Dating app dealbreakers: 10 daters reveal reasons why you’re getting swiped left

We talked to 10 daters to unearth the hilarious, harmless, and sometimes nonsensical reasons why our index finger swooshes “X” on those little profile squares.

1. Blank bios

“No pictures, no info — it is an automatic swipe left for me. This shows that they might not be putting in the effort required to find a good match,” – Devansh Gill, 25, content manager.

2. Too Many Thirst Traps

“Many profiles seem to prioritise physical appearance over everything else. While physical attraction matters, when that’s all a person offers, it leaves me wondering if there’s more to the person than just their looks. I do enjoy the occasional shirtless picture, but when everything seems focused on presenting this perfect, curated image, it feels like the person is probably lacking substance, or it’s just me who is a little old school and wants to know someone for who they truly are,” – Vishikha Chugh, 28, publicist.

3. The Group Photo Posse

“If they have group pictures, it’s an instant no-no for me. Who are all these random people and what are you trying to hide?” – Fenny Shah, 27, public relations professional.

4. Bad Grammar

“Call me a grammar Nazi, but as a writer, proper English is important to me. When people use incorrect spellings or abbreviations, it immediately puts me off,” – Sanskriti Ramachandran, 20, journalist.

5. Cheese connoisseur

“If you copy cringe-worthy or cheesy pickup lines on your bio right from Google, thinking it’s funny…you’re clearly misunderstood. You might think you look cool, but honestly, you just look like a fool. Please be original at least,” – Gurleen Kaur, 26, public relations specialist.

6. Political Leanings

“One of the most important things for me is the person’s political ideology. If they’re apolitical, it’s a hard no. Of course, it’s hard to gauge that from simply a profile, making their political leanings visible just makes it so much easier to decide,” – Ava Gilder, 26, PR manager.

7. “Figuring Out Your Dating Goals”

“A lack of clear intentions makes me go ‘boy, bye’. Answering the prompt, “what are you looking for?” with a “not decided yet” just shows the person’s indecisiveness. It can be confusing going forward, and raises doubts about the person’s sincerity or honesty,” – Tanya Chaudhary, 33, associate director at a PR agency.

Are you making these dating profile faux pas? (Source: Freepik)

8. Sexually Explicit Messages

“If from the get-go, the guy has sexually suggestive content on his profile, whether it’s looking for a ‘dom’ or ‘sub’ to their kinks, it just comes off as creepy and desperate,” – Swarupa Tripathy, 26, journalist.

9. So-called ‘Woke’ Bois

“The holy trinity: A “feminist“, poet, man in a kurta. It’s not a mere red flag, it’s lava on the floor and anyone who steps in it shall be ash in seconds. I acquiesce not all of them are Devil incarnate. But more than most are hiding their just as hideous patriarchal values under their Chikankari kurta sleeves, let’s be honest,” – Rishika Singh, 24, journalist.

10. #420

“If your whole personality is using drugs, whether it’s weed or hash, it is a big red flag. Will we ever be able to have a genuine, sober conversation? Sure, you can roll a perfect joint but if your idea of a perfect date is smoking up together, then it’s a pass,” – Saumya Rastogi, 26, journalist.