Creating a perfect dating app profile is an art and a science. On Hinge, prompts can help you showcase what youâre all about, what you want, and what you want to know about your matchesâall before either of you even swipe right. Coming up with creative answers can be daunting, but because youâve got space for three Hinge prompts, you can actually cover a ton of ground.
âWe found that the best profiles really tell a story, they tell us who you are, and they tell us different things about you,â says Hingeâs Director of Relationship Science, Logan Ury, author of How to Not Die Alone. âAnd you can use your pictures and your prompts to really tell that story.â
One of the biggest mistakes users make isnât necessarily creating a bad profile; itâs creating an unmemorable one. âWhen youâre swiping left and right in a major metropolitan area, there are tens of thousands of people within a given demographic group who are swiping at a given time,â says online dating expert Dr. Jess Carbino, former sociologist for Tinder and Bumble, adding that brief, vague answers make it hard to stand out from the pack.
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âEveryone has something interesting about themselves, but most people donât necessarily think they do, and that has come across very clearly in the course of my researchâand itâs very evident when you read online dating profiles,â Carbino says. âIf you talk with people more in-depth, youâre able to discover those things that are more meaningful and distinguishable.â
It might feel like a challenge to share or even identify your most unique, quirky thoughts, interests, and dreams, but the pay-off can be so worth it. âWhat we found in our research is people are like, Iâm looking for someone whoâs going to put effort into dating,â Ury says. âAnd if youâre not willing to put effort into your profile, maybe you arenât willing to put effort into dating.â
With all of that in mind, here are 17 Hinge prompts (and some expert-approved answer suggestions) that will help you go from a match to a conversation to a first dateâand maybe even a second. Weâre rooting for you!
1.Green flags I look for...
Ideally, your profile tells people three things: who you are, what youâre looking for, and what it would be like to date you, Ury says. This question is a great way to hint at what you want, what youâd be like as a partner, andâin a wayâwho you are. It also offers your matches an opportunity to tell you a little about what it would be like to date them.
2. Iâm looking forâŠ
It might be tempting to go the straightforward route, especially if youâre on the apps for a very specific reason. If youâre just looking to casually meet someone who can show you around a new city, for example, go ahead and let your matches know! But thereâs also an opportunity here to be creative. Take one of Uryâs clients, who wanted to express that he was looking for a serious relationship and share his passion for reading.
âWe put, âIâm looking for somebody to combine my bookshelves with,â and I really liked it because now I know he likes reading and I can talk to him about books,â she says. âAnd also, I know heâs looking for something serious, but it didnât come across as something like, I want to get married in the next two and a half years.â
3. Unusual skills...
This prompt can help you showcase your passions, or maybe some niche talents youâve picked up at a job or class. Anything that comes with a story is a great bet, but if youâre really trying to turn conversations into dates, hint that you know how to find good seats at a crowded bar, or youâre weirdly good at Scrabble (and you happen to know of an amazing board game cafĂ©, too).
4. Typical Sunday...
According to Ury, this can be a great way to give a swiper a glimpse into what your relationship could look like. After all, if youâre in it for the long haul, you might be spending quite a few Sundays together. âFor example, if someone stays really active, [they could write] âI wake up, I ride my Peloton, then I meet up with my friends for a hike, then later I go to a barbecue and this and that,ââ she says. âVersus if youâre somebody whoâs more of a homebody, maybe thatâs not as appealing to you.â
5. The best way to ask me out is byâŠ
Looking to get some dates on your cal? Look no further. Set up your matches to ask you on your dream date by letting them know you want to be invited to their favorite local bar or on a park picnic. Or, if youâre feeling super direct, â...asking me outâ works, too.
6. I know the best spot in town forâŠ
Hereâs another prompt thatâs bound to help you set up some dates. âCheap drinksâ or âIndian foodâ is too vague, though: If thereâs a specific dish you love or music genre youâre into, tell your swipers that youâve got them covered when it comes to L.A.âs best matcha ice cream or a cute jazz bar.
7. Together, we couldâŠ
Try this prompt if youâre stuck on a question that shows what it would be like to date you. Outlining a dream date would work well, whether itâs as simple as, âGo on a day trip to the beach before summer endsâ or as, ahem, aspirational as âDrink champagne on a balcony in the South of France.â If youâre looking for something specific (say, youâre sober and not looking to go to bars), you can also sneak that into this answer, too: âTogether, we could check out Chicagoâs best zero-proof bars.â
8. I geek out onâŠ
Share your passions! And donât forget, weâre talking about things that make you geek outâweird, super-specific interests, hobbies, and talents. If you know everything there is to know about Survivor or growing plants and herbs from your tiny, cramped apartment, nowâs the time to show off your knowledge.
9. First round is on me ifâŠ
This prompt is guaranteed to land you some dates and, more importantly, help find common ground. One Seinfeld fan on Reddit, for example, had some luck saying theyâd buy their matches a drink if they also celebrate Festivus.
10. Two truths and a lie...
Ury says that this is one of the most engaging prompts. âThereâs just a natural tendency for curiosity, and so when you have two truths and a lieâeven if youâre like, Oh itâs probably that oneâyouâre just more likely to message the person because you want to know the answer or you want to know the story,â she says. âAnd I think especially if you want to share some unique things about you, itâs a good forum for that.â
11. My simple pleasures...
This prompt is a great way to showcase tons of your interests, and even turn-ons. The more niche, the better. âSometimes we think if weâre more broad, weâll attract more people, but itâs actually in being specific that I think more people relate,â Ury says.
12. Best travel story...
Unique experiences and anecdotes can help your profile stand out, and also get a convo started. If possible, pique your matchesâ curiosity by leaving the story open-ended: âI got lost in Venice without my phone, couldnât find my way back to the hotel, and youâll just have to ask me what happened next.â
13. The key to my heart isâŠ
âOne of the biggest complaints in modern dating that I hear is when daters donât ask questions,â Ury says. One of her followers had a great idea: Tell your matches upfront that youâre turned off by daters who arenât curious about your life and interests. You can write, âThe best way to ask me out/the key to my heart is asking questions,â Ury suggests.
14. The secret to getting to know me isâŠ
This prompt offers another opportunity to invite your matches to ask you questionsâor, better yet, get the conversation going with something specific. Maybe, âAsk me about the time I met and embarrassed myself in front of Harry Styles,â or even something as simple as, âAsk me about my dog.â
15. The one thing Iâd love to know about you isâŠ
And on that note, if youâre really trying to reel in some matches, question-asking goes both ways. You can always say youâd love to hear about someoneâs most recent trip or first celebrity crush, but thereâs also an opportunity to showcase some of your own interests and passions, too. If youâre really into reality TV, ask about your matchâs favorite Love Island couple. Into true crime? Ask if they have any theories about JonBenet Ramsey. If all else fails and youâre really eager to get the ball rolling, you can always say youâd love to know someoneâs dream date.
16. The hallmark of a good relationship isâŠ
Here, shed some light on what it would be like to date you (and what youâre looking for, especially if you want something more serious). âTrustâ and âCommunicationâ are always great go-tos, but try to avoid single-word answers. One Redditor suggested following up a genuine answer with something a little more clever: âHonesty and communication. We should know where we are and where weâre going. And if weâre going for coffee, Iâm definitely in.â
17. You should leave a comment ifâŠ
âI think âWeâll get along ifâŠâ or âYou should leave a comment ifâ is an opportunity to share something more quirky about you,â Ury says. You can also share a âhot take.â Do you have a niche conspiracy theory, or a weird opinion that none of your friends understand? Who knowsâmaybe youâll find someone who really gets you.
Lydia Wang (she/her) is a New York-based freelance writer who covers sex, dating, identity, TV and movies, weird internet trends, and everything in between. Sheâs worked at and written for Cosmopolitan, Refinery29, Elite Daily, and Vulture, among other publications. You can usually find her reading a romance novel or typing furiously at a coffee shop. You can also find her many, many thoughts on The Bachelorette on Twitter.