How Does Coffee Meet Bagel Work?

Company: Coffee Meets Bagel
Founders: Arum Kang, Dawoon Kang, Soo Kang
Year founded: 2012
Headquarter: San Francisco

Products & Services: Online Dating, Internet
Competitors: Tinder, Bumble, Hinge

Fun Fact:
Did you know that Coffee Meets Bagel was created and developed by three sisters?

Coffee Meets Bagel (CMB) is an online and social dating app based in San Francisco. The app is presented as a more meaningful version of a dating app for people who are tired of meaningless connections.

The algorithm to Coffee Meets Bagel claims to only give users quality matches based on their profile input and other user’s profiles. Users receive personalized matches selected for them daily and can view their matches in-depth profile then use the suggested icebreakers to start chatting with their matches.

Users can create an account on Coffee Meets Bagel (CMB) with their Facebook account or a secure phone number. Users will download the App on their mobile device, and follow the account, set up instructions with their preferred login method. Next, users fill out their profile and start connecting.

Coffee Meets Bagel is free to join and use. Though users have more options to purchase, beans-the app’s currency-to unlock special features like Read Receipts, Activity Reports, and Liking in Discover.

CMB is an LGBTQ+ friendly app. Meaning, anyone seeking genuine connections can use and discover matches on the app, though all users must be 18 years or older.

The Suggested page on CMB is where users will see a limited number of “bagels” picked out specifically for the user every day around noon. The Discover page is where users can go to see additional “bagels” nearby that may not meet the set-up preferences in a user’s profile or suggested, but still could connect with.

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Suggested

Every day around noon, users receive a limited number of quality bagels to the main section of the CMB app, titled “Suggested.” The Bagels users find in Suggested have been selected for a specific user by the app’s algorithm. These picks are based on a user’s set preferences, activating–including who they’ve liked and passed on in the past—and more.

Users can like or pass on their suggested bagels. If they pass on a bagel in Suggested, the next pick will be shown to the user—but only up to a limited number. The number of suggested bagels users see per day may vary depending on a variety of factors. Unlike swiping-based apps, users can’t see unlimited bagels in Suggested. CMB focuses on quality over quantity, and users must pay attention to each of the suggestions to decide to pass or match.

If a user doesn’t check their suggested bagels, they will “expire” the next day.

Discover

If users want to see additional bagels nearby who may not have met their set preference but might still catch their eye, they can visit Discover.

In Discover, users have the option of Advanced Filters like activity and location to browse more bagels.

Users must keep in mind that for bagels to appear in their Discover, the bagels will always meet their gender preference but may not meet other set preferences. To like a bagel in Discover, users must “Take” them by using beans.

What Are Beans?

Beans are the in-app currency for Coffee Meets Bagel. Users can use beans to unlock a variety of extra features, like Read Receipts and Activity Reports, or to potentially see more bagel in Suggested if they’re available.

Users are provided with a small number of free beans when they first create their Coffee Meets Bagel account. To earn more beans, users can refer friends or follow Coffee Meets bagel on social media or purchase them from the Bean Shop.

Start Chatting

As soon as a user has matched with a bagel from Suggested or Discover (meaning they’ve liked them and the user has been liked back), users can start chatting immediately in the Chats section.

If a user has liked a bagel, but they haven’t been liked back yet, the user will have to wait until it’s a match to chat. If a user likes a bagel that hasn’t liked them first, users have the option of sending a Message with a Like.

The bagel will see this message at the top of the user’s profile. If the bagel likes the other user back, this message will appear as the first in the chat conversation with them.

Users can use beans to extend chats by going to the expired chat and tapping the “extent” button at the bottom of the chat.

After the beans are deducted from the user’s account, it will open “Reopen Chat” and the chat is extended for 30 days.

To unmatch with a bagel, the user can go to the Chats section and choose the bagel they would like to unmatch.

Open the chat with the bagel.
Tap on the three dots at the top right-hand corner.
Tap Block this Bagel.
A pop-up will open; select Block.

If a user blocks a bagel, they won’t be able to view their profile again.

Taking a Bagel

Another term for Likes in Discover is “Takes.” The name is different from the likes in Suggested because users must use beans to like bagels in Discover. To Take (like) a bagel in Discover, the user just taps on the heart icon next to their bagel’s profile photo.

Beans will be deducted from the user’s account accordingly, and CMB will let their bagel know that a user has liked them. The bagel can then choose whether or not to like back. If the bagel likes them back, it’s a match, and they can start chatting.

Skipping the Line

The Skip the Line features help users get noticed faster by bagels. Users can skip the long queue, and “send flowers”. With this feature, users can get noticed and match up to 3 times faster.

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