Bumble Location Vs Lives In: Here’s what you need to know

Online dating has revolutionized the way people connect and form romantic relationships. 

With a swipe of a finger, potential partners are presented to users based on their preferences, location and a couple of other factors. 

However, for those who travel frequently or live in one city but are interested in dating in another, setting their location on dating apps like Bumble can be a bit more complex. 

In this article, we’ll explore the differences between Bumble users who set their location to a different city versus those who live in the city they’re swiping in, and how these differences may impact their dating experiences.

Overview of the Location Feature: Bumble Location Vs Lives In

Before we go on to identify the differences between Bumble location and the lives in (which you may be more interested in), let’s try to understand the actual work behind these two features.

If you’re a Bumble user, you may be familiar with the app’s location settings. 

When you sign up for the app, you’re prompted to allow Bumble to access your location so it can show you potential matches nearby.

This is mostly automatically done, unless you turn off your location or any settings that have to be synchronised before the feature works perfectly.

However, if it doesn’t reflect automatically, you’re also free to manually change it.

Typically, Bumble location draws the data it shows on your profile from your wifi or GPS setting. This means, if you have a VPN turned on, chances are, it’s gonna pick up the location on the VPN.

To set your location on Bumble, you simply need to go to your profile settings and select the “Location” option.

From there, you can either allow Bumble to access your device’s location or let them refresh their access to your browser.

Overview Of The “Lives In” Feature on Bumble

Now, what does the “Lives in” feature mean on the app?

Well, it’s typically the same thing as the normal Bumble location, with a single difference.

The Lives in Feature is a location-like feature on the app that shows where a profile stays. However, this time, it doesn’t estimate or approximate the user’s location like the location feature on the app does.

Related: Why does Bumble not show distance sometimes?

Rather, users are allowed to manually set their location when they sign up for the app. This is the data that is shown in the “lives in” section of a user’s profile.

Lastly, It’s important to note that users can change their “Lives in” location at any time.

So, if someone has moved to a new city or is travelling for an extended period of time, they can update their location on the app to reflect their current whereabouts.

But if they don’t, the data on the app for the feature would remain unchanged.

Can Bumble Location feature and Lives in Feature have different data?

Have you ever noticed someone with a different location shown on the app and a different location altogether in their “Lives in” section?

Here’s a complaint about this…

Well, that’s just an example of these two features being contradicting.

But why?

Well, as we discussed earlier, the Bumble location feature primarily draws data from a user’s device’s GPS or wifi settings.

So, if a user is using a VPN or has their GPS turned off, the Bumble location feature may not accurately reflect their true location, whereas the “Lives in” feature would maintain the setting you have already inputted into it earlier on.

Also, in a case where someone travels, the Bumble location would track the user’s data eventually to pinpoint their current location.

This can be a country away.

Not bad actually, but if it were the “lives in” the location data, it would be unchanged.

Typically, if a user has moved to a new city but hasn’t updated their Bumble location settings, their “Lives in” feature may show their previous location.

Thankfully, Bumble uses the location feature, rather than the “lives in,” when pairing matches who live in a particular area.

This is helpful, otherwise, in rare cases, the app would have been showing matches far away.

So, in the real sense, Bumble’s location is kinda more accurate than the lives in.

Final Thoughts: Are there any differences between the two?

So, what’s the difference between the two settings? The “location” setting is more flexible and allows users to match with people who may be outside of their immediate area, but still within a reasonable distance.

It could also have a problem though, where it shows this “~” sign.

The “lives in” setting, on the other hand, is more specific and is useful for users who want to find matches in their own town or city.

Now, you may be wondering which setting is better for finding a potential partner. Well, it really depends on your personal preferences and what you’re looking for in a relationship.

If you’re open to dating someone who lives a bit farther away, then the “location” setting may be more suitable for you. However, if you’re looking for someone who lives in your own town or city, then the “lives in” setting is the way to go.