In college, it can seem nearly impossible to find someone who is on the same page as you. Whether you want a relationship or something casual, it can be hard to make those connections between classes, homework and everything else in between. Dating apps are used by a whopping 91% of college students, but it can be hard to figure out which apps will work best for you. The layouts, ease of use and techniques that each app uses can not only play into your success in finding someone, but your satisfaction with the experience of dating apps. Here are some of the most popular dating apps for college students – and what’s great about them and where you might need to call things off.
- Tinder
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Tinder is the most popular college dating app, partly because of how widely known it is. It’s been around for six years and was among the first “swiping” apps where users swipe right for their likes and left for their dislikes. Either party can chat with one another if they are a “match,” meaning that they both like one another. Tinder has been known over time primarily for hookups or more casual dating, but Tinder registers one million dates per week; don’t let the gossip fool you.
- Bumble
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Bumble was started in 2014 by one of the co-founders of Tinder, and focuses more on letting women have the first move. For same-sex matches, either partner can start the conversation, and the swiping methods (left and right) are the same as Tinder. However, Bumble focuses not only on relationships – where you can change your settings to show other users whether or not you’re looking for something serious – but also provides users with an outlet for building new friendships and networking for business.
- Hinge
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Hinge is the app that is “meant to be deleted.” Founded in 2012, Hinge does not feature swipes but rather reminds users through “your turn” to continue to conversation. It is branded as the relationship app, and meant to bring people together in a more meaningful way. The founders of the app don’t want you to keep it on your phone, rather help you find someone that you have a meaningful connection with so that you can delete it.
- Grindr
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Specifically catered towards gay, bi, trans and queer people, Grindr was founded in 2009 before most other dating apps became popular. Since it’s release, it has become one of the most popular niche dating apps of its kind and is available all over the world. Not only is it a dating app, but Grindr also focuses on political campaigns and works to inform its audience about candidates view’s on LGBTQ+ – related issues.
- Her
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Her is a dating app that was founded in 2013 for lesbian, queen, bisexual/bicurious women. Men are not permitted to make profiles on the app. It was originally known as Dattch. Similarly to apps like Bumble and Hinge, one of the main goals of Her is to empower women to express and be their true selves as well as getting off the app. Her wants their users to find what they are looking for in real life, and even hosts events and caters to smaller, niche communities within the app.
If you think you may want to give dating apps a try, there are plenty to choose from aside from the popular ones listed above. Depending on what you’re looking for and what you’re comfortable with, you’ll find pros and cons to each of the above. Everything is worth a try, and if you don’t like it, you can always delete it. Dating apps are certainly not for everyone, but in a digital age, it seems like giving it a shot could do more good than harm.