My Review of the Hinge Dating App

In this article, I will give you my thoughts on the dating app Hinge.

Bottom line: Hinge is my favorite dating app, so if it is available in your country, I recommend you give it a try.

Dating App Overview

By claiming to be the app that is “designed to be deleted,” Hinge was developed to be a more relationship-oriented alternative to some of the hookup-focused apps that are popular today. While Hinge states that they focus on long-term romance, you might be wondering what exactly they’re doing differently on their app to make this the case. I’ll break it down for you.

Signup Process

To get started on Hinge, you will first need to verify your identity using your phone number or Facebook account. Then, like most dating apps, you will fill out your own profile with photos, demographics, prompts, and a bio. You then need to complete a preferences questionnaire.

If you really want to spice up your profile, you can add voice prompts and videos. Just make sure you fulfill every step of the sign-up process including all of the written prompts. Hinge rewards users based on profile completeness.

How to Locate Potential Matches

Your personalized matches will be listed in three different places on the app: Discover, Standouts, and Likes You.

Discover is where you will have access to view potential matches based on the algorithm.
Standouts is a limited selection of profiles that changes daily.
Likes You is where you will see other users who have liked or commented on your profile and you can like them back to match.

In order to start the matching process, you must like, comment on, or ask a question about a specific point on another user’s profile. If that user “likes” you back, you will match and gain communication access.

Pro tip: Commenting is more effective than liking as it creates a conversation opener to move into.

The downside of Hinge is that it has been dubbed a lesser-known dating app. According to Business Insider, Hinge only has 1.5 million monthly users compared to more popular apps like Tinder with 75 million.

How to Communicate with Matches

Like many other apps, you must first match with another user before chat features are unlocked. Since Hinge does have such a great matching system, starting a conversation is a breeze. You can access the chat feature by clicking the “Matches” conversation bubble icon.

Unique App Features

Hinge isn’t only unique in its mission, but also in its app features.

Voice prompts — Rather than typing out your prompt responses, Hinge allows you to record a snippet of yourself talking.
Videos — In addition to photos, you can also add videos to your profile to show potential matches a special memory or hidden talent that might pique their interest.
“Most compatible” — Every day, Hinge will show you your “Most Compatible” potential match based on your preference filters.
Roses — Roses can be purchased individually and are used similarly to “likes.” Instead of liking someone’s profile, you can send them a rose. This will put you at the top of their “Likes You” page.
Boosts/Super Boosts — Also available to be purchased individually, Boosts increase the number of people that will see your profile for one hour while Super Boosts increase your views for 24 hours.
Match quality input — Hinge gives you the ability to give them feedback about the quality of matches you receive. Every time you give your input, the algorithm will strengthen your matches.

What’s Included for Each Membership Level

While Hinge does allow free users, the downside is that they are limited to only 10 likes per day. However, the Hinge Preferred membership does not include many extra features compared to other dating apps on the market.

Hinge Preferred includes:

Unlimited daily likes
Advanced filters
Access to Hinge experts

A Preferred membership does allow for unlimited likes, but a cheaper alternative may be to purchase roses and boosts individually. This is all up to your expected use and preferences.