How to choose great photos

While you probably have millions of great photos to choose from, following these curation tips means more attention for your profile. And that’s a good thing.

The More, the Better
Our stats show that adding more photos means you’ll get more profile activity.

The More (Interesting), the Better
A classic portrait is great. But 6 classic portraits is too much. Vary it up and show off your lifestyle. Maybe that means a photo of you in the kitchen because you love to cook, or on a solo camping trip because it was on your bucket list--you get the picture, get it?!

Only Include You...And Potentially a Pet
Using photos with friends can take the spotlight off you, no matter how fun that group houseboat trip was. Pets, however, tend to up the number of likes and messages you receive.
Note though: photos of you and a pet together are great for your Profile Photos album, but photos of your pet alone should be uploaded only to an Essay. 

Connect Your Instagram
It’s easy, and a great way to show off more of your personal flare. Scroll to the bottom of your profile on the app or desktop to link your account. Folks who connect Instagram to their profile get more messages than those who don’t.

Upload pics taken in the late afternoon.
This one’s a bit of a mystery, but data shows that it works. Users with photos taken in the late afternoon get more likes.

Caption your photos.
Adding a caption to your photo gives potential matches a little more context—not to mention a possible conversation starter: “You like to ferment kimchi, too? So cool!” Plus, captioning your photos ensures you’ll show up in OkCupid Discovery, so you can connect with people who are interested in the same things you are. Discovery helps you get noticed for the things you really care about.

Follow the rules
All photos need to follow our photo rules. Don't make us sad by uploading a bad photo. We don't want to have to delete it.