Bumble Changes Its Women-First Dating Model, Now Lets Anyone Send the First Message

Bumble on Tuesday announced a major change to its signature dating experience. The dating app, which has had a long-standing women-first approach, will now allow both men and women to send the first message after a match. As part of the new chat experience, users will also have up to 72 hours to respond to a match, up from the previous 24-hour window. Bumble says the changes are based on member feedback and product testing.

Changes to the Bumble Experience

Since the launch of the app in 2014, Bumble has followed a women-first approach, where only women were allowed to make the first move after a match. This core part of the dating experience is now being revamped. This gives either person in a match the option to start the conversation.

However, there are some caveats to this move. To begin with, users can send one initial message, and the chat will only open after the recipient responds. Further, the dating app will prompt users to rethink low-effort openers, such as one-word messages, before they are sent.

Another major change is the expansion of the response window. Previously, users had 24 hours to respond to a first message, after which the chat expired. As part of the changes, the company is increasing this window to up to 72 hours. Bumble said the longer window gives “members greater opportunity to start conversations at their own pace.”

Citing a study, the company said that its testing showed an increase in chat initiation after introducing the new system, while opening messages became more evenly distributed between men and women. More than half of the members surveyed during the testing also said that the longer response window improved their experience.

Other new features include refreshed Profile Prompts and AI-powered profile feedback. Bumble said the new additions aim to help users present themselves more authentically before they start conversations.

The announcement comes as Bumble looks to revive its business after a difficult period. On August 6, the company reported 3.16 million paying active users, which represents a 16 percent year-on-year (YoY) decline. It also registered a 15 percent decline in total revenue to $211 million.