In the dating app industry, two of the most commonly talked about apps are Tinder and Bumble. It’s hard to discuss online dating, without someone bringing up these dating apps. While the mainstream media would consider them rival products, and they are in many ways, we like to focus on the fact that they are both great products and what they offer. However, let’s get started with some quick history to help understand where this ‘rivalry’ comes from. Thus, the Bumble versus Tinder story begins…
History
Bumble and Tinder have a contentious history that began in 2012 when Whitney Wolfe Herd, a co-founder of Tinder, left the company after experiencing sexual harassment and discrimination. In 2014, she launched Bumble, a dating app that requires women to make the first move. The app became an instant hit and quickly gained a reputation as a feminist alternative to Tinder. However, in 2018, Tinder’s parent company, Match Group, sued Bumble for patent infringement and stealing trade secrets. Bumble counter-sued, alleging that Match Group had made multiple attempts to acquire the company and had even threatened to undermine its business. The legal battle ended in 2020, with both companies dropping their lawsuits and reaching a settlement. Despite the animosity between the two companies, Bumble and Tinder remain two of the most popular dating apps in the world.
Comparing Bumble versus Tinder
| Bumble | vs | Tinder | |
 |  | ||
| Rating | | > | |
| Availability | Android and iOS | < | Android, iOS and Web |
| Selling point | Bumble empowers women to make the first move in heterosexual matches, promoting a more comfortable and safe environment for dating. | < | Tinder is a widely popular and easily accessible dating app that uses a simple swiping system to quickly connect users with potential matches. |
| Price | Bumble is a free app. You can however pay for additional features. *the price will vary by country Ranging from $0.99 – $259.99 per item (prices in USD) | > | Tinder is a free app. You can however pay for additional features. *the price will vary by country Ranging from $0.99 – $299.99 per item (prices in USD) |
| Languages supported | Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian Bokmål, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Traditional Chinese | < | Afrikaans, Arabic, Bengali, Bulgarian, Cambodian, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Filipino, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malay, Norwegian Bokmål, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Simplified Chinese, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese |
| Popular key features | – Women make the first move: On Bumble, women initiate conversations with their matches, which gives them more control over the interactions. – Bumble BFF: This feature allows users to find friends and platonic relationships on the app rather than potential romantic partners. Users can filter potential friends based on their interests and location. – Bumble Boost: This premium subscription feature gives users access to a range of advanced features, including unlimited swipes, the ability to rematch with expired matches, and the ability to see who has already liked their profile. – Video and voice calls: Bumble allows users to make video and voice calls within the app without sharing personal information. – Snooze mode: This feature allows users to take a break from the app without deleting their account. During the snooze period, their profile will not be shown to other users. | > | – Passport: This feature allows users to change their location and swipe on potential matches from anywhere in the world. – Super Like: This is a feature that allows users to show extra interest in a potential match by swiping up on their profile. Tinder Platinum users can send a note along with this Super Like to get attention – Boost: This feature allows users to have their profile be one of the top profiles in their area for 30 minutes to increase their chances of matching. – Top Picks: This feature shows users a curated list of potential matches that are selected based on their interests and activity on the app. |
| Popularity | Bumble has users in at least 150 countries | < | Tinder claims users in over 190 countries |
| Data privacy | According to their website Bumble is GDPR compliant. Further may share certain information with third-party service providers to help with things like payment processing, data analysis, and customer service. The company also states that it may disclose information to comply with legal obligations or to protect the safety of its users. However, as far as we know, Bumble does not sell data. | = | Tinder is GDPR compliant. Tinder may share certain information with third-party service providers to help with things like payment processing, data analysis, and customer service. The company also states that it may disclose information to comply with legal obligations or to protect the safety of its users. However, as far as we know, Tinder does not sell data. |
| Safety | – Verification: Bumble has a verification feature that lets users confirm their identity, which can help to increase trust and safety on the app. – Private detector: This feature uses AI to detect and flag potentially inappropriate images sent in messages. The recipient of the message can then choose whether or not to view the image. – Safety Center: Though not a feature, Bumble’s Safety Center provides users with tips and resources for staying safe while using the app. | = | – Traveler Alert: a unique Tinder feature focused on LGTBQ safety. In this feature, Tinder will alert a user if they are traveling within an area where it might be illegal to be gay. – Photo Verification: Users can go through a photo verification process to confirm that their photos are authentic and not stolen from someone else’s profile. – Safety Center: Similarly to Bumble, Tinder offers Safety Center to users with resources and best practices for staying safe while using the app. |
| Common complaints | • Glitches and technical issues • Some users report being unmatched or banned for no reason • Some users complain about the cost of premium features • Limited number of potential matches in certain areas • Some users report being matched with fake or inactive profiles | > | • Too many fake profiles • Matches often don’t lead to conversations or dates • Glitches and technical issues • Poor customer service • Limited free features |
| Common praise | • Women make the first move • Clean and easy-to-use interface • Verification process helps weed out fake profiles • Ability to filter matches by interests and preferences | < | • Easy and fun to use • Large user base • Matches lead to dates and relationships • Good variety of people • Offers unique features like Super Like and Passport |
So, which app is better in the Tinder versus Bumble contest?
It is difficult to outright say which app is better when comparing Bumble versus Tinder. In some ways, they are compatible, in other ways one app excels above. Often, single daters, will use more than one app anyway, so why not try both?
That being said, let’s review some highlights from the content above.
Tinder is an older app with a much broader user base. While you may need to review more profiles to find someone special, there simply are more people on Tinder. You can seemingly travel to any part of the world and find a Tinder user. This is an important aspect when it comes to utility and practicality. Tinder also offers more languages which means it is by nature available to a wider audience.
Bumble on the other hand seems to be a more focused and quality experience in some ways. There are stronger requirements for proving you are real, so this reduces fake profiles. However, the concept of Bumble’s app, women-first, is off-putting to some people, including some women. That being said, Bumble has expanded into the BFF and business sectors to help people connect for non-romantic reasons as well while Tinder has yet to specify. This aspect makes Bumble truly unique.
Other dating app comparisons
When it comes to comparing Bumble versus Tinder, we feel that there may be other comparisons which are more interesting. Tinder and bumble have many similarities but in recent times, Bumble seems to be increasingly distancing itself from the Tinder association. Therefore, apps like Hinge are more likely contenders than Tinder. Stay tuned for more info regarding that.