Relationships
7 Things That Should Be Mandatory To Include In Your Dating App Profile

by Elana Rubin

Dating is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get. That's what Forrest Gump said, right? Regardless if that's the exact line or not, it's true. Swiping and chatting with potential dates on dating apps can be a way of getting to know a person, but in reality, you could be greeted by many surprises on an actual date with them. So, I'm suggesting things to include in a dating app profile so the people you swipe on give you necessary info ahead of time. Service journalism, y'all.

When a person includes information like their religion, sports team allegiance, or how many Beanie Babies they have been collecting for years, they're giving you insight into your potential compatibility and a set of possible conversation starters. If you want a partner who shares your faith, it may benefit all involved if it were listed on their bio from the start. If you can't stand the Celtics, seeing "Boston native" alone in someone's bio may urge you against swiping. Maybe that's too petty. Or maybe it's just the right amount. For me, knowing if you're a cat person (I'm allergic) or ridiculously messy as a warning would be nice. But generally speaking, here are some things other people should include in their dating app bio that would just benefit everyone involved.

How many roommates you have, if you have any.

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There is literally nothing less romantic than walking into a glorified frat or sorority house when going home with your date. If there are a ton of people hanging out, or the bathroom is cluttered with their roommates' messes, you'll likely be annoyed. A solution to this problem? If they say they have messy roommates in their profile, you go home to your cleaner apartment instead.

If you slurp soup.

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OK this may just be a huge personal pet peeve of mine, but I get so uncomfortable when other people slurp soup. On occasion, I've even asked my family members to Stop Doing That. I'm not going to not see someone altogether because of the soup-slurping, but it would be great to have a head's up beforehand. Please just swallow your damn soup like a civilized human being. Thanks!

What your work schedule is like.

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Not everyone works a typical nine-to-five. Knowing ahead of time if someone works nights and weekends, or is a consultant that is gone from town Monday through Thursday would certainly be important information to have.

Your height.

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OK, one physical attribute inclusion doesn't make me superficial, right? Right. I know this is a thing many people like to see on dating apps, so they know how tall that person is.

For people with a preference for dating someone that's a particular height, this bio inclusion could make or break someone. For me, height isn't a huge factor, but I like when peoples' bios acknowledge the demand for including that piece of information, like "5'8", but 6' with heels."

You're a ghoster 👻.

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Sorry, but the only ghost I like is Casper (he's a friendly ghost), and I would definitely want to know if someone has a history of peacing out without explanation. I'm all about communication, and if they're too scared to be upfront about their disinterest and ghost away, I'd rather know in their dating bio than investing in dating them to only be ghosted. 👻

You're leaving town soon.

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Whether it's a new job, graduate school, or taking a year-long solo trip around the world, putting that they're leaving town soon in their bio would be a great idea. It would tell future daters from the start that they're probably not looking for anything serious right now.

And hey, people may even like matching with someone who's leaving soon – there are definitely folks who enjoy hook-ups or brief flings, and them leaving town could be a good indicator they'd be down for that, too.

You just got out of a relationship.

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It's a little bit frustrating to be talking to someone, enjoying getting to know them, and then have everything come to an immediate halt because they're still dealing with drama from a previous relationship.

So maybe it would be easiest to put that info right in their Tinder bio – something like, "Hey don't like me too much because I am emotionally unavailable to like you back RN. Thanks!" Should do the trick.