The 9 Tinder Pictures Proven To Work Best For Regular Guys
Tinder pics are a necessary evil that no guy wants to deal with.
But if you want to match with higher quality women on Tinder, you will need higher quality pictures.
This ultimate guide will explain exactly how to get your Tinder photos handled. So you can stop guessing which photos might work, and start matching with more cute girls on Tinder.
Why listen to me? I’m a Personal Dating Assistant. My team & I have been scientifically scoring Tinder pics for guys for over 3 years.
I’ve tested Tinder profile pics with dogs. I’ve tried funny Tinder pics. We’ve even gone for shirtless selfies, just to make sure they’re as bad as women say (and they have their place!).
I don’t pretend to know what the best Tinder picture is going to be for every guy. But if you follow this guide, along with our other Tinder tips, you’ll have success.
How To Take Good Tinder Profile Pictures
- 1. High quality photos get more matches than cell phones pics. So work with a professional. If you can't afford one, get a friend with a digital SLR camera, and treat them to lunch after.
- 2. Think about something funny to get a genuine looking smile. If that's not your style, narrow your eyes, smirk, or just look away from the camera.
- 3. Don't expect drastically different match rates with different high quality pictures. Focus on incremental improvements instead.
- 4. Asking for outside female opinions on your best Tinder photos is a great starting point. But not reliable for optimizing your actual match rate.
- 5. Getting a Superlike from women on Tinder is super rare. If you get one, it's kind of a big deal.
- 6. Invest a significant time commitment in the messaging process, or hire a Personal Dating Assistant to get success on Tinder.
Online Dating Pictures - The Conventional Tips
A landmark 2010 blog post from Okcupid laid the groundwork for what would become the best practices on dating pictures for guys.
Some of the counter-intuitive takeaways said that men’s photos are most effective when they look away from the camera and don’t smile.
Problem is, lots of the stuff that worked for online dating back in 2010 is completely different now, in the age of A.D.D. dating apps.
More recently, the makers of the photo scoring tool Photofeeler published an article claiming that this old Okcupid advice that guys had been following as gospel was wrong. That in fact, smiling and looking at the camera can be ok, depending on a zillion other factors.
But both of these sources have problems. Okcupid compared big groups of similar photos, rather than a more controlled A/B split test using 2 different photos from the same man. And while the Photofeeler test did this (and hats off to them for it), they simply collected opinion, rather than plot actual matches or messaging behavior on a live online dating platform.
So I solved this by doing both. Controlled A/B split tests, on the live Tinder app itself.
Tinder Pics Tested
1. Casual Clothes VS Dressed Up
When taking photos for Tinder, I tell my clients to go for 1 uptown look (suit, no tie), and 1 downtown look (ie. cool leather jacket). In Jason’s example here, his hoodie is more casual than I’d normally want to see, but because it’s such a high quality shot, I’ve let it slide. While a nice suit with no tie is always a classic.
Super Casual
Jason, 28
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Overly casual outfit
Dressed Nice
Jason, 28
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. High contrast colors
Analysis
Conclusion
- It's worth dressing up for your Tinder photo. While it won't revolutionize your dating life, the incremental boost will gain you a few extra matches when compared to slumming it.
2. Smile VS Stoic Tinder Pics
When I was choosing someone for the smile test, I picked a ridiculously handsome dude, specifically with a great smile. Joseph has a movie star smile for sure. He looks a little like Hugh Jackman, or Matt Healy.
Stoic
Joseph, 35
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Narrow "squinched" eyes
Smile
Joseph, 35
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Genuine smile
Analysis
Conclusion
- If you've got a great smile, definitely lead with it for your main Tinder photo. If your smile is average, or not coming across as genuine, it's better to go with a stoic lead Tinder photo.
3. Looking At The Camera VS Looking Away
Another long observed dating picture commandment says that it’s better for guys to look away from the camera than to look directly into it. The reasoning is that you’ll come across as more mysterious, cool, and appear to have more important things going on than having your picture taken for Tinder. So let’s put this advice to the test:
Look Away Serious
Joseph, 35
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Narrow "squinched" eyes
Look Away Smile
Joseph, 35
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Genuine smile
Analysis
Also interesting is that despite feedback saying they preferred his smile picture, women were happy to match with Joseph smiling or not. Ok, back to the average guys!
Conclusion
- Rather than thinking in terms of making eye contact vs looking away, focus on making your facial expression as genuine as possible.
- When having an eye contact picture taken, you should squinch your eyes in a chill way (takes practice!), or be in a great mood while thinking about something ridiculously funny. This will cause the correct facial muscles around your mouth & eyes to tighten in a realistic, convincing way.
4. Picture With A Dog VS Solo
Another long held piece of online dating dogma says that dating pictures with animals are natural chick magnets.
And at 97% smart, trustworthy and attractive, women rated David’s picture below with his dog as one of the best Tinder pictures possible. But does that mean they actually want to match with and date him too?
Solo
David, 28
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Fake smile
- 1. Overly bright lighting
- 1. Head tucked back rather than protruding forward produces a fat neck special effect
With A Dog
David, 28
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- 1. Genuine smile
Analysis
So much for dogma.
David & his beastly companion matched on the low’ish side of average for Tinder pictures. With only 7 & 10 matches over 250 swipes, things weren’t clicking as well as I’d hoped for this dynamic duo. What went wrong? I can’t say for sure. But I have 3 theories.
For one, with the lush green background and bright lightning, David looks more stock photo’y than our other guys. Almost as if he walked out of a pet calendar rather than a guy with real Tinder profile pics
Conclusion
- While a cute dog will make you look more trustworthy & kind, kindness doesn't translate to more women wanting to hook up with you on Tinder.
- Pics with pets still work great on more traditional, relationship'y dating sites like Match.com. And a must for datemypet.com!
5. Cool VS Approachable
Too Cool For School
Ty, 26
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 25)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Suns out, guns out
- Sunglasses hide his eyes
Approachable
Ty, 26
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 25)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Low angle signals height
- Very dark lighting on his left side
Analysis
Conclusion
- The online dating advice columns are right about this one. Lose the sunglasses. Double your Tinder matches.
6. Instagram Filter VS Normal
Vintage Filter
Cho, 27
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Painfully generic background & style
No Filtering
Cho, 27
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Painfully generic background & style
Analysis
Conclusion
- Sadly, slapping on an Instagram filter won't get you more matches on Tinder (if only...)
- But while Tinder is a trendy app, using a trendy vintage photo filter can make a younger guy appear 1 point cooler. For older men on Tinder, a vintage filter will just make you look older.
7. Pretty Girls With You, VS Rolling Solo
With Girls
Chris, 25
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 25)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Can't see his face clearly
No Girls
Chris, 25
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 25)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Can't see his face clearly
Analysis
Conclusion
- The jury is out on this one until further notice. Until then, we still assume pictures with girls repel more than attract in most cases.
8. Low Quality VS High Quality
Cell Phone Quality
Matthew, 38
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
- Handsome devil
Digital SLR Quality
Matthew, 38
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 37)
- Handsome devil
Analysis
This test proved what my fellow Personal Dating Assistants & I have been preaching for a long time; picture quality matters.
It’s still shocking to me when new members come to us for help, but remain unwilling to invest in high quality photos for their dating profiles. This super simple upgrade is a proven way to get more matches on Tinder, or any other dating site.
The higher quality photo taken here was by an amateur, with dark lighting on the right side of my face, and it still resulted in lots more matches on Tinder. In the hands of a professional, you can get even better results.
Conclusion
- Quality photos are an easy upgrade, and always worth the investment.
9. Shirtless 6-pack VS Formal
Shirtless Selfie
Sam, 39
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 25)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Abs on Tinder: if you've got em, flaunt em
- Selfie pose
Tuxedo Formal
Sam, 39
0 miles away
Tinder activity after 250 swipes
Feedback on Photofeeler (females to age 25)
Feedback from Personal Dating Assistants
- Genuine smile
- Intriguing juxtoposition between background & outfit
Analysis
Being a comparison of extremes, this test was the biggest exception to our incremental improvements expectation. Sam in the tux got 2.5 times more matches compared to shirtless. And that’s despite him having a perfect physique.
Also note that Sam’s shirtless pic suggests he’s taking a selfie. While it’s not an actual seflie, the shot still suggests vanity, which probably resulted in fewer matches had he been throwing a football, or doing something more natural.
Conclusion
- If you've got a 6 pack, that's great. But you'll probably get even more matches on Tinder by throwing on a bowtie.
For Science! How We Evaluate Tinder Pics
Each Tinder profile picture was tested on a brand new account. We always test this way, because Tinder awards new accounts a special visibility boost, prioritizing the pics to the top of all local women’s swipe deck queues.
After a few days of glory, the bonus visibility is lost, and new profiles bump you out of the top spot, often to the point of having hardly any new matches on Tinder at all. (If you’re having this problem, read Mia’s article on how to get matches again on Tinder.)
Setting up multiple accounts is not easy. Tinder only allows 1 new account activation per phone number (VoIP numbers don’t work for validation). After I ran out of friends to borrow phones for activations, I had to start buying new numbers. Here at PDA, we only get paid if we can make guys more successful on Tinder, so it’s worth it for us to have good data.
Tinder allows for about 125 swipes per day for free accounts, before showing you the dreaded “Get Tinder Plus” upgrade screen. Each test result here is after using the maximum daily swipes for free accounts. Pro tip; 1 day and 125 swipes is plenty of time to get a rough idea if your lead Tinder photo is good or not.
To get a big match pool, all tests were GPS spoofed to New York City.
Finally, with so many profiles to keep track of, we manage our Tinder for desktop PC, rather than actual phones. Stay tuned for an article on that too.
Because we have a strict privacy policy covering our actual clients, all of the examples I tested here were created from licensed stock photos.
To control for pictures only, none of our Tinder profiles had a bio filled out.
I deleted any promotional matches or messages. They didn’t count towards the totals. At the time of these tests, Tinder has completely terminated the fake profiles & bots that once plagued the app (for now).
For matching, I right swiped on almost every girl, with an occasional left swipe so I didn’t get flagged as a bot.
How We Solicited Feedback
To gauge general sentiment, I ran each Tinder photo through a scoring tool called Photofeeler. It gives us a rough guide as to how women feel about a given dating picture, when compared to others.
95% attractive means that Cho was rated more attractive than all but 5% of other men seen by the tool. At this rate, you might expect he can just kick back, and get tons of Tinder matches.
Unfortunately for Cho, what women say as feedback, and how they actually behave on the dating apps are 2 very different things. Sorry bud, but you’re gonna have to work for it like the rest of us!
“What Do The Experts Think About Tinder Pictures?
Here’s what the Personal Dating Assistants think about Tinder photos;
Female Opinion From Mia Topalian - Personal Dating Assistant
“Tinder pictures ARE the profile. When choosing photos, I make sure that even if someone doesn’t read a word of the bio, the pictures paint a clear portrait of what my client is about.”
Male Opinion From Matthew Violette - Personal Dating Assistant
“I’d say the best Tinder picture is where there’s some object of interest, or activity, that makes her wonder what it’s all about. Sort of like peacocking, but with intrigue”
Female Opinion From Karen O'Connel - Personal Dating Assistant
“I always recommend photos that show off something cool you like to do, and demonstrate your Attractive Archetype.”
Want To Know The Best Tinder Pictures For You?
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Online dating is hard. But you can outsource your efforts to a Personal Dating Assistant, and have it done for you. Imagine what life would be like, with regular dates setup for you, on a silver platter?
- 1. We Take Over Your Online Dating Profiles
- 2. We Find Women Who Meet Your Criteria
- 3. We Send Messages, Generate Interest, Suggest a Date, and Get Her Phone Number
- 4. The Rest, Is Up To You!
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An attraction technologist at heart, he travels the world in search of beautiful women, new ways to help men with their online dating, and the perfect single malt whiskey.
His column runs Tuesdays.
- The 9 Tinder Pictures Proven To Work Best For Regular Guys - March 25, 2017
- How To Write Dating Profile Headlines That Women Love - March 2, 2017
- Clever Usernames For Dating Made Easy: PoF, Okcupid And Match - February 24, 2017
Wow so much to learn
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/918bcac2b4fd3e7564c8d09bbc100375eceb11841c4a0568c6d496dfaf22e662.png
Are you kidding me? There’s no way that guy with the dog in the picture would have 98% attractive rating in photofeeler. He can get matches for sure, but there’s no way that people would rate him very attractive in photofeeler with such rate.
I’m surprised too by the results of this stuff. But keep in mind “attractive” doesn’t mean they’d respond, or even be interested in going out with him. It’s an A/B split test. They simply rated him “more” attractive than the 98% of other random guys he was compared to.
Another sad but probably true article. How evil has our world become? Or has it always been that way. Lol.
I learned two things from this article – 1. The people that run tinder are cruel, heartless assholes (ELO? Shameful and just plain wrong. This can legit cause psychological issues for some when in reality, it’s not real, just an unfair, cruel, and assholish algorithmic judgement placed upon their profile) 2. Your ‘personal dating assistant’ is an overly judgemental bitch.
Hey, nice article. I’m wondering, you said none of the profiles had bio’s to control for photos, but did each profile only contain one photo? Or were there others that weren’t shown in the article? Thanks!
Yeah just 1 photo was used per profile. It was done that way to control for any perceived differences that might have happened. Probably would have had more matches overall with 2 or 3 pictures.