UX Analysis: Is Bumble Any Different Than Tinder?

‍Features of their core mission went over my head. Do you know what I am talking about? Read more to find out.

Since I am curious as heck, I have heard about Bumble but only about its name and its origin as a dating app. So naturally was thrown away in the category of my brain where it says: another dating app with a different name. Recently I also installed it and started roaming through all the familiar features they have like they do on Tinder (and any other for that matter): swiping, profile structure, super likes, hidden profiles, you know the gist of it.

One big thing that made me say out loud: Hmm, that's different, was the fact that I could reach the end of the swiping deck in one day (in the BFF category in minutes). That never happened to me in Tinder or any other app while researching or using it. That got me even more curious to explore all and check what else is there.

Bumble is a platform and community that creates empowering connections in love, life, and work. We promote accountability, equality, and kindness in an effort to end misogyny and re-write archaic gender roles. On Bumble, women always make the first move. - Bumble Mission Statement

Well, that same feature where women have to message first went over my head, and it did for more than a few days. I know, I felt kinda stupid yes. I admit that there were some prompts when matching with a person, but I ignored them as the usual "Be proactive" nudge that other apps have as well. Remember my bias and putting the app in the same category as the rest, well yes, here is the result of that. A few days of swiping and wondering why people don't reach out first got me to the situation of meeting with a climbing male enthusiast that shared with me his experience and perspective about the app. He thought I was working for Bumble, because of the open end questions I asked him. *laughs in opportunity* For me this was a great experience in terms of having an informal user interview with someone that is part of the majority of the users using Bumble.

Once I got to the "AHA!" moment I got into a different approach to using the app and exploring its features. For those of you who have used dating applications, I will compare it with Tinder since it's his primary competitor. And since they already have an interesting past together.

Disclaimer: none of the apps has a goal of getting the user off the app (to uninstall it), hence them finding a partner or friendship as quickly as possible is not a primary goal for them. So bear that in mind if you just starting to use them. Those who have found partners through such applications are the exception, not the rule. To be able to really find someone you match with and be on the same page, well that's kinda hard, especially through only texting. Tinder is generally considered more for casual entanglements (hookups) and Bumble is supposedly promoting healthy relationships in all the 3 categories they have: dating, friendship, and professional networking.

Now that we have got a bigger picture of the two mobile apps let's see what is different and what is similar between the two.

Similarities:

• The fundamental interaction animations, swiping left and right
• Super likes
• Expensive plans
• It's a location-based app. But the radius is not adjustable for Bumble.

Differences:

• 24 hours limit to text first after matching if you are a woman.
• Rematching or extending the match, a few times for free, then having to pay for the functionality.
• Conversation prompts from men to women make it easier to choose a topic to start the conversation with. An example that someone might have: Ask me about pizza.
• Categories like date, BFF, and business are available on Bumble. Tinder tried something similar last winter, but it actually just recycled the same people from the dating category into different ones.
• Swiping left on Bumble has a small bubble message saying it is a missed opportunity which means: buy our plans and get a second chance at matching with someone who is already in the Likes section but with a blurred profile photo. It is also a premise to second guess yourself when I think about it. Nice try.

My experience so far with Bumble: I started using the app on 31.10.22 and currently still have it installed.

• Extremely annoying that photos on profiles can't be viewed once opened in a gallery view to swipe between them like a carousel. Not possible. Also, accident swipes are possible because of that annoying interaction.
• Sometimes false push notifications that you have a message appear with the purpose of the app to have more user retention. That might be a bug or just a deceptive design pattern.
• Got through a lot of small chats, and unmatching from my side and other as well.
• Ghosting is quite normalized on the app as may seem. The prompt messages of reassurance make it a bit better, to be honest.
• Having a full section with Safety & Wellbeing under your profile makes it easier for the NBU (next billion users) to get ahead with the dating hurdles of using mobile apps for connecting with people.
• Met two wonderful women from the BFF category and had very fulfilling conversations that hopefully will grow into nice friendships with time.
• I experienced (more accurately recognized) this for the first time: social anxiety. Especially when talking to people that are using the term date, not a hangout or meeting during the texting phase.
• Got lots of chances for self-retrospection and observation when communicating with different types of people.
• My battery gets drained in a day and I don't like it, especially when using the app for 1 hour in total a day.

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