March 29, 2024

How To Switch Between BFF and Dating Modes in Bumble

Bumble may be a dating app but it isn’t just a dating app. The company goes to great lengths to tell people that it is about so much more than just dating and backs that up with action in the form of BFF mode.

This is a platonic mode where you can make friends within your area. As well as tipping the balance in favor of women, Bumble also lets you make friends too.

Bumble is most famous for trying to be the opposite of Tinder. For giving the power to women and allow only women to initiate contact. This has had a hugely positive effect on the community. Women feel much happier using the app as they can choose to contact or not contact.

Men know that if a woman contacts them that she is genuinely interested and don’t have to do all the legwork for a change.

If that wasn’t enough, BFF mode adds another layer to Bumble that adds to its appeal.

BFF and dating modes in Bumble

In BFF mode you still swipe left or right on profiles but this time there is a very different goal in mind. Profiles are of the same gender and will be about making long-lasting friends rather than hooking up or dating. If you have moved to a new city or want to broaden your horizons, this can be a useful addition to real life friend finding.

In dating mode, Bumble switches to a traditional dating app model where you swipe left or right depending on your taste. Swipe left to give them a miss and swipe right to match. Matches are listed in your Match Queue page where only women can initiate the conversation. Male users cannot contact women at all. This is a good thing I think as it cuts down on the main negatives for online dating from a woman’s perspective.

Switching BFF and dating modes in Bumble

Switching between dating and BFF mode in Bumble is very straightforward. If you’re setting up Bumble you can select New Friends in the account creation section where you see “So who do you want to find first? ”.

If you already have a Bumble account, you can switch modes by doing the following:

  1. Open the Bumble app on your phone.
  2. Select the Bumble logo on the swipe screen.
  3. Select Bumble BFF from the next screen.
  4. Start swiping for friends.

The Bumble switching menu should show Bumble, Bumble BFF and Bumble Bizz. Bumble is the dating part of the app, Bumble BFF is for platonic friendships and Bumble Bizz is for networking and career-oriented stuff.

The neat thing about Bumble is that it isn’t either-or. You can use both Bumble dating and Bumble BFF at the same time if you like. All you need to do is switch modes as above and you can use the same profile for both aspects. Conversations are color coded to let you know which is which. Dating chats will appear standard yellow and BFF chats will be shown in green. That way you can act accordingly between the two.

The same time limits do apply though. That means you have just 24 hours to initiate a conversation with your new BFF before it expires. You can still extend that if you’re a Bumbler Boost user or have your daily free extension but otherwise, the same methodology that exists in dating also exists in BFF mode.

The main challenges to mode switching in Bumble is that the same profile is used for both modes and you can only friend someone of the same gender.

Profile creation for BFF and dating modes

The approach we take to dating is very different to that of making friends. That means that tiny 300 character profile and those 5 images have to do double duty to get you what you want. It also means you need to tune your profile carefully to appeal to both camps. Bumble is apparently looking at using different profiles for the different ways we use the app but for now we have to contend with a single bio.

That means writing a bio that speaks to both types of user. Those looking for a date and those just looking for friends. If you think you’re going to be looking for new friends as well as a new love, write your bio to suit.

Bumble BFF mode is a neat idea that seems to be going down well. It elevates the app above others of its kind and offers a completely different dimension to making friends. We find everything else online so why not find friends too?

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