Tinder just got an awesome sociable feature you need to know about

Tinder has always been something of a single-player experience. Sit alone on the sofa on a Tuesday night, swiping through potential suitors with the hope that one of them might give you an excuse to not find yourself in the same predicament next Tuesday.

But that's all set to change, with the dating app's launch of Tinder Social.

What the heck is Tinder Social?

From today, Tinder swipers will be able to use the new "Social" feature of the app. 

Rather than flying solo, should you be headed out on the town with some mates, you'll be able to set up a group in-app that then appears in other users' feeds.

If both groups match, you'll then enter into a group chat to sort out the details of your wild night on the town (KFC and cinema?). 

How does it work?

In order to form a posse to head out with, you'll need to 'Unlock' Tinder Social.

You head to 'Settings' where you'll be given an option "I'M GOING OUT". 

How do you find friends to go out with?

You'll have to find at least one friend before you can start swiping as a group - but only those Tinder users who have 'unlocked' the feature will appear available to select. 

Once you've invited a few mates to head out with, you can then set a status as to what you're planning on doing from a bunch of pre-selected options ("Going for drinks", "Watching the game").  

How do the groups work?

There's a whole bunch of rules as to how the social groups operate:

• Users can only belong to one group at a time
• Any member in the group can add a group status that is visible to everyone in the group, everyone who comes across their group profile, and everyone they match with
• The person who creates a group can choose to ‘End Group’ – which expires the group
• A user may leave/un-match with a group at any time. If everyone leaves the group except its creator, the group expires
• A group match expires at noon the next day (or when the group is ended)

Wait, does this mean I'll be able to see which of my mates is on Tinder?

Yes, indeed it does - but only if they chose to unlock the social feature.

Interestingly, you're able to create groups with both male and female friends, which gives you an insight into which of your Facebook buddies is also on Tinder.

This could open up the possibility of finding out if that old crush you haven't spoken to since 2011 is now single - or, worse, reveal if your mate Chris who has actually got a girlfriend is looking to form a Tinder group to head out with.

Don't do it Chris. You're lucky to have her.

Update your Tinder app to discover the joys of Tinder Social.