Dating is hard, especially in an age where we deal with AI-generated nonsense, assholes playing games (because for some reason it’s still going down), and the constant strain of providing curated versions of ourselves to potential partners. It may feel like the Hunger Games, and the odds are against us.
Terms like “Boysober” (dubbed “this year’s intellectual fitness craze”) and “benching” have become commonplace in the dating lexicon, and many other people are starting to lose hope. Others say they are absolutely exhausted by the dating app scene, leading to a wave of “app fatigue. “
With an influx of ghost, breadcrumb, and FWB options, it’s easy to see why you might wonder whether or not dating apps are worth it. Our answer is a resounding yes (with an asterisk).
We’ll forget about the elephant in the room and say that human connection can be replaced by browsing through a dating app’s profiles. But we are squandering hope.
According to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, approximately 44% of adults say that the reason they use dating apps is to find a long-term spouse rather than settling for hookups or casual hookups. The survey also found that one in 10 adults on a date met their current spouse through a dating app. So even if you haven’t figured out that magical, swoon-worthy connection on a dating app yet, statistics show that it’s entirely possible.
There are many dating apps out there, but all of them are equivalent when it comes to finding a serious and long-lasting relationship.
Some dating apps are better suited for love affairs or casual hookups (e. g. , Tinder, Grindr, AdultFriendFinder, etc. ), while others have algorithms and features specially designed for users to find meaningful encounters (e. g. , eharmony, OkCupid, Hinge, and Coffee Meets). ). Donut).
The good news is that we’ve done some research (and hands-on testing) to determine which apps are most productive for long-term, committed relationships, and Match Group is rarely the only player in the game. all available through Google Play and the App Store, so having an Android or iPhone probably won’t limit your options.
Here is a list of dating apps for serious relationships in 2024:
If you’re in a position to get married soon, eharmony could be your most productive bet. She’s the Charlotte York of dating apps: conservative, marriage-minded, and usually straight.
Its user base is older than that of other apps like Hinge or Tinder, but there are still plenty of other people for a serious relationship.
Unlike swipe-based apps, eharmony prioritizes compatibility through a comprehensive questionnaire to connect you with users with similar values and interests. While not everyone needs to get married, we chose eharmony as the most productive dating app for serious relationships because of its commitment to locating compatible partners and its long history of success.
A spokesperson for the site claims that it has been used by 54 million people and is responsible for 4% of marriages in the United States. This doesn’t necessarily mean you’re walking down the aisle for the first year, but it does reduce your chances. Features for singles that are open to exclusivity, getting together as a family, or living together.
Although eharmony is known as a conservative dating site, it has recently expanded its inclusivity and now welcomes users of all sexual orientations and gender identities. The app is so welcoming that the company is suffering with some devoted conservative teams claiming to have abandoned their classic. values. One Million Moms has even started a petition to remove LGBTQ classifieds from eharmony advertising.
Read our harmony review.
Read our full AdultFriendFinder review.
Match is a popular dating site and app for people in their 30s and 40s who are looking for a serious relationship. According to the Match website, 48. 6% of the members are between the ages of 30 and 49, which means that this dating pool is full of adults who are in a position to foster a committed and meaningful relationship.
So, if you’re not in a position to accept the seriousness of eharmony or need a more inclusive dating experience, Match is a smart alternative. It is a platform designed for other people who are in a position to take their love story seriously, but without the immediate expectation of a marriage.
Match (Match Group’s OG app) has a popular dating app for singles looking for long-term relationships. With over 25 years of experience in the dating industry, it’s no surprise that this app comes across as sensible as possible in most of our Dating App Guides.
Despite its age, Match is a platform that refuses to be left behind. Instead, it has evolved into a more modern and complex dating app for people of all ages. Their questionnaire focuses on common interests and other important aspects of lifestyle. such as if you want children or have pets, and decide things like smoking or drinking in order to find a compatible partner.
But even with its popularity and large user base, Match has had a fair percentage of controversy and criticism. In February, Match was embroiled in a class-action lawsuit in which six plaintiffs accused the app of negligence and violating customer coverage laws. The lawsuit argued that Match Group presents its games to “turn users into players caught up in a quest for mental rewards that Match deliberately makes elusive. “
Of course, a spokesperson for Match Group denied the allegations and said the lawsuit was “ridiculous and baseless. “And despite those negative rumors, it’s still one of our most sensible picks.
Read our review of the match.
If you’ve been looking for a dating app that sees you as you are (rather than just some other profile to swipe left or right), Hinge might be the dating platform you’ve been looking for. Hinge is a hybrid of its rivals, Tinder and Match. It focuses on creating meaningful connections by giving you the opportunity to show your personality with a detailed profile and provides tactics for interacting with other users.
Young people who had at least a few dates with the same user before spending the night were the main blind spot for dating sites, until Hinge blew up. The overall appeal might be in the same realm as Tinder and Bumble, but Hinge’s unique profile criteria and criteria-based alpasrhythms set the bar for long-term potential. By covering so many bases before the first message, Hinge reduces the chances of meeting someone you’d hate.
The app’s tagline, “designed to be removed,” reflects its commitment to helping users locate authentic connections and potentially find value by leaving the app. Hinge’s actual statistics speak for themselves, with many users reporting wonderful first dates and expressing interest in momentary dates.
By restricting the number of likes per day, Hinge motivates users to be more selective and invest time and effort into potential matches. In addition, the dating intentions and types of citation sections of the app allow users to imply their point of seriousness and interest in unrelated things. monogamy so you can specify what you’re there for from the start.
Despite its exclusive features and successes, Hinge has recently been in the news for what many disgruntled users call an “attractiveness score,” which Hinge CEO Justin McLeod says doesn’t exist.
“We don’t have an attractiveness score,” McLeod said in a video interview with Fortune, adding, “We take a look at who you like and who looks like you, who you’ve passed and who you’ve passed on. “
While we didn’t face any issues with Hinge’s matchmaking algorithm, we suggest mentioning the rumors surrounding it to give a comprehensive overview.
OkCupid is designed for other people who prioritize social justice, equality, and progressive ideals in their pursuit of love and meaningful relationships. With robust profile customization options, users can proudly demonstrate their political affiliations, the reasons they support, and the social issues they face. Passionate about the right on your dating profile.
For young, progressive singles, politics is rarely just about “well, if we agree, that’s great,” when for a couple: it’s the good luck or failure of a forged romantic foundation. OkCupid’s redesign in 2017 is much more than just a millennial aesthetic (although navigating its online page and app is very simple) – it’s all about making sure you don’t end up on a date with someone who rarely pays much attention. With a wide diversity of gfinisher identities, sexual orientations, and pronoun options, OkCupid offers an inclusive space for non-binary and queer people to find love and explain their original identities.
Users can dismiss other people they would argue with on Facebook by answering questions like, “Would you date someone to help you have a gun at home?”or “Should the government require young people to be vaccinated against preventable diseases?”
Starting in 2023, OkCupid will also harness the powers of generative AI for its matchmaking issues.
“OkCupid connects other people with what topics through matching questions on the app,” Michael Kaye, OkCupid’s director of logo marketing and communications, said in a press release. “Early last year, we asked ChatGPT to type in our corresponding questions and the questions generated through the chatbot were answered approximately four million times. “
Even casual users can access some of OkCupid’s more productive features, ensuring that Americans can connect with others who have put in a bit of effort and are serious about finding meaningful connections. And you can say goodbye to faceless and potentially fake profiles, as OkCupid requires users’ dating profiles to have genuine images of their faces, thus building a foundation for authentic attraction.
Read our full OkCupid review.
If you achieve big goals in your career and private life, but browsing through endless profiles makes you feel like, well, “meh,” EliteSingles offers you a new option for more superficial apps (aka Tinder).
Of course, the value of this dating platform is a bit higher, but it’s an investment in your long-term happiness. An investment in finding someone who understands your hustle, celebrates your milestones, and propels your adventure to the top.
For those who don’t need to compromise when it comes to their partner’s educational values and penchant for success, EliteSingles tries to create an area where they can find a diversity of other people they know early on and value when it comes into your professional life. The fame of the site is that 82% of the members are high school graduates (most are between 33 and 50 years old).
It is the best position for other people who have reached a comfortable career speed and are now looking for a spouse who is on the same level of their lives. The site’s quiz decodes 29 personality characteristics to recommend matches who not only have a compatible income stream to yours, but who you’d connect with based on your communication styles, ideal first dates, and ability to make the first move.
Former users report a full stream of other people living far away from what they’ve indicated in their preferences. This is almost ironic, given that the very purpose of the site is to show you an express organization of daters. In addition, the lowest distance your search can clear is 50 miles, so there’s a built-in wiggle room due to the fact that searching for a faster type of user may require you to expand your physical location horizons. And unfortunately, it’s hard for a dating site to detect lies about your task or your income.
Read our EliteSingles review.
ELLA is just another dating app; It is a social hub and dating platform designed exclusively for queer women and non-binary individuals.
If you’ve ever felt exhausted by classic features or encountered scary predators, ELLA is the welcoming network you’ve been waiting for. It provides an inclusive area where you can be yourself and engage with other queer people who share the same interests.
Apps like Tinder and Bumble are technically meant for *everyone*, but they’ll be doomed if they don’t insert certain male profiles into other people’s feeds who have asked otherwise. Given the ways of life of Grindr and Scruff, the need for a particular online dating area for queer women was transparent, then, SHE.
The founders of the award-winning app are committed to cultivating an area that is “so strange” that frustrated women can delete apps that don’t look like them. As the user base of over four million grows, HER is able to expand its dating pool. the queer women you already know. As the app grows, online users are complaining about the increase in the number of bot accounts. If you come across a profile that turns out to be strangely weird, you should be cautious.
Still, HER is still a popular dating app for queer women, through queer women. Users can be artistic by creating profiles with categories such as personal food tastes (such as veganism), zodiac signs, and a “What does this mean?”message. domain in the categories of sex, gender, and pronouns to provide a more complete identity.
Classic textual bio is where you can show your sense of humor or describe the type of quotes you’re looking for. Joining specialized teams like “newcomers” or “travelers” can introduce you to other people on the app for similar reasons. The app also has a social media component that allows you to see occasions happening in the queer community, either locally or online, so you can make connections beyond romance. In addition to connecting with other people, you can also upload them as friends if you’re the type who likes to start things off platonic and see where they go. To explain your intentions about something serious (and find out where others might be lying), fill out the “To Investigate” form.
If you’re tired of the gender norms that plague most dating apps, Bumble might be your most productive bet. Bumble flips the script and puts the force back in the hands of women and nonbinary Americans to start the first conversation.
By reining in this empowered group, Bumble is creating an area where women and other non-binary people can feel more involved in their dating experience, and where unsolicited goosebumps take a back seat.
Bumble presents itself as a refreshing option for the chaotic swiping culture in the world of dating apps. We’ve all met serial thieves, who thoughtlessly like every profile without genuine intentions. Bumble’s unique approach, with its rule that women and non-binary Americans start the conversation, combats this habit well and fosters more meaningful connections.
However, the app’s new chief executive, Lidiane Jones, says she’s rethinking the text-first technique and could implement features like pre-written verbal exchange to make it less difficult for users to break the ice and start communicating. The women-first formula is also used to provide more flexibility and inclusivity to users. Jones said this once-unique technique “now turns out to be a burden on a subset of our customers. “
With Bumble, matches have a 24-hour expiration, which discourages endless swipes and promotes quick communication. The fact that women take the initiative to start conversations eliminates the big “hello” messages that flood other platforms. Although men would possibly feel pressure to get started, Bumble creates an environment where conversations can take place in a more natural and original way.
In addition to focusing on empowering non-binary people, Bumble is striving to weed out fake profiles with its new feature, Deception Detector. This feature uses synthetic intelligence to analyze profile photos and flag any symptoms of potential deception, such as fake or fake. Inventory images.
Beyond that, the app is pretty similar to Tinder, with a few activations and filters that help avoid finding the occasional fling. Chances are you’ll find a similar crowd here, but maybe in this space, a user more willing to chat and see where things stand. go.
Plenty of Fish (POF) is an active online dating platform that hosts a varied group of singles for love, meaningful relationships, and much more. While it’s not exclusively designed for serious relationships, its gigantic user base offers a sea of odds (see what we did there) for other people interested in expanding their net a little further in the pursuit of their ideal catch.
POF has made waves in online dating, not just because of its original name. With a proven track record of successful matches, POF has attracted an unwavering following and has a platform for many singles looking for love. (A close friend of Mine discovered her husband on POF, and their adventure from first message to “yes” is a testament to the possibility of authentic connections discovered on the platform. )
What sets POF apart from other dating apps is its large user base, which means you have a wide pool of potential matches to explore. This diversity opens up endless possibilities, making sure to locate who matches your personal tastes and dating goals.
Once you’re connected with who’s catching your eye, chat and messaging features simplify the initiation of a verbal exchange and create an authentic bond. Think flirtatious jokes, meaningful messages, and endless possibilities to get to know yourself better.
And if you love fishing (like real fishing), POF recently partnered with Busch Light to give their users a Fish Pic badge to show their love of the outdoors — they call it the “Reel Love” campaign. According to a survey by POF of the 12,000 U. S. -based members, the U. S. In the U. S. , other people are 25% more likely to send messages with a fish in their profile picture (the more you know).
“Like our fans, we have a passion for the wonderful outdoors and we can’t deny that the most productive way to enjoy the spring fishing season is to have a rod in one hand and a cool, comfortable Busch Light in the other,” Krystyn Stowe. , Chief Marketing Officer, Busch Family
Are you frustrated with dating apps designed for a much younger demographic?SilverSingles, widely regarded as one of the online dating sites for mature singles, is here to get you into a fulfilling relationship.
SilverSingles understands the exclusive desires of mature adults. Focusing on compatibility and shared values, this dating app is designed for you to find a potential spouse who is on a similar level in your lives, ensuring a higher chance of forming a meaningful connection in the long run.
Dating over the age of 50 means that, most likely, this is your moment or your third attempt at love. When the user bases of Match or EHarmony still make up too many people who are never married and have no children, SilverSingles is here to let you know that having the highlights of your golden years again doesn’t have to be scary.
EliteSingles’ sister site, SilverSingles, uses the same intense compatibility formula as EliteSingles, incorporating the five popular characteristics of constant personality to assess five degrees of your being: openness to sexual experience, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Instead of overwhelming users with an endless sea of profiles, SilverSingles features a curated variety of five hand-picked matches based on the day, saving time and energy. Just be sure to pay attention to the locations of potential matches (just like its sister site, SilverSingles has a habit of ignoring location radius preferences). ).
Coffee Meets Bagel is designed for singles who are looking for a more organized and unadvertised experience. Instead of overwhelming you with a bunch of options, Coffee Meets Bagel offers a limited number of highly compatible combinations, or “bagels,” on a daily basis. It’s like having a private assistant up to date.
Each day, the WBC brings you seven of its most productive bagels, selected based on your responses to prompts, how you slipped into yesterday’s batch, and those who have already shown interest in you. This slow and steady technique is ideal for rusty, introverted, or singles who don’t feel like scrolling through every spare minute.
You are encouraged to start working with parties that disappear in seven days. That’s less tense than Bumble’s 24-hour time frame, but it still deletes a list of other people who don’t care enough to respond or schedule a meeting. Like some other apps, CMB may not show your profile to other users unless you have a transparent picture, automatically filtering out the entire segment of faceless profiles located on other apps.
Another standout feature of CMB is the activity report at the back of everyone’s profile. Although it is only available to premium users, it will demonstrate a user’s stats, such as how active they are and how long it takes them to respond.
Tinder, the iconic dating app that ignited the swipe-up culture, is the go-to platform for casual hookups, fun hookups, and hookups. While you may not find someone to settle down with, Tinder is rarely a bad position if you don’t have brains. Dating or taking things slow at first. Plus, with the app’s new “Relationship Goals” feature, it’s less difficult to see whether or not a potential user would be interested in something in the long run.
Let’s get this out of the way. If you think of dating apps, you think of Tinder. This app pioneered the now-ubiquitous swipe feature, revolutionizing the world of online dating and displaying 1. 6 billion swipes per day. What as a niche hookup app has become a companion that max of us have used at least once. While receiving a series of photos, swipe right if you like what you see and swipe left if you don’t. When he shows interest, he matches.
Sure, you might not find someone looking to settle down for a while, but if you don’t think about dating or slowing things down at first, Tinder is rarely a bad position to be. Plus, with the “Relationship Goals” feature. , it is less difficult to determine, at a glance at a person’s profile, whether or not they would be interested in something long-term or if they are simply looking for a casual relationship.
At Mashable, we’re passionate about helping you find genuine hookups, and that’s why we put each and every dating app on the cutting board (metaphorically, of course). Here’s how we make sure only the most productive ones are on our list:
Ease of use: We create genuine profiles, search for matches, and navigate the interface just like you would. There is no theoretical verification here! We need to see how simple it is to find your best match.
Compatibility and matching: We analyze matching algorithms to make sure they link you to other people who click.
Safety & Security: We take the protection of our readers seriously, especially when it comes to dating. These apps have gone through a rigorous review of their security measures to earn a spot on our list. We test profile verification processes, privacy settings, and mechanisms. to report suspicious activity.
Success Stories & Reviews: We read reviews from real users and good luck stories to see which apps help other people find love.
Value for money: We know that appointment subscriptions can increase. That’s why we conscientiously weighed the cost of the app against its features and benefits. Is it worth your investment? We’ll tell you directly.
Leah Stodart is a senior grocery shopping journalist founded at Mashable in Philadelphia, where she covers a generation of household must-haves like vacuums and TVs, as well as the sustainable industry and travel. Her growing experience in those categories comes in handy when she makes recommendations on how to spend her money shopping for groceries on holidays like Black Friday, which Leah has been covering for Mashable since 2017.
Leah graduated from Penn State University in 2016 with a double major in Sociology and Media Studies. When she’s not writing about buying groceries (or buying groceries online for herself), she’s almost watching a horror movie, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” or “The Office. “”You can follow her on X to @notleah or email her at [email protected].
Bethany Allard is a Los Angeles-based business reporter for Mashable who covers good looks, tech, dating, sex and relationships, and hearing aids. This means that it gets a lot of styling, browsing a lot of dating apps, and doing a lot of turning. of other headphones. In addition to testing and collecting the most productive products, he also covers deals for Mashable, paying special obsessive attention to Apple’s deals and pricing. That wisdom comes in handy when covering grocery shopping holidays like Prime Day and Black Friday. which he’s been doing for 3 years at Mashable.
She graduated from New York University with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and English Literature. You can follow her on X @betallard and contact her by email at [email protected]. In her free time, find her playing with her Switch, spending time with her cat Mila, or cooking anything new in her kitchen.
Tabitha Britt is a freelance writer, copywriter, search engine optimizer, and content strategist. In addition to writing for Mashable, Tabitha is also the founding editor-in-chief of DO YOU ENDO, an online magazine written through other people with endometriosis, for others. people with endometriosis. She holds a Master’s degree in Creative Publishing and Critical Journalism from the New School of Social Research and is a graduate of the Sextech School. You can find more of his paintings in online publications, adding National Geographic, Insider, Kinkly, and others.