Although Tinder is considered the hot romance app of the college-aged, the also popular OkCupid is making waves by becoming a little more inclusive. Toward the beginning of January, OkCupid announced that it would offer a way, which the app dubbed as "Couples Linking," for polyamorous partners to search for people.
"Monogamy ain't for everyone. Now people in polyamorous relationships can link their OkCupid accounts," OkCupid tweeted.
In case you aren't sure, polyamory is the lifestyle choice of wanting to have an intimate relationship with multiple people at the same time. This does not include people who have side guys and gals. Everyone in a polyamorous relationship knows about the other people involved, but it is distinct from and often confused with an open relationship. Essentially, a group of people are in a relationship with one another. Jealousy is a no-no in polyamory; everyone in the relationship is equal.
Polyamory can be tricky when it comes to dating websites, though. It can be awkward if you're not interested in polyamory and you receive an invitation from someone who is. The Couples Linking feature will allow people interested in trying polyamory to find those who are already practicing it.
CNN reports that over the last few years, the idea of polyamory has become more accepted by users of the app, many saying they would consider committing to a polyamorous relationship if "convinced by the right people."
So, how does this new feature work? OkCupid users who define themselves on their profiles as "seeing someone," "married" or "in an open relationship" can link their profiles with their partners so that they may find people interested in coming into a polyamorous relationship, according to WHIO.
This is not the first time OkCupid has accommodated edgier dating and societal trends. For instance, according to CNN, OkCupid added 12 sexual orientation options and 22 choices for gender identities in 2014. OkCupid was also the one of the first dating sites to add "non-monogamous" as a relationship status.
Although this app is working to be more inclusive of people's romantic habits and desires, "polyamorous" is still not a relationship status option. Another setback to the Couples Linking feature is that only two accounts can be linked to one another. Many polyamorous relationships already include more than two partners, so this feature will still exclude many.
Other dating apps may follow OkCupid and allow people searching for others to bring into their polyamorous relationship to link accounts with pre-existing partners. Who knows? Maybe the next time you swipe right, you'll be connected to more people than you had originally thought.
