Building a profile on a popular dating app is an excellent way of getting out there, but once you start swiping you realize you’re really putting yourself out there.
You’re swiping past cousins, swiping past colleagues, swiping past exes. And everyone you swipe on might see you, too.
There are plenty of good reasons you might not want someone to know you’re on Bumble (as well as a few bad ones too). Well, assuming you’re not trying to hide your Bumble account for nefarious reasons, I’m here to help.
So can you go invisible on Bumble? Yes. The Premium feature called “Incognito mode” allows you to hide your profile from everyone until you swipe right on them. You’re totally invisible until you choose to show yourself to certain profiles.
You can also snooze Bumble so that no new Bumble users see your account, but you can’t swipe on others while you’re snoozed so it’s not much good unless you want a full break from the app.
Incognito mode has a few pros and cons. It lets you go private on Bumble so that nobody can see your account if you don’t want them to. But it’s not free – you need a Bumble Premium account to access Bumble’s Incognito feature.
And the other major downside is that you won’t get any likes from people that you haven’t already liked yourself. That might mean fewer right swipes for you overall.
Still, if you have some conservative family members or hung-up exes that you want to avoid at all costs, you need to know everything about how Bumble works and how to use Incognito Mode to your advantage.
How To Use Bumble Incognito Mode
As well as making you feel like some secret-identity superhero, Bumble Incognito mode has a few practical benefits. You can go invisible from anyone you don’t want to be seen by.
To be private on Bumble, you need to be a Bumble Premium Member so you’ll have to sign up for paid Bumble first. Here’s how to get Bumble Premium
- Tap on the grey “person” icon to open your Profile.
- Tap on “My pay plan”
- Scroll to Premium and hit Upgrade
- Select the timeframe you want to subscribe for.
- Click “Continue”.
- Input your card details and hit Subscribe.
Now you have Bumble Premium you can turn on Incognito Mode for super-secret swiping. Here’s how to turn on Bumble Incognito.
- Open Bumble and hit the “person” icon to open your profile.
- Open Settings by tapping the “gear” icon.
- Scroll down to “Incognito Mode” and toggle it on.
Now you’re totally invisible on Bumble until you swipe right on someone. Then you’ll turn up in that Bumble user’s swipe deck and they’ll become a potential match.
Remember, when you have Incognito Mode, you can’t get any Likes from people you haven’t swiped on. That means there’ll be nobody in your Beeline. If you’re willing to sacrifice some privacy for more potential matches, then turn off Incognito mode.
Can Bumble Users See When You’re Online?
Even the most lighthearted conversation on Bumble can be filled with subtext. Running jokes, flirty innuendo, and cheeky banter will help you seal the deal for a date.
But if you’ve left your match hanging while you come up with the killer response, you might worry she can see when you’re online, and wonder why you’ve not replied. It kind of kills your “mysterious guy” vibe.
So can Bumble users see when you’re online? No. Bumble ditched its green dot “Online Status” indicator in 2021. Bumble users can no longer see when someone’s online.
Phew! You can take your time messaging back. But don’t wait too long or she’ll be the one to turn into a ghost.
The downside to this is that you can’t see when your matches or potential matches are online.
That’s actually one advantage of your Beeline – when you get a new Like in your Beeline, you know that Bumble user is active now. You can match instantly and let the sparks fly.
Can I Temporarily Pause My Bumble Account?
Given that 80% of online daters have experienced emotional burnout, you might need a Bumble break every now and again. All that swiping can be a serious thumb workout.
So you’re wondering: can I temporarily pause my Bumble account? Yes – the Bumble Snooze feature lets you take a break from Bumble. Snoozing hides your profile from other users’ swipe decks so you won’t get any new matches. You can choose to Snooze your profile for 24 hours, 72 hours, a week, or indefinitely.
You’ll find Bumble Snooze in the settings menu. When you pause your Bumble account with Snooze you can still chat with your active matches. But your swipe deck will be hidden so you can’t like new profiles, or make any new matches.
If you’re suffering from the Bumble blues, then take a break or check out their Safety and Wellbeing Centre for more digital well-being tips.
Now’s the time to write that college essay you’ve been putting off, go see your friends in real life or just focus on the matches you’ve already made. Life doesn’t have to revolve around swiping.
Does Bumble Hide Inactive Profiles?
Of course, there’s another way to take a break from Bumble and that’s to hide the app in a neglected corner of your home screen and not log in. Technically, you haven’t snoozed your profile but you are inactive.
Let’s get this straight: you shouldn’t be losing sleep over when and whether those profiles you swiped on are going to Like you back. There are plenty of Bees in the sea after all. But it would be nice to know you’re not wasting your swipes on inactive profiles.
So does Bumble hide inactive profiles? Yes, any user who hasn’t logged into their Bumble account in 30 days will be hidden. Once someone logs into Bumble, their account will be reactivated and they will appear in other users’ swipe decks again.
That’s not great for peace of mind. 30 days is a long time – she could have traveled to the moon and back five times, had a whirlwind romance and gotten married, or reached enlightenment on a Buddhist retreat in that time.
The Bumble algorithm doesn’t penalize users who take a break from the app either, so it’s possible people in your swipe deck haven’t been online in a while. But don’t overthink it, the swipe deck is deep and there are plenty of active users in there waiting to match.
Wrapping Up
For the ultimate in online dating privacy, you need Bumble Incognito. You’re invisible to everyone until you choose to reveal yourself.
Of course, half the fun of online dating is watching the Likes come pouring in. But sometimes privacy takes precedence – snooping coworkers and eccentric exes might make Incognito swiping worth paying for.
If you feel like snoozing Bumble for a while, try my dating app quiz to see which app you should take for a spin.
