If you dream of a spontaneous meet-cute where you and your soulmate just happen to find each other, some dating apps might seem too calculated. But apps like happn bridge the gap between algorithmic matches and serendipitous encounters, blending profile bios with missed connections.
This happn review will tell you everything you need to know about the online dating app, so you can decide if it’s right for you. Our dating experts leave no link unclicked and no feature untested to give you the real deal on how the app performs and where its strengths and weaknesses are. Read on to learn more!
How Does happn Work? It’s All About Location
The happn app launched in 2014, co-founded by Didier Rappaport, Fabien Cohen and Antony Cohen as an alternative to dating apps like Tinder and Bumble. The premise of the app is simple: put your daily movements around the town or city you live in to work for you. Each happn member gets a daily timeline of potential matches based on whose paths they have crossed throughout the day.
The app runs in the background on your device, and makes a note whenever you pass within a few kilometers (about a mile and a half or so) of another happn user. Whenever you want, you can check your timeline of close encounters and check out the profiles you come across. You can “like” the profile, which won’t show up for the other user unless they feel the same way about you, or send them a FlashNote to get their attention. If you and the other person both express interest, you get a Crush, which opens up the lines of communication.
So how well does the dating app happn work? A profile on the company from 2016 on Business Insider showed the online dating platform was making big moves in the industry, with 1 million users in the UK alone. The current statistics for the app show 100 million users globally, 4.9 million messages sent per day, and 1.5 million new users signing up every month. The happn mobile app is most popular in major cities like London, São Paolo, New York, and Paris. But as it continues to grow, you’re likely to find other happn users in most moderately sized cities and towns.
The happn App Cost Breakdown
The basic experience on happn is free of charge, and readily available. Anyone can download the mobile app from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store, and get started on finding a potential match, all without paying for anything.
However, like many dating apps and sites, happn also offers a premium subscription option for singles who want exclusive perks. The happn premium membership isn’t the cheapest out there, but the cost is still pretty reasonable. Here are the rates to get premium perks on happn:
- $24.99 for one month
- $89.99 for six months
- $119.99 for a full year
What do you get as a premium member that you don’t get as a basic member? According to happn itself, you get an ad-free experience that lets you schedule periods of being in “Invisible Mode,” which keeps you from showing up in other happn user timelines. You also get perks like the ability to see who has liked your profile without having to like theirs first, lets you hide some personal information about yourself, and gives you expanded access to different communication tools on the app.
A premium happn account also gives you better access to Crush Time, an in-app game that serves up a grid featuring four different profiles and lets you guess which of the four potential matches already liked your profile. Free users can also access CrushTime, but the game is tricky. The first guess is free, but you have to send a FlashNote to get another chance to guess.
Robust Safety Features Protect happn Users
Safety is a major concern for online daters, and just about every dating service out there plays host to the occasional fake profile. The dating app happn takes this risk and annoyance seriously, which is why it offers robust and innovative safety features and systems to keep the platform free from scammers.
The first tool happn offers is the ability to certify your happn profile in-app, to reassure other members that you’re legit. The process is simple: Take a video of yourself doing a particular move dictated by the app, and you’re done! In addition to showing other people that you’re bona fide, going through the certification step gives you the option to only Crush with other certified members, reducing the risk of running into a scammer.
Another way happn keeps things safe for its members is the robust flagging and reporting system. If you encounter a profile that sets off alarm bells in your mind, simply report it to the happn team. The happn team investigates every report, flagging profiles and checking the behavior users report to get to the bottom of things. Depending on the severity of the issue, happn may issue a written warning, restrict the account, or ban it entirely from the platform.
In the words of happn CEO Karima Ben Abdelmalek, “User safety is the number one most important element to everyone at happn, so it is essential that we communicate our process to current and prospective users. It’s not always easy to be safe online – sometimes, we fall into traps that we think we never would, so I encourage users to be vigilant at all times.”
How Successful is the happn App?
The real test of any dating app or site is its success rate, since after all it doesn’t matter how easy or fun a dating service is if it doesn’t find you dates. The happn app is a little inconsistent on that front because a lot of the success of users depends on where they are.
If you’re in a major city, especially in Europe, the app seems to work very well. But if you live in a less densely-populated area, you’re probably not going to have as many encounters with other happn users.
Some users report that they get very few matches, and that matches can be flaky about actually meeting up on happn. Other users have great things to say about the app, though, so it really depends on where you are.
Bonus Alternatives: 6 Apps Similar to happn
These six apps share many of the same great perks as happn, but they work a bit differently than this niche dating app. If there are parts of happn that don’t quite fit your style, these dating sites and apps could be a solid choice for you. They’re all highly recommended by our dating experts.
1. Match
Match.com has come a long way since it launched in April 1995. This well-reputed dating site has honed its match algorithm to identify long-term compatibility and facilitate countless first dates, serious relationships, and successful marriages. Match’s esteemed dating experts go to great lengths to guide singles to a seriously good match.
- Match is the world’s longest running dating site
- The Discover section has search filters by interests, looks, lifestyle, and more
- Match is available in 50 countries and 15 languages
- Browse Match profiles 100% free »
Match consistently comes out on top among dating sites in our experts’ ratings because the platform offers the best balance of features and price point. You can use the internet site or popular dating app version of Match, or switch between the two, which makes it a little more flexible than happn. While Match doesn’t use location tracking to serve up your potential partners, the dating site does let you filter your suggested picks based on how far away they are from you, along with other factors.
Your communications options are a little more limited on Match when you stick with the free profile, but you don’t need a premium membership to reach out to your top picks or mutual matches. Match also offers one of the largest dating pools in the world, with millions of people looking for love. That will improve the odds that you’ll find someone who’s perfect for you.
2. NaughtyCharm
NaughtyCharm invites singles to walk on the wild side and explore their sexuality in a fun, free-wheeling environment. This adults-only dating site is full of flirty photos, and many profiles go by a nickname because they prefer to leave some things to the imagination. Premium subscribers get the most bang for the buck because they can send messages, browse incognito, and receive alerts when their messages have been read by someone special.
- Sexually active adults in 10 countries
- Browse the Like Gallery for hot singles
- Stimulate conversation in intimate private messages
- Browse NaughtyCharm profiles 100% free »
Hookup apps and sites abound out there, but NaughtyCharm consistently gets top marks from our dating experts because it offers a lot to free and premium members. The dating site encourages members to put it all out there, with no shame and no stigma. Putting your profile together takes less than a minute, and you can start looking for people in your area who want a hookup. While NaughtyCharm doesn’t use location tracking the way happn does, the dating service does offer up matches based on your location.
Like happn, NaughtyCharm offers a variety of different options when it comes to making contact. FlirtCast lets you send a pre-written message to multiple members at once, and female NaughtyCharm members get access to unlimited messages as soon as they submit a profile picture. Men on NaughtyCharm are a little more restricted, with only five free messages per day at the basic membership level.
3. Facebook Dating
Facebook Dating isn’t the biggest dating platform in the world, but it’s an easy choice for people who already have a Facebook account and want to stick with singles in their own area. Facebook Dating isn’t exactly a location-based dating app the way that happn is, but the dating service uses your network of friends, along with your interests and hobbies listed on your profile, to suggest potential matches to you.
Unlike some of the other dating sites and apps on this list, you can contact anyone on Facebook Dating for free, at any time. If you’re on a tight budget, the fact that you can truly do everything you need to do on the platform without paying for anything is a big benefit. The downside is that even years after its launch, Facebook Dating still doesn’t have as many members as many other mainstream dating sites, so you won’t encounter as many matches.
A Free Online Dating Account Can Start a Path to Romance
If a great meet-cute story is a key ingredient in your romantic fantasies, using a dating app that brings real life and the digital world together is a great solution. As this happn review shows, the dating app happn lets you connect to the people who are literally all around you by serving up potential matches based on the paths you cross throughout your day.
Find your next match in the grocery store, your favorite coffee shop, or on your way to work and see where the path takes you!
