Shapr and Bumble Bizz are gone: what to use instead in 2026

Shapr and Bumble Bizz let you swipe through professionals the way dating apps let you swipe through dates, and neither works any more. Shapr closed in 2023, and Bumble has removed Bizz from its app. If you want what they offered, meeting one new professional at a time, the closest alternative in 2026 is Touchbase. It books you a 20-minute video call with someone new in your field every week, and it's free. Everything below was checked on 28 October 2026.

What happened to Shapr?

Shapr closed in 2023, after Lincoln, a Paris talent consultancy, took it over, according to Shapr's Wikipedia page. On 28 October 2026 its website wouldn't load, and Shapr wasn't in the US App Store.

Shapr launched in Paris in 2015. Your profile came from LinkedIn, and each day the app showed you 10 to 20 professionals nearby with similar interests and goals. You swiped, or tapped "Meet", sent a ready-made opener and arranged a coffee. It raised a $3 million seed round in 2015 and a $9.5 million Series A in 2017.

What happened to Bumble Bizz?

Bumble has switched Bizz off. Bizz was the networking mode inside the Bumble app, with the same swiping as Bumble's dating mode, for people looking for mentors, jobs and collaborators. Bumble's help page now says Bizz is no longer available, Bizz profiles no longer show in the app and the option to turn on Bizz Mode has gone. Bumble says it's concentrating on its core mission of helping people find love and personal connections.

For friendships, Bumble points people to BFF, its friend-finding app. In September 2025, TechCrunch reported that Bumble had relaunched BFF around friend groups and communities.

What's the best alternative to Shapr and Bumble Bizz?

The best alternative to Shapr and Bumble Bizz in 2026 is Touchbase, if you used them to meet one professional at a time. We make it, so weigh this section with that in mind.

Touchbase skips the swiping and the back-and-forth messages. You tell us what you're after and when you're usually free. Every week we match you with one person in your field, book a time you're both free and host a 20-minute video call in your browser. You both signed up to meet, so there's no cold message and nobody to chase.

How does Touchbase work?

Touchbase works in four steps:

1. Say what you're after. Pick from a new job, career advice, a move into a new field, hiring, mentoring or meeting peers. Add your field and the times you're free.
2. We match you every Sunday. People asking for help meet someone with the same or more experience who signed up to give it, and peers meet people at or near their stage. A person checks every match before it's booked. You never meet someone from your own company, or the same person twice.
3. We book the call. We pick the earliest time you're both free, at least two days out, and send you both a calendar invite. You see each other's name, photo, field, company and LinkedIn, and you can each leave a note before the call.
4. You talk for 20 minutes. Swap details if it clicks. The next week, you meet someone new.

It's free, and it works in any field, at any level.

What are the other alternatives to Shapr and Bumble Bizz?

Each alternative below covers one of the things people used Shapr and Bizz for. Touchbase covers two of them as well: finding a mentor, and hiring or job hunting.

For making friends: BFF

BFF is Bumble's app for meeting friends, and it's where Bumble sends people who used Bizz. Since its 2025 relaunch it has focused on friend groups and communities. It's for your social life rather than your career, and it's free to download.

For finding a mentor: Touchbase or ADPList

Touchbase does this too. Pick "Get career advice", and every week we match you with someone who has at least as much experience as you and signed up to help, then book a 20-minute call for you both.

If you'd rather choose your mentor yourself, ADPList is a mentoring marketplace. Mentors in design, product, engineering, marketing, data and other fields list their availability, and you book a one-to-one online session with the one you choose. It's free to start.

For finding a co-founder: YC Co-Founder Matching

YC Co-Founder Matching is Y Combinator's free tool for finding a co-founder. You make a profile, see people who fit your preferences and invite them to connect. Y Combinator says it has made more than 100,000 matches.

For meeting people in person: Meetup

Meetup lists local groups and events, from marketing meetups to running clubs. It's the closest thing to Shapr's coffee meetings if you'd rather meet in a room, though you meet a group instead of one person. It's free to join.

For hires, job leads, customers or investors: Touchbase or Boardy

Touchbase covers hiring and job hunting too. Pick "Hire or refer people" to meet people looking for work in your field, or "Find a new job", and we look first for people who hire or refer in the fields you choose. If someone you meet could use what you sell, you're welcome to tell them about it.

For a specific ask, such as an investor for your round, Boardy is an AI "superconnector" for founders, investors and operators. You tell it what you need on WhatsApp, iMessage, email, LinkedIn or X. It looks for people who fit and introduces you by email once you've both said yes.

You'll still use LinkedIn to look people up and keep in touch. It doesn't set up meetings for you.

How do the Shapr and Bumble Bizz alternatives compare?

This table compares Touchbase and five other alternatives on what each is for, how you meet, how often and price. Checked on 28 October 2026.

What should you look for in a networking app?

Check five things before you put time into a networking app. Apps like these close or change often: Shapr, Bumble Bizz, Lunchclub and Polywork have all shut down or stopped updating since 2022.

1. Is it still updated? Look at the version history on its App Store page. Lunchclub's app, for example, hasn't changed since March 2022.
2. Does it set up the meeting? Some apps stop at the match and leave the messages, the scheduling and the chasing to you.
3. Are people in your field on it? Search for your job title before you build a profile.
4. How often will you meet someone? Every week, when you ask, or when an event is on.
5. What does it cost, now and once it grows?

Shapr and Bumble Bizz: quick answers

Is Shapr still available?

No. Shapr closed in 2023 after Lincoln, a Paris talent consultancy, took it over. Its website wouldn't load on 28 October 2026, and it wasn't in the US App Store.

Did Bumble remove Bizz?

Yes. Bumble's help page says Bizz profiles no longer show in the app and Bizz Mode can no longer be turned on. For friendships, Bumble points people to BFF.

Is there a Tinder for networking?

Shapr and Bumble Bizz were the closest thing to a Tinder for networking, and both have gone. Touchbase picks your match each week and books the call, so there's nothing to swipe. YC Co-Founder Matching lets you browse and invite people who fit what you're looking for.

Is there a free app like Bumble Bizz?

Yes. Touchbase is free and matches you with someone in your field every week. YC Co-Founder Matching is free too, ADPList is free to start and Meetup is free to join.

What happened to Lunchclub?

Lunchclub's app hasn't been updated since March 2022, and its team now runs a crypto exchange. Our Lunchclub alternatives post has the details.

Meet someone in your field next week

If you joined Shapr or Bizz to meet professionals one at a time, Touchbase does that without the swiping: one 20-minute call a week with someone new in your field, booked for you. A few months in, you'll know people across your field, so when you need a referral, a hire or a second opinion, there's someone to ask. It's free: sign up for Touchbase.