Dating apps with location-based matching: how exact is the location other members see

Dating apps with location-based matching and what each calls it

Location-based matching uses your device location, or a location you enter, to show you people who are near you. Bumble's privacy policy puts it that way: if you allow device location, it is used to show you the profiles of people who are near you. Tinder's Google Play listing promises matches with other singles nearby and across the world.

The labels vary. Badoo's App Store listing says People Nearby, Grindr's terms speak of nearby users, happn describes hyperlocation in real time, DOWN has daily Nearby Picks, HER splits the idea into Meet and Nearby, and OkCupid's Google Play listing says nearby singles. Elsewhere it is a preference or a search field: Coffee Meets Bagel lists a distance preference, Match shows members on a map by age and distance preferences in its 72 Hours experience, and Ashley Madison's privacy policy says members can find other profiles by member location. To see people in a city you are not in, look at dating apps with travel mode.

How exact the location other members see is

Most entries do not say. Where they do, the answer is an approximation. Grindr's terms say other users may see an approximate distance or a map position that is "generally offset from your actual location." Bumble's privacy policy says your general location appears to people seeing your profile, and HUD's says approximate location, meaning city and country, is included in the profile. Hinge says profiles may show approximate location. Profile data at OkCupid and Plenty of Fish includes approximate location too.

happn works from crossings: members see roughly where they crossed paths, and never the other member's location. Grindr adds a warning to its own terms (section 4.2): a sophisticated user may still be able to estimate your exact location. An offset map is therefore a reduction in precision, and Grindr does not present it as a guarantee.

What the apps collect and what they show

Collecting a precise position and showing an approximate one are two different things. Grindr, Hinge, OkCupid and Plenty of Fish collect device latitude and longitude, yet say profiles or maps show an approximate location. Grindr's privacy policy says it may collect precise geolocation. HER's lists precise geolocation, and Feeld's names it as a category of sensitive information.

Coffee Meets Bagel collects device GPS location at registration or when location services are enabled. The Google Play listings of Bumble, Coffee Meets Bagel and Plenty of Fish mark the apps as sharing location. For retention, sharing with third parties and the rest of each policy, the dating app privacy settings is the place to start; the entries here cover only the location side.

Apps that do not rely on the device alone

AdultFriendFinder asks for country, state, nearest city and postal code at sign-up, and its homepage promises "Advanced matching to find local connections quickly." Distance precision is not stated. happn asks members who decline geolocation to enter a city instead. HUD can take location from an IP address lookup as well as from device location services, and uses it to match people within a specified range.

Pure's privacy policy says location is used to engage with nearby users and only with permission, and its FAQ says the feed is based on your preferences and location. HER says it collects location when the app is opened, unless location services are off, to find potential matches and nearby users in Meet and Nearby.

What declining location costs

Hinge is the plainest here: with permission it collects latitude and longitude, and features that rely on precise geolocation are unavailable if you decline. At happn the cost is a manual step, entering a city. The other entries say little about what a refusal switches off, which leaves the question open for most of the list.

Which apps show nearby people for free

Three entries are marked free. Grindr's App Store free feature list shows nearby users, happn's terms list seeing crossing points on a map among the free services, and DOWN's FAQ says a free account can filter by location. HER is the one clear paid case: its Premium list includes See Who's Nearby. For the other apps the free or paid status of nearby browsing is not confirmed, and HUD's entry leaves it open.

Prices for the paid plans, by country and store, are under what dating apps cost. Free apps built for the same use are compared in hookup apps without a subscription.