How To Stand Out No Matter the Character Limit
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I cringe every time I see these kinds of ads or articles. The make me cringe not only because they are so obviously preying on those who are struggling with online dating, but also because they don’t account for the vast differences across dating sites.
When you use a site with a constricting character limit, you can’t just use the first few lines of the longer bio you have. The language, approach, and strategy needs to be different. Read on for a guide to the full range of dating sites.
The Shortest and Longest Dating Bio Character Limits
The League
Character Limit: 190
Starting off strong at the shortest end of the spectrum is The League. Selling itself as the dating app for those with high standards, this site reviews each profile to maintain a specific pool of users.
With a strong focus on efficiency and exclusivity, they only allow a restrictive 190 characters for each user to describe themselves. For reference, that is about as long as this paragraph.
So, how to stand out? When the characters are that low, the pressure is on more than ever to make every word count. There is no sense in including anything general or broad, so focus on your specifics and what makes you unique.
Our recommendation would be to choose a core value or important quality, and connect it to a few different ways it shows up in your life. By condensing multiple things with one through-line, or one “point,” you are creating a cohesive image of yourself, one that is easy to understand even in only two sentences.
Bumble
Character Limit: 300
Next up is a jump to 300 whole characters with the playful Bumble. This app is fun, easy, and seamlessly blends your photos, text, and information to make each profile dynamic to scroll through. Notably, Bumble only allows women to send the first message, and deletes inactive chats– both features that encourage conversation.
How to stand out now that you have some breathing room? Since you’re still somewhat limited, our advice from before somewhat stands: don’t be general and focus on specifics. Words like nice, kind, or good, and just wasting your precious space.
Feel free, however, to bring in a line or two about what you are looking for– now that you have the space for it. Keep in mind that you have a few questions that you can answer in addition to your bio, so make sure you are never repeating yourself.
Hinge
Character Limit 150 (For Each Question)
Hinge is unique in that it doesn’t offer a simple “About Me” section, but instead allows you to select and answer three specific questions. This is great for people who have trouble openly writing about themselves, but poses the challenge of including all relevant details about yourself within the context of answering these questions.
Our advice is to first write down what you consider to be essential. What would a potential date need to know? What is most important?
Once you have that established, pick questions that lend themselves directly. Some can get wrapped up in the task of answering these questions, and forget that the point is to represent yourself.
Tinder
Character Limit: 500
Coming in at the midpoint of the word-count-spectrum, Tinder is versatile. If you’ve used tinder, you know that some take advantage of all 500 characters, and some leave you with little more than an emoji.
At this character limit level you now have some breathing room. Not enough to ramble about every detail, but enough to structure a few short paragraphs. You can have one about your life approach, one about your hobbies, and one about what you’re looking for in a partner.
When writing for tinder, I use the space efficiently and use it completely. With 500 characters, I keep a 2:1 ratio of writing about you, and what you are looking for.
E-harmony
Character Limit: 500 (For Each Question)
Now we’re cooking. 500 luxurious characters to describe yourself and then 500 more for each subsequent question. At this point you don’t need to worry about using every character.
When writing bios, I love having this extra room to go into more detail. I now not only have the chance to include your fascination with horror movies, but also where it comes from and what intrigues you so much. These extra details make your character more dynamic, dimensional, and real. You’re so much more than a list of character traits and hobbies, and your bio should show that.
How to stand out with longer text? Your first line is very important. When bios are longer, you can assume that most people are just reading the first line. Maybe skimming the rest. If you’re lucky. Don’t waste your first line with a joke or crowd-pleaser. Be open direct, and use your first line to say who you are, and what you’re looking for.
Match.Com
Character Limit (Unlimited?)
You’ve reached green pastures and unlimited word count. You can write to your hearts desire. At this level there’s no worry about not fitting everything in. Instead, keep an eye out for rambling, venting, or going off on tangents.
How to stand out when you have no character-limit is a matter of good, direct writing. Use your best judgment, and if you feel lost, don’t be scared to get some help.
Remember, similarly to before, the first line matters the most. For many, it will be the only thing they read.
