Dating Reviews For The Best Dating Sites of 2024
An honest review of all dating apps!
An honest review of all dating apps!
With summer coming to a close, it begs the question of who am I going to spend the holidays and cuffing season with??
While some may think it's a little too early to be thinking about this, I've spent many cold nights alone to know that it's never too soon to start looking. I heard about Bumble a looooong time ago, but recently my friend was talking about the Bumble app at brunch and reintroduced me to the dating app that will hopefully find me a match!
I'm sure you've heard of it by now, but if you haven't… the Bumble app is a free dating app that embraces a feminist approach to dating. Co-founded in 2014 by Whitney Wolfe Herd (she also co-founded Tinder!), Bumble was branded as a dating app designed to give women more control while creating a safer dating environment - it's a win-win! The app does show some similarities to Tinder which isn't a surprise given Whitney's background, but the biggest difference is that women must send the first message.
While the Bumble app is technically for everyone, it's perfect for women who worry about being bombarded with messages by creeps. Women must send the first message, which creates a safe space for us single ladies by letting us take control of who we want to talk to.
Plus, I can imagine this puts less stress on the guys.
Bumble has over 100 million users (!!) and is one of Tinder's closest competitors. Pretty much all of my girlfriends have either heard of or tried the Bumble dating site, so it's definitely a legit way to get your next date.
The Bumble reviews out there seem to be pretty great, and there are minimal complaints about fake profiles, catfishing, or scams. They're even trading publicly on the NASDAQ since February 2021 - that sounds pretty legit to me!
The way that Bumble dating works is a little different than other dating apps and sites. For heterosexual matches, the woman needs to make the first move (also known as “first move privileges”). If the woman doesn't make the first move after a match, then the connection will disappear after 24 hours. This must be the app equivalent of being ghosted. 😆
Either person has first move privileges in a same-gender match. Once the first move is made, the other person has 24 hours to answer back or the connection will expire. It's important to be VERY careful when swiping because once you swipe left on a person, you won't see them again unless you're using Bumble Premium to backtrack.
My first impression of the Bumble dating app is that it's similar to Tinder in the way you swipe through pics to find your match. Don't let that fool you into thinking Bumble is the same as Tinder though - cuz it's def not! Here are some burning questions I had at first that may help you as well.
How many likes do you get on Bumble? The Bumble app gives you 25 likes per day (or right swipes). Once you've used up your 25 swipes, you'll be locked out of swiping for 24 hours. After you're locked out, you will be given the option to upgrade to Bumble Premium to continue your swiping party
Does Bumble have read receipts? Nope, Bumble doesn't have read receipts, which may be an advantage or disadvantage depending on your preference. Although, you can tell when a person is responding to you if you see those three familiar dots that we know from texting and using other apps.
How to delete Bumble account: Wondering how to delete Bumble if you found the one and don't need the app anymore? First off, congrats! Second, here's how you do it:
Open up your Bumble app and click on your profile tab on the bottom left side.
Tap the "gear" icon to get to your settings page - located on the top right corner.
Scroll down to the bottom of the settings page and click on "delete account".
Press "confirm" and that's it - you're done!
Does deleting Bumble cancel my subscription? No, you'll have to make sure you cancel your subscription wherever you signed up - the Apple app store, Google Play store, etc.
Is there a Bumble app? Yup. I do answer this later on, but for those of you who like to skim, it's for both iOS and Android. ;)
Is there a Bumble free trial? There is! Make sure you cancel before the subscription kicks in though, otherwise you'll be charged.
Absolutely! Plus, alongside a Bumble app for iOS or Android, there's also a Bumble dating site that you can log into from your desktop. The desktop version of the Bumble dating site is called Bumble Web.
Let's get into the sign up process for Bumble. Does it seem like I've been running into dating apps with a million sign up screens lately? Bumble is no exception, so grab a bevvie and let's go.
You can sign up by linking your Apple account, Facebook, or by entering your phone number: Also, I loveee this design! It's so cute how the background resembles a beehive. I mean who doesn't like a good theme?!
I chose to sign up using my phone number (no one will see your #). What really stood out to me was Bumble's above-and-beyond approach to safety. I appreciate that they verified my number to make sure I'm a real person! (I passed this test btw, in case you had any doubts!)
Next, it's time to set my location, but my phone used my location to make it super simple. The hardest part was deciding whether to show my precise location or a general area of where I live. (Spoiler alert: I chose not to show my precise location, because ya know, safety first!)
Like pretty much every other dating app, I could pick whether or not I want to know about new matches and messages that come in. I chose to allow notifications so that I wouldn't miss out on any new hotties!
Bumble asked me if they could track my activity across Facebook (what's that? j/k) which is supposed to help improve their marketing somehow. I usually don't allow tracking, so you may want to do that too for privacy's sake.
And of course, the obligatory "What's my name?" question. I thought it was pretty funny that they specify you can't change your name later on…to me, it's obvi, but I also like how it prevents the fakers from catfishing.
Time for my fave part! Love how it only asks for 2 pics at first since some apps ask for 4-6 to start. They do mention that profiles with more than 3 pics are 43% more likely to get a match, and you can add up to 6 pics.
Next up, time to enter my DOB. Bumble will only show my age and not my birthday which is great for privacy. Like your first name, you can't change your age later on.
The next screen is for gender identity. When I first saw the options for "What's my gender?" I thought it was lacking in the choice department compared to other dating apps.
But THEN when I clicked on "woman"....
I saw these options - there we go! Way more inclusive.
I love the option to let Bumble know if they're missing anything. You also have the choice to show your gender on your profile or hide it.
Did you know that you could use Bumble for more than dating? Me either! You can use Bumble to find your next bestie or for business, but you will only see potential matches in the same mode as you.
Next up, it asked who I would like to date. I feel like I'm going shopping! So many choices, what do I pick? I'm not good at making decisions, so I'll choose everyone. I could also choose more than one answer, as I'll only be shown people who are interested in the same gender as me.
Time to let Bumble know what I'm looking for, relationship-wise! This will also be shown on your profile unless you click “I'm not sure yet.”
Next up: email. This is optional but sometimes I can't remember all of my passwords, so I entered it in case I get locked out of my Bumble account.
Now it's time to build my profile! The first question is about my ethnicity, which I can choose to show on my profile, or I can skip this question altogether. I like how they give an explanation of why they're asking this question, which is mainly for more inclusivity.
Speaking of inclusivity, look at all these options! If I didn't find an option that I identified with, I could send a message to Bumble to let them know.
SI can link the Bumble app to my Insta which will allow me to add pics to my profile, but my username will be hidden. This feels more in line with our social habits, right? Happy to see this instead of JUST Facebook.
Why does it seem like most apps bring out the fun questions at the end of the sign up process? This is pretty cool - I get to pick 5 things I love, and Bumble will match me with people who enjoy the same things.
Bonus points for the types of options they have on there, like ‘Self Care' and ‘Pride.'
Maybe I spoke too soon about the fun questions because now we're back to the typical "What's your height?" one.
*Plays LMFAO's "Sexy and I know it" song* Girl look at that body - I work out!
All jokes aside, this question is great to make sure you're matched with someone who has a similar fitness level as you. No couch potatoes here, please.
I'm an astrology nerd, so I always get excited when I'm asked for my zodiac sign. What do you think it is? 🤔
Am I the only one who thinks the lil' graduation cap up top is a cute touch to this question? It kind of makes me forget for a sec that I'm on step #22…
Now we're onto the recreation-style questions. Asking if I drink is like asking if I breathe LOL (Don't judge me!)
Sooo, I just noticed that the lil' bar up top shows how much further I have to go before I'm finished. I'm more than halfway done, WOOT! But first, let me answer this smoking question real quick.
Ah, the familiar dating app question - do I want children? Hmmm….
Sidenote: There really should be a back button on these questions in case you wanna change your mind on an answer.
While asking about religion is a standard question, the choices are anything but. This was the most inclusive list I've come across when answering about my religion. Yay for inclusivity and options!
I can almost see the finish line from here! I like that there are a few choices when it comes to asking about my political leanings. Bumble's got my vote so far!
Another fun question! Time to add a profile prompt to help break the ice. There are about 7 different prompts to choose from.
OMG!! Could this be? We're at the (dare I say it) END?! Hooray!
The final step is to add more about myself. When asked a few steps back what I was looking for, I mentioned a relationship. Notice the lil' description under "Add more about you" mentions other people looking for a relationship. I love the fact that these questions cater to what you choose. I'm super interested in what it would have said if I chose that I was looking for a more casual relationship.
I've only seen this on one other dating site, so I had to include a screenshot of it. You have to agree to be kind and respect everyone (this should be obvi but I'm really loving that they specify this for extra safety).
After I go through that excruciatingly long but greatly detailed sign up process, I'm dropped into the main feed. Here, I was instantly shown my first potential match. Pretty clever that they matched me up with another newbie like me.
Every member has the option to filter their search by gender, age, and distance. If you're a Premium subscriber, then you'll have more filtering options through the Advanced Filters search.
The Advanced Filters let you sort members by horoscope sign, how often they work out, whether they smoke or not, etc.
Here's how to use the filters on the Bumble dating app:
Click on the Hive icon at the bottom of your screen
Tap on the filter icon located at the top right corner. Here you can search by age, gender, and distance.
If you're a Premium member, scroll down to the bottom of your screen and choose "Set Advanced Filters" to narrow down your search.
And here's how to use the filters on the Bumble dating site (Bumble Web):
Click on your profile photo and a menu will appear.
From the menu, choose "settings". You will be sent to another screen where you can filter by age, gender and distance.
If you're a premium subscriber, you can choose "Advanced Filters" to narrow your options further.
Yes it is! On Bumble's dating site, they proudly mention that its app will always be free - yay! If you feel like splurging, you can upgrade your free membership to Bumble Premium, or you can pay for one of their extra features such as SuperSwipe, Spotlight, and Bumble Boost (more on these later!)
While Bumble is free, (and always will be!) sometimes it's tempting to see what's on the other side. If you're loving your free subscription so far like I am and want to explore more options, then my Bumble review is the right place for you!
Read on to see if you should stick with what you know, or if you should try the premium package.
As I mentioned before, there's a free tier for both the Bumble app and the Bumble dating site. The free tier is pretty awesome in the sense that it provides users with more access than other free dating apps I've tried.
Here's all you can do within the free tier:
Send messages (bonus points for this! Not many apps I've seen let you do this for free).
Match with other users.
Swipe through profiles.
One free extension per day in case either of you missed the time limit.
Audio/video chat.
Bumble Speed Dating game: This is free, but if you want to move up the queue, that's a Premium feature.
Hope you're still with me here because I'm about to spill the tea on Bumble's paid tier 🍵.
To upgrade your subscription it costs $29.99 + tax. If you're not ready to commit just yet (I hear ya babe!) then maybe you'd like to try out the Spotlight or SuperSwipe boosts.
The Spotlight boost starts at $11.99 while the SuperSwipe starts at $2.
With the Bumble Premium membership you get a ton included such as:
Unlimited likes: Need I say more?
Beeline: see who likes you
Incognito mode: Ooooo. Stay hidden from everyone but the people you've swiped right on.
Travel mode: Switch your location when traveling to match with people in other countries. If you guessed that I loved this feature, you're right!
Unlimited backtrack: left swiped by accident? You can give the person another shot with unlimited backtracking.
SuperSwipe: This is a feature to say “hey, like… I'm really, really interested in you” rather than getting lost in the sea of matches.
There are sooo many unique features to love about Bumble and I'm dying to share them! Let's get straight into it:
Bumble speed dating game: The Bumble speed dating game invites users to sign onto the Bumble app each Thursday night from 7 pm-8 pm. Once you join, you're able to have quick 3-minute chats with other members without either one of you knowing what the other looks like. Once your 3 mins are up, you can move on to someone new or continue the conversation.
Extend a match: I mentioned this a bit before, but I'll say it again cuz it's a cool feature to know about. Basically, if you or another person miss the 24-hour cutoff to communicate, you can use the extension to talk to them past the 24-hour limit. Free users get one extension per day, but paying subscribers get unlimited extensions.
The Question game: This little game helps break the ice for those who need to make the first move but don't know what to say. You can select a conversation starter from a list of questions or you can create your own. Once you and your match both answer the question, you will both see each other's answers and can start chatting.
SuperSwipe: This is a Premium feature, but still worth mentioning. SuperSwipe is a way to let someone know that you're really interested in them. Just tap on the heart icon in the Bumble profile!
Spotlight: Get more views faster by jumping to the top of the viewing line for up to 150 minutes. This feature shows you ahead of everyone else (except those who also have Spotlight).
All in all, I really enjoyed this app.
I loved the layout, the safety measures, and the many unique features. I also really like the fact that it was co-founded by a woman, who takes things like safety seriously due to her own dating experiences. Of course, like any other app, there are a few things where Bumble falls short - let's see what they are.
Here's what caught my attention with the Bumble app:
Safety is taken care of in a number of ways
Limits unsolicited messages by having women make the first move
While not a fast sign up process per se, it was extremely thorough.
There are a ton of free features available, so if you're not interested in paying to play yet, you can still message, use the audio/video feature, play the speed dating game and so on!
Here's what wasn't so hot about the Bumble app:
While you can date people between the ages of 18-80+, it seems that most users on here are under 35 (fine for me but maybe not those above 35).
Swipe limitations for free users (about 20-30 right swipes a day which go FAST).
Matches disappear if there is no communication within 24 hours of connecting.
I'd give this a resounding yes! While the app does show similarities to Tinder, I definitely like the more feminist approach to help eliminate the constant DTF messages we're so familiar with. I used the site for quite some time while working on my Bumble review and my inbox has never been happier and more absent of d*ck pics - plus, I made some great connections on the dating side of things. I can't speak for the business or bestie side of the platform though.
I noticed that some Bumble reviews from women said it's a con to message first because they don't know what to say, but I didn't feel that way due to the Questions game. I also really love the idea of the speed dating game since so many apps are based on just looks alone. If messaging first doesn't scare you and you love being more in control of your dating, then def give Bumble a try!
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