Match vs Bumble: Which Dating App is Best in 2024?

Signing up for the best dating app can increase your chances of meeting the right person. Match and Bumble are both dating services with an established track record and many happy users. Have a look at how Match vs Bumble compare.

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Table of contents [ Show Hide ]

Picking the right dating app: Match vs Bumble
The differences between Match vs Bumble
Match vs Bumble: which one is cheaper?
Which dating app is better for you? Match vs Bumble
Match vs Bumble FAQ

Picking the right dating app: Match vs Bumble

The best dating app for you mainly depends on your goals relating to your love life, relationships, and intimacy. Dating apps are a bit like your favorite food, you won’t know what it is until you’ve tried a few options. This applies to Match vs Bumble as well as other dating services.

Online dating app recommendations

Before you pick your favorite dating app, checking out our dating app recommendations is a good idea.

These are some of the leading dating apps in the match-making market. Sign-up today for free:

The differences between Match vs Bumble

These are the key differences between the two dating apps.

	Match	Bumble
Who is it for?	Singles looking for committed relationships and even marriage.	Singles looking for a variety of relationship options, inclusive features, and swipe-based browsing.
Registration details	In-depth registration process. Lots of detail about yourself and your goals.	Requires a Facebook or Apple account unless you sign up with a phone number. Quick registration process.
Memberships and profiles	Match gets about 3 million users logging in daily with detailed profiles.	50 million users have joined Bumble—impressive growth for this younger app.
Paid options	Two levels. You need to pay for basic features. Premium level lets you see who likes you and be seen by more members.	Free service includes unlimited messaging. Paid subscription adds more perks to improve experience on app.
Pros	Quality over quantity approach with curated matches called “Top Picks”.	Messaging and main features are free. Inclusive sign-up options. Unique “women message first” feature.
Cons	You need to pay for full messaging features.	Not necessarily focused on long-term relationships and older users.

How is Bumble better than Match?

The feature Bumble is best known for is that “women make the first move.” When a man and a woman match, the woman has a full 24 hours to think about the match before sending the first message.

The man can only message once the woman has sent the first message, within that 24-hour window. After that, there are no limits for either person in that same chat. If the woman who matches with a man does not start a conversation within 24 hours, the match expires.

This limit is advertised as a feature. Its purpose is to challenge dating stereotypes where men are expected to “make the first move.” Another advantage of this dynamic is that it tackles the rampant issue of inappropriate messages on dating services.

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Bumble isn’t just for straight men and women. For same-gender matches, either person can start a conversation. The one-day match expiration still applies, so if neither person writes the chat option disappears after 24 hours.

Finding matches on Bumble involves swiping left and right to state whether you like the profile or not. Profiles are clearly organized with an emphasis on photos, followed by a short bio and key details.

Bumble also lets you sign in to other apps like Instagram and Spotify to pull relevant content into your profile with little effort. This is convenient because it allows your profile to be constantly updated with your latest music recommendations and photos.

Did you know?

Bumble was founded by Whitney Wolfe Herd, a former Tinder employee who successfully sued the company for harassment and discrimination. Bumble was created with help of Andrey Andreev, founder of Badoo.

Bumble has two alternative modes. It can also be set to BFF or BIZZ modes for non-romantic relationships. These modes are designed to help you make new friends or network professionally. You don’t need to download a separate app, you just switch to the mode you want to use.

How is Match better than Bumble?

Match takes quality over quantity to heart by streamlining the profile selection process. The app will make daily profile suggestions based on the qualities you’re looking for. If you don’t like sifting through hundreds of profiles or setting up complex search filters, you’ll click with Match.

Match is better than Bumble for users who don’t like to swipe through an endless stream of profiles. Match uses its technology to narrow down who is compatible with you. This saves you time and can potentially lead to more meaningful connections.

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User profiles are also more detailed than on Bumble. This is understandable since a majority of Match users have more defined relationship goals. While Bumble caters to a younger and more diverse dating audience, Match focuses its app on better serving an older and more committed demographic.

If you are exclusively looking for a long-term committed relationship or even a potential spouse, then Match is likely the better choice. The majority of Match users are looking for a long-term partner.

Match key points

Here are some important details to know about Match:

Match users are mostly over 30 years old.
Almost 60% of Match users are divorced or single parents.
Match users are highly educated, most of them having attended college.

Match vs Bumble: which one is cheaper?

Both Bumble and Match have two paid tiers. The basic paid option is called “Standard” for Match and “Boost” for Bumble. Match is more expensive than Bumble across all the plans and durations. Take a look at the price comparison below.

	Match Standard	Match Premium	Bumble Boost	Bumble Premium
1 month	n/a	n/a	$16.99 per month	$39.99 per month
3 months	$34.45 per month	$40.41 per month	$11.33 per month	$25.66 per month
6 months	$24.48 per month	$26.51 per month	$9.17 per month*	n/a
12 months	$21.84 per month	$23.11 per month	n/a	n/a
Lifetime	n/a	n/a	n/a	$229.99 one-time fee

^{*Pricing provided for illustrative purposes based on available information at the time of writing.}

Bumble has the cheapest paid subscriptions when compared to what Match offers. If you are just looking to save, then Bumble is clearly the more affordable choice here. However, price isn’t the only deciding factor.

Free vs paid features: how do these apps stack up?

What really sets Match vs Bumble apart is how Bumble makes messaging matches available from the get-go for free users. Match only lets you message certain profiles it has picked out for you in advance.

Bumble and Match have different features for users who use the service for free and those who pay. Let’s take a closer look at what each one offers to its free and premium users.

Bumble features compared

Compare features side-by-side to see which Bumble option is a better fit for you.

Bumble Free Features	Bumble Boost Features	Bumble Premium Features
✅ Create a profile	✅ Create a profile	✅ Create a profile
✅ Add photos	✅ Add photos	✅ Add photos
✅ View main profiles	✅ View main profiles	✅ View main profiles
✅ Send and receive messages with matches*	✅ Send and receive messages with matches*	✅ Send and receive messages with matches*
✅ Link up to Spotify and Instagram to fill your profile	✅ Link up to Spotify and Instagram to fill your profile	✅ Link up to Spotify and Instagram to fill your profile
	✅ Extend unlimited matches for an extra 24 hours	✅ Extend unlimited matches for an extra 24 hours
	✅ Unlimited swipes	✅ Unlimited swipes
	✅ Undo swipes	✅ Undo swipes
	✅ One Spotlight per week	✅ One Spotlight per week
	✅ Five SuperSwipes a week	✅ Five SuperSwipes a week
		✅ See who likes you (Beeline)
		✅ Incognito mode
		✅ Match again with expired matches
		✅ Travel mode

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* Unlimited messaging with matches. If the match is between a man and woman, the woman has to message within 24 hours for free unlimited messaging to be available.

Both Bumble and Match unlock major features once you start paying. These premium features let you be seen by more users and give you insights into who is interested.

The main decision you have to make between the two paid levels is whether you want to see who likes you. On both apps, this feature is included only with the more expensive Premium membership.

If you’re someone who travels a lot, “Travel mode” on Bumble could also be very practical. It lets you select different locations, view profiles at your destination, and crucially match with them ahead of your trip. Match doesn’t have an equivalent feature for those who travel regularly.

Match features: free vs paid options

Match features are divided up between one free and two paid options. Take a look at what option has the features you need for online dating.

Free option	Standard paid option	Premium paid option
✅ Profile creation	✅ Profile creation	✅ Profile creation
✅ Unlimited likes	✅ Unlimited likes	✅ Unlimited likes
✅ Message top picks Match has selected for you	✅ Message top picks Match has selected for you	✅ Message top picks Match has selected for you
	✅ Unlimited messages (beyond top picks)	✅ Unlimited messages (beyond top picks)
		✅ Receive messages from non-matches
		✅ See who likes you
		✅ Read receipts
		✅ Monthly boosts
		✅ Unlimited rewinds
		✅ See who visited your profile
		✅ Weekly super likes

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Match’s free option seems similar to Bumble’s, but the difference is that you can only message top picks on Match. These are a limited number of profiles that Match picks out for you. If you match on Bumble, then unlimited messaging is possible.

While you can view and like as many profiles as you want, you won’t be able to message them unless you pay for the Standard paid option, at minimum. That is the only extra feature that the Standard option gives you.

When it comes to Premium features, Match vs Bumble are pretty much equal. The only difference is price: Match is more expensive than Bumble.

Which dating app is better for you? Match vs Bumble

Take a look at the pros and cons of each dating app so you can pick the right one when it comes to Match vs Bumble.

Match pros and cons

These are the benefits and drawbacks of using the Match dating app.

Pros	Cons
✅ Quality over quantity approach	❌ More expensive than Bumble.
✅ Engaged and active user base	❌ 3.8 out of 5 App Store review score
✅ Many users have found long-term partners and spouses thanks to Match

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Bumble pros and cons

These are the advantages and disadvantages of the Bumble dating app.

Pros	Cons
✅ Fully operational for free users	❌ Less focused on serious relationships and compatibility
✅ Bumble Boost is good value for money	❌ Users have to swipe through a lot of profiles and do most of the selection work
✅ 4.2 out of 5 review score and Editor’s Choice award on Apple App store

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Match vs Bumble FAQ

You can find answers to common Match vs Bumble questions below.

Which one is better? Match vs Bumble

If swiping left and right through profiles is your preference, then Bumble is better than Match. However, if you like the idea of a dating app curating matches for you, then Match will be the better choice.

Is Bumble legit?

Bumble is definitely a legitimate dating app. The dating service has been around for many years and is backed by Badoo—a major dating company. Bumble has robust online security policies to make sure user profiles are valid.

Which dating app will help me get married? Match vs Bumble

Both apps will help you get married, but Match is more likely to help you tie the knot because of its focus on compatibility. Match users are also more likely to be looking for long-term relationships than those on Bumble.

Which is cheaper? Match vs Bumble

Bumble is cheaper than Match. However, both apps have basic features as part of their free accounts. It’s worth checking out both apps for free first before paying. You may prefer one app’s approach to dating over the other.

Is Bumble Premium Lifetime really available for life?

Bumble Premium Lifetime lets you access all the features available on the Premium tier for one flat fee. The Lifetime subscription makes sense if you plan on using Bumble for more than two years.