Dating App Matches You Based on a Mutual Hatred of Things

Dating apps typically pair couples up according to their shared interests, but according to The Cut, a new app called Hater takes the opposite approach: It matches users on the basis of their dislikes. The app publicly launches on February 8, just in time for new paramours to bond over their hatred of Valentine’s Day.

Hater is kind of like other swipe-based apps—think Tinder, Hinge, and Bumble—but instead of simply dragging an attractive stranger’s picture right or left, users are presented with thousands of public figures, activities, or concepts. (A few examples: Taylor Swift, paying for extra guacamole, fedoras, and butt selfies.)

Hate what’s onscreen? Swipe down. Love it? Swipe up. Right or left means you like/dislike the option, and if you have no opinion, you can simply skip the question. As you select “dislikes,” Hater will build you a profile, and begin matching you with kindred spirits who live nearby.

As The Cut points out, social psychologists have found that people bond over their shared dislike of other people—so while Hater (which CEO/comedy writer Brendan Alper originally conceived as a sketch idea) sounds like a joke, its unconventional matching system may be rooted in actual science.

But at the end of the day, the human heart is complex: For every person seeking a cantankerous cutie, there’s someone else who wants a bearded man, a bacon lover, or even a Canadian.

Hater is currently available in beta for iOS, and it will be available for Android this spring.