We all know what speed dating is.

It’s an awkward hour-long period where you go on rapid-fire dates while guzzling as many drinks as you can get your hands on. And if we’re being honest, it’s not like you’re dating the most eligible bachelorettes in town.

Yet for some reason, Bumble thought it’d be a good idea to digitize this awkward American pastime, and I must say, I kind of love it. 

In March of 2023, Bumble released its speed dating feature.

Every Thursday at 7 in your timezone for an hour you have the chance to go speed dating with the ladies of Bumble in your area.

But of course Bumble’s speed dating and that super awkward speed dating event you went to recently have a few differences. Let’s detail those differences and help you succeed on your speedy dates this Thursday.

Bumble Speed Dating: How It Works

Normal speed dating basically works like this:

You and your date sit down at a table one across from the other. You have your drinks in hand and force out conversation for five minutes before a bell rings. When the bell rings you’re on to the next one. At the end of each date you take notes on how the date went, rate her compared to other women, and at the end of the event you give your card to the organizer. The organizer will then contact you the day after if you and a fellow speed dater signaled mutual interest. From there, contact info will be exchanged.

Bumble works in much the same way however there are some key differences.

Sign Up

First things first.

Open Bumble as if you were about to get your swipe on. In the upper right-hand corner you’ll see a stopwatch, click it to sign up for speed dating.

If you don’t sign up you can still do so once speed dating has already started. The only difference here is that you’ll receive a notification when speed dating has started — and who knows maybe Bumble will put you closer to the front of the queue when it comes time to speed date.

Bumble Speed Dating Rules

Before you can start dating you’ll be asked to agree to the following rules.

Dates Aren’t Guaranteed

When you sign up for speed dating IRL you are guaranteed to go on a certain number of dates.

That’s not the case when Bumble speed dating.

So far I’ve gone speed dating three times.

One time, for an entire painstaking hour I waited to speed date and ultimately went on 0 dates.

And it’s not like I was in a tiny podunk town with a population of a few thousand… I was in Barcelona.

Should Bumble not be able to match you the app will expand your dating range to help you find women that are just a bit further away.

If they can’t find you someone you’ll be confronted with the graphic above and pressured to purchase a Spotlight for $11.99. Purchasing a Spotlight boosts you to the front of the line so that your profile will be seen by more women (something I opted not to do).

3 Minute Dates

You have three glorious minutes to chat it up with your date — that’s it.

At the end of these three minutes, you’ll have the option of swiping left or right.

The second Bumble finds you a match the clock begins to tick.

It’s All Via Text

Bumble does have the option of video calls with matches, but not when speed dating. You’ll have to get your flirt on by typing out messages as fast as possible.

And don’t expect to look at her profile before or after the date is over. You’re swiping right or left almost solely on the conversation you two had. In this way, it’s really a blind speed date.

At the end of the date you’ll be presented with this graphic where you’ll be able to see your date’s face.

You won’t know immediately if you two matched or not. You’ll have to wait until 8pm to find out if you scored any matches.

How Was My Experience

All in all, it’s definitely worth a try, especially if you’re struggling to get matches. If you have an amazing personality this is the perfect way to let it shine through. The biggest issue with dating apps is their superficiality.

Speed dating is a way to address that. Without her being able to see your profile (and vice versa) the only thing you two have to go on is personality.

I found that all the women I spoke with were super responsive (they kinda had to be as you only have three minutes to chat) were ready to have a decent if not brief conversation, and were full of questions.

The major drawback was that after three sessions of speed dating spending about 45 minutes in each session I only speed-dated about 7 women. The second time I logged into speed date I wasn’t paired up with anyone and after 40 minutes of waiting around I decided to move on with my life.

I’d recommend speed dating but only if you’re in a major city. If not you might just be wasting your time. And hey, if you have the money to spend on a spotlight I’d consider using it at this time. The only issue is that while you’ll be paired with more women while speed dating, 7-8 on a Thursday isn’t an active time to be on Bumble.

There aren’t a ton of users on at this time so you’re really only exposing yourself to more speed daters who you’ll spend 3 minutes chatting with. Keep in mind that a spotlight only lasts 30 minutes so in the ideal world you use a spotlight, chat with maybe 8 or so women, and then call it quits.

While that might not sound like a high number it honestly might be better than speed dating in person where you’ll be paying $20-30 to speed date around the same amount of women but in person. Not to mention you don’t have to leave your couch to do so and in general I’d say the ladies I matched with are of a higher quality than the ladies I might find had I speed dated in person. This is because speed dating in person is often a last resort for women, whereas Bumble speed dating is something everyone takes part in regardless of how their romantic lives are going.

So how’d I fair?

Considering I’m well versed in the ways of emlovz MegaMessaging I matched with 6 out of the 7 women I spoke with. The only woman that didn’t match with me left the chat early only after finding out that I didn’t speak Catalan (as a reminder I did all my speed dating in Barcelona).

So how did I do it?

How To Dominate Bumble Speed Dating

Building a connection in just three minutes via text sounds more difficult than it is.

To get the most out of this feature you’ll need to come prepared.

Here are the tips that served me well while Bumble speed dating.

Have Your Phone In Your Hands

It sounds obvious, but remember that you only have three minutes to date.

As soon as Bumble finds you someone to date and connects you two the clock will start. If you put your phone down for a moment, aren’t paying attention, go to the fridge for a beer, etc. you could lose valuable speed dating time. If you happen to lose 60 or more seconds because of negligence you might as well not even message her. 3 minutes is difficult enough to form a connection, 120 seconds is nearly impossible.

This sounds easy but if Bumble takes you 15 minutes to find a date you’re bound to not be so attentive to your device.

My Recommendation: Make it an event so you stay locked in. 

Play some music, drink a beer, and treat it like a real speed dating session.

Come In Guns Blazing

Lucky for me, most of the women I spoke with were ready with questions, quick to respond, and ready to joke around, but not everyone is.

If that’s the case you need to be ready to start and steer the conversation.

The same no-nos that apply to regular messaging apply to speed dating.

For one, never simply message hey to start the conversation, this is nothing more than a waste of your precious time.

Instead start the conversation off by sending a message like:

Jen, here’s the scenario, the party is just getting started and you’re the DJ, what song do you play?

Steph! Tell me your deepest, darkest secret… 

Let’s see if we’re compatible or not… on our honeymoon are we going to Malta, Cannes, or flying in air balloons in Turkey?

Be sure to have these openers already in mind. Write them down beforehand so you’re not wasting any time thinking of an awesome way to start the conversation.

Once she answers, simply go with the flow. Don’t ask her what she does, how old she is, how many siblings she has, etc. Your mission is to vibe. There’s no need to waste time talking about values or dealbreakers.

Keep things positive, go with the flow, and vibe, vibe, vibe. 

Keep Your Fingers On The Keys

It’s okay if you two are talking over each other a bit.

Ideally, you’re having almost two conversations at once and you never stop talking. If you have to wait 30 seconds to receive a new message you two will only ever exchange 6 messages. Feel comfortable chatting away (read; message incessantly). If you show her your personality she’ll swipe right. It’s okay if you can’t get a good understanding of who she is before swiping right. You’ll have time to learn more about her after you two match.

Have A Quality Profile Picture

At the end of the conversation, you’ll be able to see only the first photo displayed on her profile (example below).

You want to make sure you have an HD headshot as your first profile picture. Should you have a grainy, full-body shot she won’t really be able to see what you look like and will choose not to match. You’re not able to enlarge the photo so it’s vital that you use a headshot as your first photo.

Ready To Bumble Speed Date?

So do you think you have what it takes to meet your new GF via Bumble speed dating?

If so, be sure to sign up for speed dating this Thursday at 7.

But if you think you need a profile revamp and want to learn the ways of online dating we should talk.

In our program, Dating Decoded we break down the ins and outs of profile creation and MegaMessaging.

Via our online curriculum, weekly live sessions, mock dates, and online community we teach students the ins and outs of modern dating.

To learn how we can help you get the most from online dating, book a 1-on-1 Zoom call so we can chat in detail about your dating life and your dating goals.

Learn how our students have improved their romantic lives here.