What message should I send with a like on Hinge?

The thing you're responding to is the detail she chose to show you, and that matters more than whether you think the picture is attractive. A prompt answer is almost always the most deliberate thing on her profile, because she wrote it on purpose. A photo can be a friend's pick or an old picture. So when there's a prompt, that is usually the better hook, and the like should point at the exact words she used.

When the prompt is vague or the photos are doing the work, look for a specific object, place, or activity in the frame. A dog, a mountain, a particular instrument, a bad haircut she's clearly embracing. Pick one. Naming a real detail tells her you looked at the picture rather than the general outline of a person.

A useful like comment makes one small move. It notices something, maybe makes a light remark about it, and then stops. The work of replying is then easy for her. If your comment closes the topic, she has nowhere to go. If it asks for a big answer, she has to decide whether she wants to invest effort before she knows anything about you.

The kinds of comment that tend to work are the observation with a light opinion, the small joke that plays off her own wording, and the short question about a specific thing she showed. Each should be a single thought. You can tell a draft is working when she could answer it in two words and still feel like the conversation has started. Leave out the compliment about her appearance unless the photo is clearly the point, and leave out anything that needs a paragraph back.

The like comment is the opener, so give it a fair chance before you do anything else. Hinge notifies her when you comment, and many people check their matches in batches, sometimes a day or two later. A reply within the first several hours is a bonus, not a sign of trouble. If she has not answered within three or four days, let it go quietly rather than sending a second comment on the same photo.

If she does reply, match her energy in your next message rather than escalating. If she doesn't, one clear and light follow-up after a week is fine, and only if there's a new reason to write, like a thing she mentioned. After that, stop. An unanswered like is not a request for more effort, and repeating yourself reads as pressure, which is the fastest way to end a match that might otherwise have gone somewhere.