Those of you around on this sub long enough knows a very common complaints is the standouts feature.

Why is Hinge hiding all these attractive profiles behind a paywall?

On the surface, yes, it is a pay to play feature. A cynical cash grab. Profiting off the vulnerable and the desperate. Call it whatever you want.

Beyond the obvious, I think the standouts feature serves another purpose, which is to limit the amount of attention those attractive people (and by that, mostly women) receive.

I have seen with my own eyes the unrelenting attention a woman will receive. Some of the comments included with the likes are clumsy or creepy attempts at compliment on physical features, comments like "treat you like a queen", sexual remarks, offering to "meet at my place". There are some genuine comments included too. But those can be easily get lost in the noise.

So by using standouts as a gatekeeper, it helps those highly desirable profiles from being overwhelmed by attention. I can't speak for all the women out there using Hinge, but it has been said that the attention, and the creepy messages that comes with it, can be overwhelming to the point some end up quitting online dating.

And it's not like you can't message any of those people since Hinge gives you one free rose per week.