Huggle is a mobile application that allows users to 'discover people who go to the places you go.'
Our Rating: 4/5
Available on: iOS and Android
Huggle is a British app that shuns appearance-matching and connects its users based on mutual interest and the places they have in common. The founders of Huggle, Stina Sanders and Valerie Stark, met after Valerie moved to London from Moscow and found Stina through Instagram.
Although the app is intended to be used to meet friends and people with mutual interest, it can also be used for dating, but it is not geared towards that audience like other online dating apps or services.
When downloading the app from the app store, and once installed, Huggle lets users connect through their Facebook profile, which makes it much easier to verify the new user. Once you are done connecting your Facebook page, the user needs to follow some on-screen instructions. It sets up your profile for you – cause finding friends (or even a date) is so much better with photos.
The Huggle app has a photo verification feature which verifies profiles by asking users to take a number of selfies which are then approved by the moderators. Your profile includes your name, age, work, education, a short bio, and one photo as well as the check-ins you have in common.
The friendship app uses your location, but make sure you choose the option "use location only when using the app". Huggle picks the user's favourite places they would like to hang out – which you can skip – and you can even search for your favourite cocktail lounge (it even had my ultimate favourite place.)
Huggle lets the user choose what they are looking for: a date or to find a friend. The app works by letting the user edit their search preferences under settings. You can select your ideal age range and choose how many places you need to have in common with the person in order for the other user to be able to contact you.
It may seem like the latest breaking of the barrier in letting unwanted admirers track you down, but there are safety features on the app that make sure that the full list of your frequented locations is never shared with other Huggle users.
A user cannot check-in to places that they don’t actually go to, a user has to actually visit the place to check in there as Huggle uses GPS to check you into the places you go. When someone else is checked into the same place as you, you can see their profile, so why not say hi!
In a way, Huggle takes the hassle out of trying to cultivate friendships on Instagram. As for the interface design of the app, it is simple and a really cool design, when you start swiping across a diverse set of humans – female and male – you can swipe right for like and left for not your type.
Huggle is definitely something to check out, especially if you are new to an unknown city. There are high hopes for the app's future – and no doubt the more people who use Huggle the better it will become. So, if you're new to the city or are just sick of your old friends, we recommend trying it out—and if you see someone you find interesting, do say hello!
Check out the demo video of Huggle below!
