Looking For More Community? Bumble Inc. Introduces ‘Bumble For Friends’

Are you looking for more friends? You’re not alone. Loneliness is plaguing society, leaving Americans craving in-person connections. A recent Bumble survey revealed that forging new friendships online has been a game-changer for 62% of Americans, significantly alleviating their loneliness. Enter Bumble For Friends, a friendship app for finding meaningful, platonic connections near you, which serves as a solution to changing how we connect.

The app creates a new way for people to grow their friendship circles by discovering kind and fun connections in their local area, separate from the Bumble dating app. Expanding on the success of Bumble’s BFF mode, Bumble For Friends gives people a dedicated space solely for fostering meaningful friendships – making it easier than ever for people to cultivate their social circles in their local area without downloading a dating app.

The new app follows the successful BFF mode that’s been available within the Bumble app since 2016, which features three modes for romantic relationships (Date), platonic friendships (BFF), and business connections (Bizz). “Friendship has always been a critical part of Bumble’s goal to live a healthy and happy life. With feelings of loneliness and isolation at an all-time high, now more than ever is a time to prioritize self-love and friendships for our well-being. Having a dedicated Bumble For Friends app separate from the dating experience makes friendship-finding easier for people looking to make meaningful platonic connections in their area,” said Whitney Wolfe Herd, Bumble’s founder and CEO.

“People are more open to making friends online than ever before. In a recent Bumble For Friends survey, 67% of Gen-Z respondents shared that making new friends online lessened their loneliness,” Herd said. “No matter your life stage – whether it’s moving off to college, looking for a travel partner, or becoming a new mom – Bumble For Friends creates a fun way to connect with people while helping solve the extremely important issue of loneliness.”

How does Bumble For Friends work?

It starts with creating a profile that reflects the member’s personality and interests through uploading photos and showcasing hobbies that illustrate where the person is in their life and what kind of friends they’re looking to meet.

Bumble For Friends models a similar experience to Bumble Date, where members see profiles for potential friends based on shared interests, swipe right on profiles they would like to connect with, and are notified when a match is made.

Anyone currently using BFF mode with the Bumble app who wishes to migrate their profile and connections into the Bumble For Friends app can skip the setup and easily do so upon downloading and logging into the new app as an existing member.

Once a BFF profile is moved over to the Bumble For Friends app, BFF mode is no longer available in the Bumble app. The Date and Bizz functionalities remain.

Bumble For Friends is free to use and is available on the App Store and Google Play in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with more regions.

Happy connecting!