I have been trying out Hinge for several months. I've had probably 50 matches and 3 dates; 1 of which went okay (small kiss at the end and shy personality), 1 went better (no kiss but very alpha personality as she was off-the-boat from Italy and a PhD in biotech kind of out of my league and intimidating honestly lol), and the third actually went very well (Psychiatric Nurse with good looks to match). On the last date, we ended the night making out, shared a bunch of good/ deep conversations with each other and continued to text after.

The texting has since faded but that was on me because I lost interest in commencing a second date. The reason being - I met a girl at a bar - old school method, who blew me away with her looks, personality, and connection. The girl I met at a bar is a dance instructor/ choreographer and is wayyy out of my league looks-wise. I would say 9/10, 25 years old, glowing green eyes, 5'4" dancer's body, and Italian/ Portuguese background. This girl is not on dating apps even though she's single. Asked her why she said because she "doesn't want to meet her life partner on an app". Fair enough! Well, many people don't care anymore, including me obviously, but this shows that there are incredible, high-value women who have to be encountered in person and can not be found on these apps.

I'm still amazed that this girl likes me considering she's the highest quality woman I've ever been with BUT I will say that the experiences I've had getting dates and going on those dates gave me the skillsets needed to demonstrate high enough value to attract the "bar girl" and get her to date me. This was not possible several years ago as my confidence was in the toilet but using the dating app for the experiences made a huge difference. Dating is like any other skill, you need practice!

The main point I'm trying to convey is that I find more and more people are starting to let these apps become a single source for finding women almost as a crutch. However, it's truly amazing how much missed opportunities that would cause with all of the potential outside of the apps. They definitely do serve as a great tool for practice either way.