How to Avoid People You Know on Tinder

We’ve all been there before. You’re mindlessly swiping through Tinder when, all of a sudden, you see someone you know. It could be an ex, a friend of a friend, or even your boss! Talk about an awkward moment. It gets worse: if you can see them, chances are they can see you too. So how do you avoid these people and keep your Tinder experience as drama-free as possible?

That’s what we’ll cover in this article.

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Old Tricks Won’t Work

If you’re thinking aboutdeleting the Tinder appand starting fresh with a new account, think again. Tinder is pretty good at detecting when someone has multiple accounts, and you could get banned for trying to game the system in this way.

The same goes for changing your location. While this might help you avoid people in your immediate vicinity, it’s not a long-term solution, and it’s definitely not foolproof.

woman holding a phone with the tinder app on it

Others methods like choosing your photos carefully and using a fake name might help you stay under the radar for a little while, but eventually, someone is going to figure it out. Peoplerun background checks on Tinder matchesthese days. So what can you do?

Meet Tinder’s Block Feature

The best way to avoid someone on Tinder is to use the app’s built-in blocking feature. This will prevent that person from seeing your profile in their match feed. They won’t know you’ve blocked them, and you won’t have to worry about accidentally running into them while swiping.

Tinder allows you to block contacts from your phone’s address book. So if you have an ex’s number saved, you can block them right from the app. If you don’t have the person’s number saved on your phone, you can still block them using their email address instead.

Tinder logo on phone

Once you’ve blocked someone, they will no longer be able to see your profile or message you. If you change your mind, you can always unblock them later.

How to Block Contacts on Tinder

Have someone you’d rather not see (or be seen by) on Tinder? Here’s how to do it:

Since this method is mainly aimed at blocking contacts, what else can you do to avoid known people on Tinder?

Tinder logo is seen on a green background

Boosting Your Tinder Privacy Even More

Tinder’s blocking feature is a great way to avoid people you know, but it’s not perfect. There are always ways for someone to get around it if they’re determined enough, or even by accident.

For example, if you block someone’s phone number, they can still create a new Tinder account using a different number or email address. The feature will be much more effective if you could have every single one of their numbers and email addresses blocked. But how likely is that?

Screenshot of Tinder’s profile page

So while blocking someone is a good way to avoid them on Tinder, it’s not foolproof. If you really, really want to avoid someone, it might be best to turn off the “Show me on Tinder” setting altogether. This will make your profile invisible to everyone except for people you’ve already liked or matched with.

Of course, this means you won’t be able to see anyone else’s profile either, so it’s not exactly ideal. But if you’re in a situation where you need to be extra careful, it’s worth considering.

To turn off the Show me on Tinder setting, simply tap theShow me on Tindertoggle switch in your settings.

Tindering Under the Radar

No one likes running into people they know on Tinder (or any other dating app). The good news is that there are ways to avoid it. Using Tinder’s Block feature is the best way to go, but you can also turn off the Show me on Tinder setting if you need to be extra careful.

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