How does Hinge work? A guide to the app’s best features

Hinge advertises itself as “the only dating app designed to be deleted.” In other words, Hinge wants its users to find relationships that last, not just quick flings.
But despite the marketing, Hinge really isn’t that different from its competitors like Tinder and Bumble. It’s a smartphone app that shows you pictures of other people on the app, and lets you like or reject them. And if two users like each other, they’re linked up to start chatting.
The major unique features that Hinge has are “Prompts,” short questions that give your profile flair and humor; and “Standouts,” a list of your most compatible matches.
Here’s everything to know about how Hinge works, and how to get started.
Hinge is free to download from both the iPhone App Store and Android Play Store, and totally free to use, although there are upgrades you can pay for.
When you sign up for Hinge, you have to give them all the standard information: Your name, email, date of birth, and location. You’ll also get the option to give more details about yourself, including your height, religion, political beliefs, and more.
But the feature that really sets Hinge apart — and one of the few that you have to fill out to use the app — are the “Prompts.”
The most important part of the sign-up process are the Prompts, which are personal questions about your life and interests. You have to answer three Prompts to make your account, and your answers get displayed on your profile.
There’s a few dozen Prompts to pick from, and you can replace the ones on your profile at any time. They range from chances to talk more about yourself, like “A fact about me that surprises people…” to conversation starters, like “The one thing I’d like to know about you is…”
Prompts show up on every user’s profile, and are a major part of the Hinge experience. With so many Prompts to choose from, it’s rare that you’ll see two people with the same set, much less the same answers.
Once you’ve set up your profile, you can start browsing for potential matches.
Like other dating apps, Hinge shows you one user at a time. You can scroll through their pictures and Prompts, then choose whether to like or reject them by tapping the heart icon or ‘X’ icon.
Unlike other apps though, you don’t have to like someone’s entire profile. If they’ve got a specific picture or Prompt that piques your interest, you can like just that piece. It’s a great way to let someone know that you’re really paying attention to their profile, and not just hitting Like on everyone that comes your way.
When you like something, you’ll also get the chance to add a comment. In other apps, you’d have to wait for a match to start chatting — here, you can start the conversation with just a like. Every like that you get will appear on your personal Likes You page.
You can also upgrade your like into a Rose. Sending someone a Rose bumps you to the top of their feed, and shows that you’re really interested. You get one free Rose every Sunday, and can buy more in packs of three, 12, and 50.
Hinge keeps track of every profile that you like, and uses the data to recommend new profiles to show you in the future. They also use it to put together a special list called “Standouts.”
Standouts are another unique Hinge feature. Every day, Hinge generates a list of users “most your type,” based on how they answered their Prompts. Tapping on any of these Prompts will bring you straight to that user’s full profile. It separates the wheat from the chaff, giving you immediate access to your most compatible matches.
There’s one catch, though: You can’t just hit Like on these users. Instead you have to send them a Rose. This means that if you’ve already used your free weekly Rose, you’ll have to buy more.
Your Standouts list refreshes at midnight each day. There’s always a chance that they’ll show up in your regular feed too, but there’s no guarantee.