Unfortunately, many individuals who use Tinder are not aware of the infamous phenomenon known as the “Tinder Shadowban.”
This elusive issue can prevent your profile from appearing in the feeds of potential matches, ultimately hurting your chances of finding love on the app.
As a Tinder user, it's crucial to stay informed about the factors that can lead to a shadowban and how to avoid them.
In this article, we'll delve into the ins and outs of the shadowban, explore the reasons why it happens, and provide you with actionable tips on how to avoid falling victim to this shadowy trap.
Don't let the shadowban take control of your Tinder experience – take control of your destiny and maximize your chances of finding true love.
What's Tinder Shadowban?
A Tinder shadowban occurs when a user violates Tinder's community guidelines, leading to their Tinder profile being hidden from other users. However, as far as the shadowbanned user is concerned, everything may seem normal, but in reality, their profile is essentially invisible to others.
As you can see, Tinder shadowban makes it incredibly difficult to match with potential dates, as others may think your profile is a fake account.
I know what you’re thinking right now. You’re thinking “wtf! What’s the point of even using Tinder if I’m shadowbanned?”
Don't let the Shadowban get in the way of your swiping success – read on to learn more about what causes it and how to avoid it.
Let’s explore this some more …
Why Does Tinder Shadowban, Someone?
Tinder doesn’t just shadowban random profiles for no good reason. If your Tinder account has been shadowbanned, it’s highly likely because you’ve been reported by at least one other user for inappropriate behavior.
What’s less unclear is why Tinder would shadowban a user instead of outright banning them. My personal theory for this is that Tinder permanently shuts down free accounts but decides to shadowban paying accounts.
This way, YOU still can’t really do anything on the app but Tinder continues to take your cash until you realize you’ve been shadowbanned. It’s sneaky but it wouldn’t at all surprise me if this is the case. That said, there is no clear evidence that this is true.
How to Tell If You're Shadowbanned?
Users tend to suspect that they’ve been shadowbanned by the app when a few weird things start happening.
- First, your matches have dropped to zero. Where they used to get at least a handful of matches a week, they now don’t get any or very few matches.
- Second, any matches that you’ve landed recently didn't message back. Sometimes, they’ll test this out by messaging older matches just to see if they reply. But nope! No matter how awesome their opening message is, NO ONE replies. It’s almost like they’re a ghost LOL (and, indeed, many other users refer to being shadowbanned as being turned into a ghost).
- Third, Even Tinder Gold has stopped working for you. Whereas previously they would get a few new “Likes” each week, they now get zero.
- Fourth, the app itself has sent them a warning for “inappropriate behavior.” This is the biggest giveaway that you’ve been shadowbanned. In fact, unless you get a message from Tinder warning you of your inappropriate behavior, there isn’t really any reason to suspect that you’ve been shadowbanned.
See, I’ve had emails from guys and girls in the past who are worried that they’ve been shadowbanned. Their matches have tailed off and no one seems to be replying to them. Usually, though, this is down to either change in the algorithm, bad luck, or problems with their own profile (such as poor photos). If it’s down to changes in the algorithm, a quick Tinder reset of your profile is often a way to get your matches and conversations back on track.
In other words, you can only be sure you’ve been shadowbanned if you’re getting zero matches, no one is replying to your messages, and Tinder has warned you about your conduct.
With all that in mind …
Steps to Recover from Tinder Shadowban:
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of reversing a shadowban, let’s be clear: Reversing a shadowban isn’t rocket science and you don’t have to be some sort of evil genius hacker type person who knows how to code. At the same time, it isn’t super easy, either. The first thing you need to do is make a list of the things Tinder knows about you. This is because, if you’re to remove the Tinder shadowban, Tinder must not know that it’s you.
1. Remove Social Media Accounts
If you use the same Facebook account to create a second profile, Tinder will know who you are right away and the shadowban will stay in place. Go to the Facebook account that you linked to your Tinder profile. Head over to settings, locate “apps and websites” and find the Tinder icon.
Found it? Good. Now remove it.
2. Delete & Uninstall Tinder On Your Mobile
With that all said, the next thing you need to do is open your settings in the Tinder app. From there, delete your Tinder account. Don’t hover over the ‘Delete Account’ button worried that you’ll regret this. Just go ahead and do it.
Don’t stop there, either – Uninstall Tinder from your phone.
3. Create a New account with New Details
It’s the same if you use the same phone number, the same IP address – and even the same photos. Yup, seriously. Tinder’s robots are VERY smart and they will recognize your pics. So you need to change all of that stuff if you’re to ever land matches ever again.
Then, you’ll need a new SIM card.
I know, this already sounds like a lot of hassle. But it’s worth it.
Once you’ve inserted your new SIM into your phone, you’ll need to create an entirely new Apple ID or Google account. This shouldn’t take too long, and once it’s down you need to unplug your router and plug it back in again.
Why? To reset your IP address. Et voila.
Now, you can re-download Tinder from your new IP address and install it on your phone and set up a new Tinder account.
Boom!
Remember, though, that you shouldn’t use the same photos as last time. Don’t link out to your old account's social media profiles, too. This is just playing into Tinder’s hands.
Also, avoid the rookie mistake of paying for Tinder boost or Tinder Gold with the same payment method you used last time.
What Next?
As you can see, reversing a shadowban requires a bit of effort (and a new SIM card!), so you have to ask yourself if it’s worth it. Personally, I think it is because Tinder is easily one of the best dating apps out there.
However, Tinder likely shadow-banned you for a reason. If they sent you a message warning you about your misbehavior, you should take heed and make sure that you obey the rules and guidelines the second time around. I’ve helped you out this time, but you can’t keep buying new SIM cards all the time, huh?