Beyond the Bubble - Hinge

Welcome back to "Beyond the Bubble," the exclusive content series powered by CometChat! This is where we break down the mechanics of chat interfaces in today’s most popular apps, uncovering key insights that can help businesses amplify user engagement and elevate their digital experiences through exceptional chat design.

In the past decade, real-time messaging has transitioned from a novelty to a vital component, becoming a fundamental feature across nearly every industry. Businesses have recognized that instant communication is key to driving meaningful user engagement.

One space where real-time messaging isn’t just a feature but the very foundation of the user experience is online dating. Dating apps have not only revolutionized how we connect with others but also consistently set the bar for how technology can foster real-world relationships.

In today’s teardown, we’re spotlighting Hinge, a dating app that markets itself as “Designed to be Deleted.” Hinge has carved a unique niche in the dating landscape, standing out for its focus on meaningful connections and intentional design choices.

So, let’s swap our end-user perspective for our builder’s mindset and dive into what makes Hinge’s chat experience seamless, engaging, and an essential part of its success. Buckle up as we uncover the secrets behind one of the most thoughtful dating apps on the market.

We’ll be exploring how Hinge leverages real-time engagement features to:

So, whether you’re an avid Hinge user, an app builder eager to refine your chat features, or simply intrigued by how real-time engagement is redefining the dating landscape, this teardown has something for you!

At its core, Hinge is designed to facilitate meaningful connections, and its real-time engagement features are carefully integrated to ensure this goal is met. Unlike traditional dating apps where users can swipe endlessly, Hinge introduces intentionality through its liking and matching mechanics.

Here’s how chat comes into play:

1. Like & Comment Interaction - Instead of simply swiping, users engage with each other’s profiles by liking or commenting on specific prompts, photos, or answers. This sparks a more personalized interaction right from the beginning.

2. The Matching Process - A match occurs only when the other user reciprocates the interest by liking or commenting back. At this point, the chat window becomes available, creating a clear flow from initial interest to meaningful conversation.

3. Opening the Conversation - Once the match is established, users are encouraged to take the next step. Hinge even uses prompts like “Your Turn” to nudge users to keep the conversation alive, ensuring the chat feature remains engaging and central to the user experience.

This sequence – from a thoughtful like to a reciprocated match and then opening the chat – ensures that every conversation on Hinge begins with mutual interest. It’s a deliberate approach that sets Hinge apart from other dating apps where chats might often feel random or one-sided.

Chat Index Design

Hinge organizes its chat index thoughtfully, dividing conversations into three distinct sections. This structure ensures that users can easily manage their ongoing conversations while maintaining a sense of order and clarity. Here's how the sections work:

Your Turn:

Their Turn:

Hidden (Inactive Chats):

This three-tiered chat organization ensures that conversations remain manageable, prioritized, and easy to navigate by balancing both active and inactive chats.

Messaging UX

Here’s a breakdown of the features that enhance the messaging experience:

Typing Indicators:  Users can see when the other person is typing, providing a real-time sense of interaction and anticipation.

Chat history: All previous messages between users are saved, allowing for continuity in conversations without losing context.

Unread Message Count:  Users can see a counter for unread messages, helping them keep track of ongoing conversations.

Like message - Users can react to individual messages with a like, offering a simple yet effective way to show interest or acknowledgment within the conversation.

Right Swipe to View Profile: Within the chat, users can swipe right to revisit the other person’s profile, allowing them to reference details like prompts, photos, or voice recordings mid-conversation.

Send Voice Notes from Profile View: Voice notes (VNs) can be sent not only from the chat interface but also while viewing the other person’s profile, enabling more natural and personalized interactions.

While Hinge has excelled most of the core messaging elements, there are still some opportunities to improve. Here are a few features that could make Hinge's messaging experience even more engaging and user-friendly:

1. File sharing - Adding file sharing would allow users to exchange media in addition to text and voice notes, enriching the conversation and making it feel more dynamic and personal.

2. Message replies - : Allowing users to directly reply to specific messages within a thread would improve conversation flow, especially in longer exchanges. It would help users reference previous comments easily and keep discussions organized.

3. Edit message - To clarify typos and avoid any ‘oops’ moment!

4. User presence - Including a user presence feature (such as a green dot or “last active” timestamp) could provide better transparency and help users gauge the likelihood of receiving a timely reply, enhancing engagement.

5. Read receipts - Adding read receipts would allow users to know when their message has been seen, giving more clarity on conversation status and reducing uncertainty.

6. Delete message - Enabling the option to delete or unsend messages would provide greater control over conversations and allow users to retract potentially embarrassing or unintended messages.

7. User search - A search feature would allow users to quickly find specific conversations or individuals within a crowded chat list, improving navigation, especially for those with many matches.

8. Message search - Adding a search function within each chat would help users locate important messages or details from past conversations, making it easier to recall information without scrolling through entire threads.

9. Delete conversations - Giving users the ability to delete or archive conversations would reduce clutter in their chat inbox and allow them to maintain a more organized experience. This could be particularly useful for users who prefer to keep their app clean and focused on active interactions.

Hinge stands out in the dating app landscape by prioritizing authentic connections and offering a variety of interactive features within the app like - 

• Send a Like: Users can "like" a specific part of someone’s profile, such as a photo or a written response to a prompt. This creates a targeted interaction and provides an easy way to start a conversation by referencing what they liked.

• Reply to Prompts: Instead of just liking a profile, users can reply to one of the prompts the other person has answered (e.g., "What’s your ideal weekend?"). This feature allows for more meaningful first interactions by encouraging thoughtful responses.

• Standouts: The "Standouts" section highlights curated profiles of users who align with your preferences. Hinge prompts users to send a "Rose" (a premium interaction) to these profiles, elevating the sense of exclusivity and engagement.

• Virtual Roses: Roses are a premium feature that allows users to express higher levels of interest compared to a standard like. This gives matches the feeling of being special, which can foster deeper initial connections.

• Photo Captions and Comments: Users can comment on specific photos or captions, which serves as an icebreaker. This feature creates opportunities for more engaging first exchanges.

Once users move to the chat section, however, Hinge's focus on interactivity seems to taper off. Unlike the dynamic matching process, the chat interface is relatively basic and doesn’t offer tools to keep the conversation flowing or encourage deeper interaction. Here’s what’s missing:

• No Conversation Starters: Hinge offers prompts outside of chat to spark initial interactions, but inside the chat, there’s little to help users continue the conversation if it stalls. For example, there’s no feature suggesting topics or follow-up questions based on shared interests or profile details.

• Lack of Gamified Interactions: Many other apps include interactive games, quizzes, or fun features that users can engage with inside chats to build rapport. Hinge doesn’t offer anything similar to keep conversations lively. Hinge could introduce simple, interactive games or challenges within chats, such as trivia quizzes or "two truths and a lie" games, to help users break the ice.

• No Media Suggestions:  Hinge does not allow users to exchange photos, other multimedia that might make the chat experience richer and more expressive.

• No Interactive Engagement Prompts: While Hinge prompts users to "Send a Like" or "Reply to a Prompt" during the matching phase, there are no similar nudges within the chat itself. For instance, prompts like "Ask your match about their favorite travel destination" or "Compliment their answer to a profile prompt" could keep conversations engaging.

• No Collaborative Features: There are no shared activities in the chat interface, such as planning a date within the app, sending interactive polls, or sharing playlists—features that other apps like Bumble or Tinder have experimented with to foster connection.

1. Push Notifications

Hinge uses push notifications to notify users about various activities, such as when someone likes their profile, leaves a comment, sends a message, or when they receive a new match. These notifications are designed to encourage users to open the app and engage with their connections. The notifications serve as reminders to keep users active and help maintain momentum in ongoing conversations.

However, hinge allows users to snooze or turn off their notifications if they  feel overwhelmed by constant notifications or simply want a break from the app.

2. Email Notifications

While push notifications are more immediate, email notifications are generally used for non-urgent but still important updates. Hinge uses email notifications to alert users about things like new matches, profile activity, subscription feature updates and other announcements.

They’re especially useful for users who may not check the app daily but want to keep up with the key events happening in their profile. 

What can be better?

Quick replies -  Hinge does not currently offer quick replies. But  having the potential to not only notify users about new messages but also to showcase the message content directly in the notification would enable users to respond promptly without having to enter the app, significantly enhancing the convenience and efficiency of the overall experience.

Hinge has implemented several features designed to protect user privacy and ensure a secure, respectful environment. These features give users control over their interactions and content, creating a safer space for meaningful connections.

1. Profanity filter - Hinge provides automatic filters to block offensive language, such as profanity, in messages. This feature helps maintain a respectful and safe chat environment by preventing users from receiving inappropriate or harmful content.

2. Block and remove user - Users have the ability to block others, which prevents them from interacting with their profile. Additionally, users can remove someone from both the feed and chat, ensuring that the individual no longer has access to their profile or messaging. This gives users more control over who can engage with them on the platform.

3. Report users - Hinge allows users to report inappropriate behavior or content directly from both the feed and chat interface. This makes it easier for users to flag concerns wherever they are in the app, ensuring that issues are addressed swiftly.

4. "We Met" Option - The "We Met" feature on Hinge helps the platform understand users' dating journeys as they move interactions off the app. A few days after exchanging phone numbers, Hinge asks users if they went on a date and whether they would like to see their date again. If a user indicates that they don’t want a second date, this information is taken into account when recommending new matches.

The purpose of "We Met" is to gather feedback on members' dates, allowing Hinge to improve its recommendations. By using this feature, users can receive better matches and get out on more compatible dates, faster.

5. Community Guidelines - Hinge provides community guidelines that help users understand the expected behavior within the app. These guidelines promote respectful communication and interactions, ensuring that all users adhere to a shared standard of conduct while using the platform.

Hinge offers a mix of free and premium features to monetize the app while maintaining a user-friendly experience.

 The free plan allows users to create a profile, browse, and like others, but it limits the number of likes a user can send daily. 

To unlock more advanced features, users can subscribe to Hinge+, which includes unlimited likes, the ability to see who likes you, enhanced dating preferences, sorting incoming likes, and the ability to browse users who are new or nearby.

Third plan,  HingeX provides all the features of Hinge+ along with enhanced recommendations, the ability to skip the line for potential matches, and priority likes to make their profile stand out.

 In addition to the subscription plans, Hinge also offers Boosts, which users can purchase to temporarily increase the visibility of their profiles, giving them a higher chance of getting noticed. Lastly, Roses, a paid virtual gift, allows users to express stronger interest in someone by sending a digital token of affection, standing out from regular likes. 

To further enhance monetization, Hinge can explore additional premium chat features and user benefits. Some innovative ideas in this regard include:

• Stickers & Reactions could allow premium users to express themselves in a more playful and engaging way, making chats more enjoyable.

• Offering Unlimited Video Calls would provide users with a valuable tool to connect with matches more intimately, without worrying about time limits or data usage.

• An option to Edit Messages or delete messages would allow users to correct typos or unclear messages, adding a layer of convenience and reducing the anxiety of sending messages they may later regret. This would make the messaging environment more forgiving and user-friendly. 

• Message Search would allow users to quickly find specific messages within long chat histories, reducing frustration and improving the overall user experience. 

• User Search would let users search for specific matches or past conversations, making it easier to reconnect with those they've interacted with previously.

As we wrap up our exploration of Hinge’s chat features, it’s clear that real-time messaging is at the heart of creating meaningful interactions on the platform. By prioritizing thoughtful design and user engagement, Hinge sets itself apart in the crowded dating app space.

Stay tuned for more insights in the "Beyond the Bubble" series by CometChat, where we’ll continue to uncover the key elements of real-time engagement in your favorite apps in upcoming episodes!