Dating App Bios To Make Your Profile Stand Out

Ah, dating apps. You either love 'em or you hate 'em, but one thing's for sure: they aren't going anywhere. While these apps have their downsides, you've no doubt heard about people who found "the one" on Tinder.

If you're ready to put yourself out there, it can feel a little daunting at first — we get it. But to be quite honest, the only thing you really need to spend a lot of time on when you create your profile on any dating app is your bio. Sure, the photos you choose to upload are important too (experts suggest you ditch the selfies, however), but what you tell people about yourself in your bio is what will set you apart. Psychologist and relationship expert Antonia Hall told Bustle that a dating app bio allows you to provide potential partners with critical info — it's where you can let people know what your relationship goals are, what you're looking for in someone, and it allows you to give them a little glimpse into who you are. Having a bio that sets you apart will not only make you more attractive to prospective partners but will also ensure that you attract more of the right people.

Read on for some ideas on how to write an awesome bio that will make your profile stand out among the rest — it's really not as complicated as it sounds, and you can have a lot of fun with it. Ready, set, type.

You know what's attractive? Someone who knows exactly what they want. Let your bio do that for you by giving it to people straight. If you always tend to match with people who are totally not your type, certified dating coach Damona Hoffman says that it's likely because your dating profile (including your bio) isn't doing a good job of reflecting what you want. She told Shondaland that it's crucial you decide what type of person and relationship you want, and then build your profile and bio around that. This will help you decide what to include and what to leave out and give you a better idea of the type of language you want to use. 

Looking for a casual hookup? Then your bio would do better if you use some playful language. In the market for something more serious? Use more direct language to reflect that. To really make your bio stand out, find creative ways to tell potential partners what you are looking for. Sneak in some inside jokes that only people who are into the same stuff as you will get. This is a great way to attract like-minded partners who have the same interests as you, and it will make for some great conversation starters on your first date.

There's nothing worse than meeting your Tinder date for the first time only to realize they are a big fat liar. Don't be that person. Always be honest in your bio — the truth will come out later anyway, and why would you want to start a potential relationship based on lies? That little white lie might not seem like such a big deal at first, but it can easily snowball and derail a potential relationship. Having a super honest and sincere bio will make the right people pay attention to you.

"Eventually you're going to meet and date this person, so don't lie about yourself, your hobbies, or skills," psychologist and relationship expert Antonia Hall tells Bustle. "No one wants to plan a date for a 'surf lover,' only to discover that person can't swim," she adds. Behavioral scientist Clarissa Silva says that you should also be honest about your circumstances in your bio — don't pretend to be a successful businesswoman when you are, in fact, a struggling artist trying to make ends meet. You want the person you end up with to be supportive, and you can hardly expect them to feel like offering their support if you start out the relationship by lying to them. Being a little more vulnerable is not only attractive but will set your bio apart from others who are all trying to put their best foot forward, no matter the cost.

Most of us prefer to avoid talking about ourselves. It can be awkward to hype yourself up, but that's exactly what will make your bio stand out among the rest. We're not saying you should be cocky, but be confident, and keep the focus on you.

It's a good idea to share some fun tidbits about yourself — tell people what makes you tick and give them a glimpse of what it's like to spend time in your presence. Just make sure you don't end up writing a whole essay; less is more. You don't want to overwhelm someone with info. "You want to create some level of intrigue and curiosity," relationship coach Maya Diamond tells AARP. Another way to make your personality shine is by paying attention to the tone you use when you write your bio — be friendly and conversational. This will make you appear approachable to interested partners.

Founder of eFlirt, Laurie Davis, told Self that you should follow the same approach when it comes to adding pictures to your profile — don't upload photos that have someone else in them if you can help it. There's nothing worse than having a stellar bio and then having someone reach out to you because they're actually interested in your attractive best friend.

If you really want to set your bio apart from the rest (and gauge whether someone actually read it), insert a fun question at the end that can be a nice conversation starter once you guys hit each other up in the DMs. This can be a great way to get to know someone else, and it will make those first few messages way less awkward.

You can write your bio in a way that will raise some fun questions or pose a direct question. Get creative — avoid asking questions that can be answered with a simple yes or no. Instead, opt for something that requires a more detailed response. For example, "If the world ended today, what would you miss the most?" or ask a question that will give you an idea if you have the same interests, like "If you could interview anyone, alive or dead, who would it be and what would you ask them?" This is a really fun way to kickstart a conversation and get to know a potential partner. Their answers can tell you a lot about who they are, and it'll be easier to gauge whether or not you're a good match.

We know it's tempting, but don't use your bio to make a list of all the things you don't want in a potential partner. Yeah, getting burned a couple of times sucks, but being salty about it in your bio will be a huge turndown for most people. Instead, be positive and list the qualities you appreciate in a partner. That'll make a much bigger (and more positive) impact on someone checking out your profile. A positive bio can make people excited to meet you, and you might just attract your forever person.

"If you fill that space with negative language, what you're not looking for in a partner, arrogance, or long, run-on sentences, you'll be dateless," psychologist and relationship expert Antonia Hall tells Bustle. She's not wrong. Think about it, if you read someone's bio and they used all that space to spout negative things, you'd instantly swipe left, right? Positivity attracts positivity, so make sure your bio does just that.

One surefire way to make your bio stand out is by showing the world your witty side. We all have a sense of humor to some extent, so use some positive witticisms to set your bio apart from the rest — if you can make someone laugh, you'll instantly have their attention. "People love a sense of humor, so the more you can show your cleverness in your profile, the more you'll stand out from the crowd," Brooke Sprowl, LCSW, tells Cosmopolitan.

With that said, be careful how you incorporate your humor. Telling a clever joke in person and writing it in your dating app's bio are two very different things. For one, people can't gauge your tone, and you'll be presenting yourself to complete strangers instead of people who already understand your sense of humor. Make sure you don't come across as rude or insensitive, because that will have the opposite effect and leave you dateless. If being witty is second nature to you and you know just how to crack a harmless, genuinely funny joke that almost everyone will get, work that into your bio. We suggest you let a friend read over it so they can tell you if it's coming across the way you think it is.

Of course, not all of us are very good at working witty punchlines into a sentence, and if you have to force it, drop it. Not being a witty jokester doesn't mean you're not attractive.

This goes without saying, but a bio filled with clichés will easily fade into the background and can make you appear pretty boring. We know that it can be hard not to resort to clichés while writing your bio, but putting in some extra effort will be well worth it.

We promise you're not the first person to look at the sections asking you to describe yourself and wondering how the heck you're supposed to make yourself sound interesting. Luckily, the founder of eFlirt, Laurie Davis, has some fun ideas. "We find what works best is writing three short paragraphs: two about you, and one about who you're looking for," she tells Self. When writing about yourself, don't just list cold, hard facts. "I like to travel," is one of the biggest and most often used clichés and doesn't say anything at all. Instead, tell a fun story about one of your travels. Writing something like, "I once became acquainted with a bear while exploring the Rocky Mountains in Canada," makes for much more interesting reading, and it's also a fun conversation starter.

When describing who you're looking for, Davis says you should once again be careful of clichés because the person you end up with might be nothing like what you thought you wanted. "Almost every client of mine who has met someone and fallen in love did it with someone they didn't expect," Davis adds.

If the dating app you're using offers some additional features, use it! There's no better way to make your bio stand out than to use every resource at your disposal. AARP notes that some apps, like OurTime, have a feature where you can record an audio greeting. These became popular during the pandemic but have now become a permanent feature on many apps. Video messages are another feature that many embraced.

You might find recording an audio or video greeting a little daunting, but there truly is no better way to make your profile stand out than including it. This is your chance to say what you can't properly convey in your bio — you can reveal what your idea of a perfect date is, tell an interesting story, and show off your personality in a way the sentences in your bio simply can't. If you've been looking for a way to give your profile new life, this is it.

Finding ways to make your bio different and more interactive will ensure your profile gets more matches. A great way to do this is by adding a fun quiz at the end of your bio. It's a great icebreaker and gives you the opportunity to get to know your matches a little better. "Not only does it show that you're clever, it helps potential matches know where to start a conversation," former global Tinder ambassador Darcy Sterling, Ph.D., tells Cosmopolitan.

When it comes to picking a topic for your quiz, Sterling says you can literally choose anything, as long as it's fun and light-hearted and gives you some intel on a potential partner. You can Google fun topics for quizzes — there are tons out there — and get creative with your questions. You can ask something like, "If you were an animal, which one would you be?" Then list some fun options they can choose from. You'll likely get plenty of responses and get to know your matches much better from the get-go than you would have otherwise.

We can't stress this enough: Spelling mistakes are unattractive, especially if you match with someone who spots them easily. That alone can make someone swipe left, and the last thing you want is to miss out on a potential date with someone great because your grammar wasn't on fleek. Keep in mind that all kinds of people are on dating apps, including highly educated people who will spot your typos a mile away.

Needless to say, if you know you don't have impeccable grammar, ask a friend who does to read over your bio. Alternatively, you can use software like Grammarly to do some spell-checking for you, but keep in mind that these apps have their flaws and aren't always perfect, so a pair of human eyeballs are always a good idea (most of us have that friend who is a total grammar queen, so make use of them). Once your writing has been copyedited, so to speak, you can publish your bio, and watch those matches roll in.

While it's important to be open and honest in your dating app bio, you shouldn't reveal everything from the get-go. Leave some room for mystery — this will create some curiosity and make your profile a lot more interesting.

In an article certified dating and relationship coach Adelle Kelleher wrote for Well+Good, she reveals that she met her husband on a dating app (yup, it really can happen!), and the reason she reached out to him was because he mentioned that, despite having a career in business, he actually dreamed of being a ninja. Kelleher says that bit of information had her so curious that she couldn't help but message him to learn more.

This is a perfect example of creating some intrigue and making your bio extra interesting. If Kelleher's now-husband wrote an entire essay about why he wanted to be a ninja, Kelleher likely wouldn't have read all of it, much less reached out to him to learn more. Keep that in mind when you write your own bio. "Keep your profile honest, fun, and interesting. You want what you present to stand out, stop someone in their swiping tracks, and connect with them," Kelleher says. Make a list of things that make you interesting and use that to create some intrigue in your own bio.

We've already established that it's important to know what you want when you create your dating app bio, but something else you should include is your end goal: do you just want a casual fling, or are you looking for a serious long-term relationship? When your bio clearly states your goals, it makes your profile more attractive to the right people.

"The partner who knows what they want is the partner who'll get what they want. Far too often, we enter dating without stating our true desires," relationship expert Susan Winter tells Bustle. She adds that many people mistakenly think that not being too specific about their end goal will help them get more matches. While that might initially be the case, there's a big chance those matches won't be what you're looking for because your end goals don't align. "Without your end goal clearly stated, your prospective partners will have a greater opportunity to push their agenda," Winter adds.

She encourages people to be brave enough to say exactly why they are looking to date someone from the get-go. If your main goal is to get married and have kids, state it in your bio. You'll save yourself a lot of time and disappointment, and your profile will stand out to the right people as a result.

Approaching your bio a little differently than the masses can go a long way to getting noticed by potential partners. Aside from avoiding clichés and making sure you're open about what you want out of a relationship, you should also aim to add some information that gives people a peek into what makes you unique. "Tell them what you do when you're not at work. Let your personality show in how you express yourself," former Tinder global ambassador Darcy Sterling, Ph.D., tells Cosmopolitan.

Weaving some quirkiness into your bio can make it more attractive. Start off with something that's catchy or funny — you can even reveal something that's super unique about your personality. Don't be afraid to mention your pet peeves and other random quirks that are unique to you. This can make you appear more human, approachable, and attractive, believe it or not. So in case you were wondering, yes, it's totally cool to reveal that you still religiously wear pink on Wednesdays. Now, go ahead and write a killer bio. Your next match might just be the one.