
You've been on Bumble for a while and you thought everything was going okay. You've gotten matches, exchanged messages, and maybe even gone on dates.
But then you start to notice something... it's been a while since you've gotten any new matches.
You try updating your bio, and even adding new photos, but nothing seems to help. New matches just aren't coming.
And that's when you remember something you read about online: the Bumble shadowban. Could that be what's happening to you?
Shadow bans are a hot topic online, from dating apps to social media. No one seems quite sure whether they're real, why they happen, or how to get out of them.
That's why we're going to break it all down for you here — so you'll understand what's happening, how to fix it, and how to go back to getting more matches on Bumble.
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Here is the outline of the article, feel free to jump to the section that interests you the most.
The idea of a shadow ban is simple — rather than simply banning users, the platform simply makes it harder for other users to find them or their content. This can mean anything from suppressing your visibility in search, limiting views to users who already follow you, or making you essentially invisible.
Every platform has its own version of the practice, and since most keep their policies a secret, there's a lot of speculation online about how exactly shadow bans work. We talk extensively about the Tinder version in our article about Tinder Shadowban. That couold help you understand the case better.
So does the Bumble shadowban exist? According to Bumble, no. In a blog post, they claimed that there's no such thing as a Bumble shadowban.
But that hasn't stopped plenty of Bumble users from being sure that's the problem when they stop getting Bumble matches, especially after they've tried improving their Bumble profiles along with other possible solutions.
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Before you do anything drastic like deleting Bumble and making a new account it's worth making sure that a Bumble shadowban is really the problem you're having.
Here are some things you can do to test whether you're dealing with a Bumble shadowban, or whether you're having a different problem.
Swipe for a while and see if you get any new Bumble matches. If you're dealing with a Bumble shadowban, you'll get zero matches. So if it's just that you're getting fewer matches than usual or fewer than you'd like, you're dealing with a different problem.
Try using Bumble coins, Spotlights, and SuperSwipes. It's possible that you just needed a little boost to get matches and while it can be annoying to rely on paid features, sometimes they really do make a difference.
Give it time. As we explain below, sometimes there just aren't that many users in your area and you need to wait a little while for the dating pool to get bigger before you can land another match.
Because Bumble says there is no Bumble shadowban, that means we're just guessing at the details. Similar to a Hinge shadowban, the users who have researched this issue haven't come up with a definitive answer. Answers online range from one week, to two months, to the ban being a permanent issue.
Starting over with a new Bumble account is a big enough hassle that it's worth waiting a while to make sure the problem doesn't go away on its own. Especially if you live in an area that dosn't have a ton of Bumble users, you may find that simply waiting a while means that new users show up for you to match with.
Give Bumble a break for a little while, focus on other things, and if you must, spend time on your Tinder account for a while instead.
Small aside. Did you know it is possible to make your profile more attractive in 2 minutes and get more matches every day?
Thanks to our Artificial Intelligence trained on 10,000+ pictures rated by hot girls, you will be able to access personalized feedback and tips to boost your dating profile for good.
You will know exactly which pictures are good or not, and most importantly why.
So, what are you waiting for to take charge of your dating life?
There are a few things that are likely to get you into trouble on Bumble or on other dating apps.
The first reason you might be blocked, banned, or warned is if you send inappropriate or creepy messages and get reported by other users. If you're banned, it's almost impossible to get unbanned just like on Tinder or unbanned on Hinge.
Be sure to take a look at the terms of service for whatever site you're using and follow all the community guidelines — it's a lot easier to stay out of trouble in the first place.
Another problem you can run into is creating multiple accounts. This one is kind of ironic because people often create multiple accounts when they're trying to fix a problem, but most dating apps flag your account if you create too many new accounts in a short time.
Bumble and other apps also flag accounts that use third-party apps to hack the system. So if you're doing anything to automatically swipe, automatically send messages, or to try to get paid features for free, you could end up on the wrong side of a ban or other punishment.
If you're sure you're dealing with a Bumble shadowban, or if you're desperate enough to delete your Bumble profile and create a new Bumble account, here's what to do to reset your Bumble.
Delete your existing Bumble account
Create a new account using new information (depending on how you signed up before.)
New phone number
New email address
New Apple account (iOS) or Google account (Android)
New IP address (restart your WiFi router)
New credit card if you had a paid account
New smartphone device or new sim card (optional)
Build a new profile with new pictures (optional)
As you can see, there are a lot of steps here. So it's worth staying out of trouble with Bumble in the first place. Follow the rules and if you get a warning, take it seriously.
This is also why it's worth trying other improvements to your profile before starting over from scratch — you might be surprised by the results you can get by simply writing a better bio or improving your pictures.
Small aside. Did you know it is possible to make your profile more attractive in 2 minutes and get more matches every day?
Thanks to our Artificial Intelligence trained on 10,000+ pictures rated by hot girls, you will be able to access personalized feedback and tips to boost your dating profile for good.
You will know exactly which pictures are good or not, and most importantly why.
So, what are you waiting for to take charge of your dating life?
Like most things in life, the answer is "it depends." If you believe some of the talk online, especially on Reddit, Bumble is using facial recognition and might recognize your new profile if you use the same photos.
We think that's a bit extreme. But if you want to be on the safe side (and you're committed to using the same photos) then you can download an app or use an online service that will delete the EXIF data on your images before you re-upload them to Bumble.
But if you're already going to all the trouble of getting a fresh start, why not use new, better pictures too? Chances are, there's room for improvement in your photo game. It's not your fault, it's just tricky to judge pictures of yourself. If you want some help getting your pictures jsut right, check out ROAST.
Take this 2-min test to boost your dating profile for good 💪
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We hope this article helped you understand what Bumble shadowbanning is and how to fix it if you're dealing with the problem.
As we mentioned at the beginning, a Bumble shadowban is when your account is hidden from other users, which can be very frustrating if you're trying to use the app to meet new people.
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Ben is one of the best Tinder Experts I've ever met and one of the few that cracked the algorithm of Tinder. Every week, Ben is publishing new articles on ROAST, helping 5M+ of people to get more matches, dates, and find the one!