. This means you must use your weekly free Rose or purchase additional Roses to connect with these curated profiles.
Your Standouts list is refreshed daily at midnight, presenting a new set of potential matches each day. While there’s a possibility that Standouts may also appear in your regular feed, there’s no guarantee. Checking your Standouts regularly offers an efficient way to discover profiles that Hinge’s algorithm deems highly compatible with you.
Hinge vs. Other Dating Apps: Key Differences
While Hinge shares fundamental similarities with other dating apps, particularly in its profile browsing and liking mechanics, it distinguishes itself through features like Prompts, the ability to like specific profile elements, and Standouts. These features contribute to Hinge’s focus on fostering more intentional connections and potentially leading to more meaningful relationships compared to apps primarily geared towards casual dating.
By emphasizing personality through Prompts and encouraging users to be specific in their expressions of interest, Hinge attempts to move beyond superficial swiping and create a more thoughtful dating experience.
WillAntonelli
William Antonelli
Former Tech Reporter for Insider Reviews
William Antonelli (he/she/they) is a former Business Insider writer, editor, and organizer based in New York City.
