Two swipe dating apps, both with millions of users – but which one is the right one for you?
The good news is that both Tinder and Hinge are wildly popular dating apps that have been around for 5+ years, are both easy to use and are both aimed at casual dating and serious relationships.
On the face of it, then, there's not much to choose between them.
And if you're a dater who's got a decision to make about which dating site to sign up to, having two options to choose from can be almost as time-consuming as actually arranging a date!
I signed up for Tinder and Hinge myself and tested them out. In this Tinder vs. Hinge guide, I discuss both apps' in's and out's, including their pros, cons, similarities, and differences. By the end of the article, you should hopefully have a much clearer idea of which app to sign up to.
Let's start.
Comparison: Hinge vs Tinder
| Comparison | Tinder | Hinge |
|---|---|---|
| Male to Female Ratio | There are approximately 2 men for every woman. | 64% male to 36% female users |
| Casual (1) to Serious (10) Rating | 5 - Tinder used to be a hookup app, but it’s now used by those looking for something casual and those looking for something serious. | 8 - Hinge is very relationship oriented dating app |
| Types of Women | Lots of hot girl-next-door-types definitely use Tinder, and most enjoy nights out, the gym and travelling. | Educated with good careers who enjoy evenings out and who are generally looking to settle down. Lots of homeowners, too. |
| Cost | Free to send and receive messages | Free to send and receive messages |
| Premium Features | You can upgrade your account to either Tinder Gold and Tinder Plus to enjoy additional perks, or buy one-off extras such as Boosts and Super Likes. | Hinge preferred for twice as many dates, sending unlimited likes, greater preferences for education, family plans and vices PLUS you have access to dating experts. |
| Biggest Plus | It’s got a HUGE user base. | Serious dates. |
| Biggest Minus | It can be really difficult to land quality matches unless you upgrade. | Much smaller user base than Tinder. |
| In-depth review | Tinder review | Hinge review |
Who's Tinder For?
Casual dating – If you're looking for a hookup, Tinder caters to this demographic.
Serious daters – On the other hand, if you want something a bit more serious, Tinder definitely has plenty of users who are looking for the same thing.
Millennials – All kinds of people use Tinder, but its core demographic remains millennials.
People short on time – Because Tinder doesn't require you to fill out any lengthy personality questionnaires, it's ideal if you're kinda busy.
Those operating on a budget – Tinder can be expensive if you upgrade your free account, but it's free to send and receive messages.
Who's Tinder Not For?
Those looking to get married – Sure, you could meet your life partner here, but this isn't really why Tinder was created.
Anyone who wants their dating app to have a search function – Yup, Tinder doesn't have a search function!
Anyone who hates endless swiping – You can easily get locked into endless swiping on Tinder, primarily because there's no search function.
Who's Hinge For?
Serious daters – Serious daters are welcome on Hinge!
For those looking for a life partner – Hinge's tagline is “the online dating app designed to be deleted,” and there are a high number of people who use it to find their soulmate.
People operating on a budget – Hinge is free to send and receive messages and is ideal for anyone who doesn't want to splash out on a online dating app.
Anyone who never knows what to say – Because Hinge comes with automated questions and icebreakers, it's great if you never know what to say in your opening message.
Anyone who knows what they want – Hinge is generally not used by time wasters. If you're happy with who you are in life and know what you want, it might be the dating app for you.
Who's Hinge Not For?
Time wasters – Hinge's users really don't want you to waste their time!
Anyone who wants their dating app to have a search function – Like Tinder, Hinge lacks a search function.
Casual daters – Hinge is strictly not a hookup site.
Tinder: Everything You Need To Know
Tinder has been around since 2012. It was one of the world's first “swipe apps” that came without a search function (it still has no search function). When it was first launched, Tinder was largely seen worldwide as a dating app for hookups used by those looking for casual sex encounters. Today, it's used by both casual daters and serious daters.
Due to its unique concept (the swiping app), Tinder exploded when it was first released, and today its popularity continues. Indeed, there are millions upon millions of people who use the app around the world, with a great percentage of its user base coming from the USA.
Its popularity is down to its unique concept, which also happens to be very simple. All you need to do is sign up, add a few photos and a short bio before you can get swiping. Tinder matching algorithm queues up profiles for you according to your preferences, and you have to swipe left or right on them. If you're a match, you can then start chatting.
Tinder is completely free to use, and you don't need to pay a dime to send or receive messages. However, Tinder does come with upgrade packages called Tinder Plus and Tinder Gold, which are designed to help you get more matches. That said, there are lots of people who enjoy success on Tinder for free.
Hinge: Everything You Need To Know
Contrary to popular belief, Hinge wasn't launched after Tinder – it was actually launched in the same year, 2012. However, whereas Tinder exploded, Hinge took more years to enter the mainstream and build up its user base.
Today, Hinge is a solid rival to Tinder. Around 6,000,000 users worldwide use it and, like Tinder, is used by those looking for something casual and something serious.
However, Hinge is much more focused on helping people find long-term relationships than Tinder. Indeed, its tagline is “the dating app designed to be deleted,” and most users who sign up are looking for love. Like Tinder, Hinge is a swipe app, but there are key differences.
The biggest difference is that Hinge doesn't ask you to write your dating profile out from scratch. Instead, you can answer a series of prompts that other members can reply to “break the ice.” You can also comment on people's photos to get a conversation started, but – like Tinder – you can't start a conversation until you've matched with someone.
Hinge is free to send and receive messages, but, like Tinder, there are upgrade options to help you get the most out of it.
Hinge vs Tinder: The User Base
Tinder is easily the most popular swipe app globally and currently has an estimated user base of between 57,000,000 and 66,000,000 users. Not all of these are active users, but a great many of them are.
How many of them are paying users? Around 6,700,000 at the time of writing.
In terms of its core demographic, Tinder is heavily populated by males, with the user base made up to 72% men and 28% women. Age-wise, 30-44-year-olds dominate the app, although Tinder is also popular with 18-29-year-olds, who make up around 15% of the total user base.
Hinge, on the other hand, is less popular in terms of its user base. It's been growing its user base more modestly over the years, but it's been improving its numbers year-on-year. Back in 2019, its user base was around 1,200,000, which put it way behind Tinder and many other dating apps. In 2021, it has a user base of approximately 6,000,000 active users.
Those are fairly impressive numbers for an app that operates in the shadow of Tinder.
Age-wise, Hinge caters to a demographic not too dissimilar to Tinder. But whereas 30-44-year-olds dominate Tinder, 90% of Hinge's users are aged between 23 and 35. 99% of them, meanwhile, are college-educated, while the male-female divide is pretty much even. There are slightly more women who use the app than men, but the difference is very marginal.
Hinge vs Tinder: Profiles
Hinge and Tinder users both go for the “less is more” approach when it comes to their profiles. This is entirely down to the nature of the apps themselves. For example, on Hinge, you can't create a bio from scratch. Instead, you can answer a series of prompts (such as a favorite quote, or song; including religious beliefs ) that are added to your profile.
The fact that users get to answer prompts means that most Hinge users have at least one or two lines of information about themselves on their profile. An example of a Hinge prompt is, “Last Netflix show you binged on.”
On the other hand, Tinder doesn't come with any prompts, which means it's up to everyone to write their Tinder bio out from scratch. This means that, unlike Hinge, a fair amount of Tinder users leave their bios empty. Or, they'll just add their social media handles.
When Tinder users do fill out their Tinder bios, they're typically super short and contain just 2-3 lines of very basic information about themselves, as well as a few emojis.
Hinge vs Tinder: Premium Features
Both Hinge and Tinder are free to use, but to get the most out of them, it's a smart idea to take advantage of their premium features. For example, Tinder lets you boost your profile to get seen by more people, as well as increase your number of daily Super Likes.
Tinder also has two premium packages: Tinder Gold and Tinder Plus. Each of these offers extra perks – such as most boosts and the ability to see who's already liked you – that are designed to enjoy more success on the site. Gold, which has more features, costs $29.99 per month, while Plus costs $9.99 per month.
Hinge's premium members are called preferred members. It lets you see who's already liked you (this saves you from endlessly swiping through profiles), and it also lets you send as many likes as you want without running out. You can pay monthly or annually, with the monthly fee currently set at $25 per month. Therefore, it works out slightly cheaper than Gold.
As well as the premium package, Hinge lets free members buy individual extras, such as the Boost. Again, this is similar to Tinder's Boost. For a one-off fee, you can boost your profile so that it's visible to more members over a fixed period of time. It's designed to increase your potential matches, and I think it's well worth the small price.
Hinge vs Tinder: The Verdict
Hinge and Tinder are very similar platforms – they're both swipe apps designed to help you land more dates, and neither will take up your time with personality questionnaires or lengthy bios. Instead, they both help you get straight to the point, whether you're looking for something serious or something a bit more casual.
Hinge has a 90% success rate for the first date and 72% of those first dates result in a second date.
Tinder wins out for me for online dating, though, thanks to the fact that it has millions of more users, as well as the fact that you can use it on desktop and mobile. Tinder's premium package is also arguably more feature-rich than Hinge, and while Hinge is good for finding a long-lasting relationship, you can find serious daters on Tinder, too.