Forums Dating App Strategy & Racial BiasGetting weird results on Hinge in Chicago — am I doing something wrong or is the app just biased?

Getting weird results on Hinge in Chicago — am I doing something wrong or is the app just biased?

David Okafor

13 posts

David Okafor

I’ve been back on Hinge for about 3 months and honestly it’s been kind of discouraging. I’m a Black woman in Chicago, mid-30s, and I keep noticing the same pattern: I’ll get likes from guys who clearly have a “type,” but they either never message or the convo dies after 2 or 3 replies. Meanwhile, my friend who’s white and lives in the same neighborhood seems to get way more actual dates from the same app with way less effort. I’ve changed my photos a bunch — more smiling, one full-body pic, one doing something outdoors, one with friends, no filters, all that. I also try to keep my prompts pretty light and specific. But I still wonder if there’s something about the way the app is showing me, or if people are just filtering out Black women before they even bother. Has anyone else dealt with this on Hinge or Bumble? And if so, did changing your profile help at all, or is it mostly just a numbers game and patience?

Mar 13

1 replies

Keisha L.

#1 · Mar 14

I’d say don’t blame yourself too much. I’m a Latina in Philly and I’ve seen how race affects who gets approached, even when the profiles are similar. One thing I noticed is that having photos with people from different backgrounds made a difference for me, weirdly enough. Not because you need to “signal” anything, but because it seemed to make some people more comfortable or curious. Also, I started using apps where people have to answer prompts with a little more effort, like Hinge over Tinder, and I filtered hard for guys who actually had something in their bio beyond “ask me anything.” It’s exhausting, but it cut down a lot on the lazy swipes.