Yes, once you have a Crush. You cannot talk to another happn user straight away. Both people have to Like each other to get a Crush, and then you can chat for free. The one way to send a message before that is a SuperCrush, a personalized message that notifies the other person, and it comes with Premium. Free users can use the app, but they get a daily Like limit.

How a Crush works

A Like on happn is secret. You only find out you Liked each other if it is mutual. When it is, that is a Crush, and the chat opens.

There is no way to cold-message someone for free. The Like is the gate, and a first message cannot jump it. That puts the weight on the Like you give and the page she sees when she decides.

What a SuperCrush is

Instead of Liking, you can send a SuperCrush. It is a personalized message sent even before you get a Crush, and it notifies the other person.

With a Premium subscription you get a set of SuperCrushs, and Premium subscribers can buy more in the store. Because the supply is limited, a SuperCrush is a message to spend on a woman you have a real reason to write to.

What else is free and not free

The app can be downloaded and used for free. Its App Store description says Premium adds access to the list of people who already liked you and more SuperCrushs.

Happn has a daily Like limit for free users, and a subscription removes that limit. On happn you can only send text messages, so there are no voice notes or images in the chat.

The cost of a Like

Since a Like is the gate to a free chat, it pays to make each one count. A man who Likes everyone gets Crushes at random, and a Like limit that runs out early on people he did not want to talk to.

a dating coach treats online dating as a numbers game of ratios: Crushes per week, replies per Crush, numbers per reply, dates per number. The Like is the first ratio, and a clear page and a selective hand improve it.

Writing the first message

Once you have a Crush, you have an opening, and you are both there to talk. Write something that refers to a specific thing: the place you crossed, a detail in her page, a question she can answer in one line.

Avoid "hey" and avoid a paragraph. A short message with one question gets a reply, and a long one reads like work.

If she answers, move to a plan within a few exchanges. A conversation that has a place and a day attached is much harder to lose than one that stays in the chat.

A Crush also changes who speaks first. Either of you can open the chat once it exists, so there is no rule that the man has to wait. Send the first line yourself while the Crush is fresh, because a match that sits unanswered cools quickly, and she may have forgotten which crossing it came from.

When to spend a SuperCrush

Spend one when you have something to say that a Like cannot carry. If your page already looks strong and she is a woman you would travel across town for, a short, specific SuperCrush makes sure she notices.

A SuperCrush is not a way around a weak page. She will read the message, open your profile, and decide on the page, so spend it after the page works.

What to check before paying

The free Like limit is the other thing to watch. If it runs out before the day does, you are Liking too fast. Slow down and pick the profiles you would actually want to meet, and the limit stops mattering.

Use the free version first and count Crushes and replies. If Crushes come and conversations stall, the fix is your first message. If few Crushes come, the fix is your photos and lines, and a subscription will not change that.