Which Dating App Is the Safest for Men?

Of the big apps, Bumble lists the most safety tools, but no app can promise you are safe. Bumble offers photo and ID verification, in-app video and voice calls, an explicit-image blur and round-the-clock human moderation. Tinder, Hinge and OkCupid each offer verification of their own, and the two that talk about badges say plainly that a badge does not make anyone safe.

Most safety advice online is written for women, and a man's risks are a little different.

The common ones are scams, fake accounts and money requests. A man is also exposed when he gives out his number, workplace or home address too early, or meets a stranger without any idea who she is. Those are the risks to measure an app against, so we looked at what each app says it does about them.

All of this comes from the apps' own help pages, so it describes what they say they offer, not how well it works.

"Not listed" does not mean an app lacks the feature. It means the help pages we read did not mention it.

Bumble's own page names more tools than any other app here. The ones that matter most to a man are verification, in-app calls and scam detection.

In-app calls are the most useful for you. They let you see and hear her before you hand over a phone number. a dating coach recommends a short phone or video call before any date for the same reason, since a call shows what a badge cannot: how she talks and whether the chemistry is there.

A longer list of features does not make an app safe. It makes the app better equipped, and what you do with the tools still decides the outcome.

Tinder's blue check, Hinge's selfie check and OkCupid's video selfie check all do one job. They compare a live picture of a person with the photos on the account.

That answers one question, which is whether the woman in the photos is the woman running the account. It does not tell you her intentions, her honesty, her age or her history. Hinge and OkCupid both say a badge does not make someone safe, and Tinder says much the same about its blue check.

a dating coach points out that in major US cities Tinder carries a lot of fake profiles. A badge helps you screen those out. It does not replace your own judgment.

Whichever app you use, a few habits do most of the work.

OkCupid's safety tips are the clearest. Never send money, protect your personal information and keep the conversation on the platform early on. Any woman who asks you for money before you have met is a reason to stop talking, badge or no badge.

Keep your number, workplace and address to yourself until you have spoken and she has shown she is real. Meet in a public place the first time. Tell a friend where you are going. These rules cost nothing and they work on every app on the list.

If something feels wrong, report her and unmatch. Use the app's own tools for that, which exist because other men have had the same problem.

If safety tools decide it for you, start with Bumble and use its calls. If you live where Tinder or Hinge is the app people use, verify yourself, ask for a call, and follow the same habits.

If you want the best results for your time, safety is only one factor. Our view is to choose the app people in your city actually use, then protect yourself on it. A man who is careful on a busy app is safer than a man who relies on the badge of a quiet one.