What Are the Best Hinge Video Prompts?

Hinge has not published a ranking, so no prompt is proven best. The best one for your profile is the one you can answer with a single real scene: your dog going wild at the leash, you at the stove with a dish you are proud of, you laughing at a joke you set up yourself. When Hinge launched Video Prompts, it named "Hi from me and my pet" and "I'm a 10 but" among the most popular, and both reward the same thing. They point the camera at something that is already happening.

Men tend to scroll the list and pick a prompt that sounds clever. That is backwards. A clever prompt you cannot answer with a real moment produces a man talking to a camera, and that is the version she is least likely to enjoy.

Go the other way. Think of the three most watchable things in your life: a pet, a place, a skill, a ridiculous friend, a ritual like Sunday cooking. Then look through the prompts in the app for the one that fits. The list in your app may not match the two names used here, so read what is on screen when you open it.

"Hi from me and my pet" has a built-in scene. A dog or cat is already doing something, and it is doing it without acting. She gets to see how you treat an animal, whether you are patient or rough, and whether you laugh when the animal ruins your take.

Keep it simple. Get down to the animal's level, say hello in a normal voice, and let whatever happens happen. A stiff, rehearsed introduction beside a pet is worse than none, because the animal makes the stiffness obvious. If you do not have a pet, do not borrow one. A woman who meets you will notice.

"I'm a 10 but" is a joke format. The first half is a bold claim, and the second half is a small, self-aware flaw. The flaw is where the whole thing lives.

The rules for the flaw are the same as for any joke at your own expense. It should be a harmless quirk: I steal fries, I narrate films while they play, I own too many kitchen gadgets. It should not be a real worry, such as being broke, being lonely or having a temper. Say it with a half-smile, and let the pause do the work.

This prompt is also easy to film in one take. You say the line, you react a little, and you stop. There is no setup to explain.

The strongest ones, in general, ask you to show a thing instead of describing it. A prompt about a skill, a place or a favorite ritual lets you film the thing itself. Twenty seconds of you doing the task shows her more than a minute of you explaining that you love it.

Pick one that shows a side of you your photos do not already show. If your photos are all outdoors, use the video for your kitchen or your friends. A video that repeats the photos wastes the slot.

Some prompts invite the worst version of a video.

• Prompts that ask you to describe yourself. You end up sitting in the middle of the frame listing facts, which is the interview version of a clip.
• Prompts that ask for a performance. A forced impression or a dance you do not enjoy shows her a man who is uncomfortable.
• Prompts that repeat your written ones. She has just read the same idea. A second helping adds nothing.
• Prompts where the honest answer is a long story. A story needs more than thirty seconds and a cut, and Hinge's launch announcement put the length at up to thirty.

If a prompt makes you reach for a speech, put it back.

a dating coach's advice for any set of prompts is to show a three-dimensional person, not the same trait repeated. Look at what your written answers already say. If they are funny, make the video warm. If they are quiet, make the video the one place she sees you being playful. The video should add a side of you, not echo one.

Put the strongest answer early, too. My rule is to lead with what shows value and keep the soft, comfortable material for later. If the video is your best material, it should sit near the top of the page.

Film both. Each takes a couple of minutes, and you will know within a minute of watching them back. Play each once with the sound on and once with it off. With the sound off, do you look at ease? With it on, would you want a drink with the man talking?

Pick the one where you look relaxed, even if the prompt is the less exciting one. A calm clip of an ordinary prompt beats a tense clip of a clever one, every time. And if neither take looks easy, leave the slot empty and fix your photos and written answers first.