Meeting other people is rarely easy, whether you’re looking to forge a platonic or romantic friendship. But if you’re in a position to face the wife season with open arms, we think there’s a clever explanation why you should check out The Apps™. And don’t worry, the most productive dating apps for finding a serious date (one that’s meant to last) are the ones you’ve probably heard of before.
We know, we know, locating someone on a dating app who is genuinely interested in a meaningful, long-term relationship rather than a date or a scenario can seem nearly impossible. But locating someone in real life can be just as complicated and, in many cases, just as daunting (and almost more stressful).
Finding your person takes time, effort, and patience, no matter what method you end up choosing. But the good news is that finding a long-term partner online is easier than it’s ever been before. A 2023 report from the Pew Research Center states that one in every 10 partnered adults found their partner through a dating site or app. And hey, that could be you.
OkCupid, Bumble, and Hinge are known for their exclusive features to guide singles towards their one. Their secret? Matchmaking systems based on algorithms that prioritize compatibility, taking into account your interests, values, and personal tastes through lengthy questionnaires.
Depending on what you’re for, there are dating apps that offer complex filters and search features to help you locate other people who are on the same page as you. Others offer various tactics to show off your personality through photos. BIOS, and it activates so that you can explain yourself in a more original way.
If you’re ready for commitment and don’t know where to find people looking for the same thing, or if you want to know what dating apps are best for different types of daters, know that you have more options than just eharmony and Match. Here are a few of our favorite dating sites for serious relationships:
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 other apps like Hinge or Tinder, but there are still plenty of other people out there for a serious relationship.
Remember those embarrassing harmony ads that show couples frolicking in the field and staring into each other’s eyes?As ridiculous as they sound, they have proven to be quite effective.
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 at least restricts your characteristics to singles who are open to exclusivity, getting together as a family, or living together.
Although the registration process used to be a bit tedious, eharmony has simplified it to be short, straightforward, and without the tacky religious questions that prevented it from being the best option for younger people. The canopy of 80 questions 32 dimensions of what constitutes a satisfying relationship, from communicative taste to gender roles.
It’s also not your typical dating app quiz. Instead of asking you if you’re “emotionally stable,” eHarmony may ask you how you take care of your apologies after a match or if a specific action would upset you. These hypothetical conditions seem more biological, and give a clearer picture of your personality. And despite the likely high number of questions, it will only take you about twenty minutes.
It’s worth noting that eHarmony has been criticized in the past for not welcoming members of the LGBTQ community. Although they incorporated their gay and lesbian-derived site into the overall platform in 2010, Reddit users claimed in 2019 that the site still seemed to be more directly geared toward people. It wasn’t until a year ago that eharmony, regardless, updated its interface to allow bisexual users to view both male and female profiles.
Read our harmony review.
If you’re not in a position to settle for the seriousness of harmony or need a more inclusive dating experience, Match is a very smart alternative. This is a platform designed for other people who are in a position to take their love story seriously, but without immediate expectations of marriage.
Match (not “dot com”) has a sensible top selection for singles looking for long-term relationships. With over 25 years of experience in the dating industry, it’s no surprise that this app has the utmost sense in a maximum of our summaries.
Despite its age, Match is a platform that refuses to get lost in the outdated and tacky trope. Instead, it has evolved into a more modern and complicated dating app for other people of all ages. Their questionnaire focuses on non-unusual interests and other important lifestyle aspects, such as whether or not you want to have children, have or prefer pets, and decide things like smoking or drinking.
And while Match has had its percentage of catfishing excessive, they’re working to make things better: Match is expected to stick to Tinder as the second Match Group app to use geotag emergency through Noonlight and photo verification to authenticate faces with genuine people. Human. The company has also partnered with Garbo, a background check platform, which allows all users two free checks and premium users four free checks.
Read our review of the match.
Read our full review of AdultFriendFinder.
If you’ve been trying to find a dating app that sees you for who you are (instead of reducing you to just another 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 chance to showcase your personality with an in-depth profile and offers multiple ways to engage 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.
Hinge’s good fortune can be attributed to its focus on private pursuits and encouraging users to put effort into their profiles and conversations. Instead of swiping recklessly, Hinge encourages Americans to show their non-advertisements, engage in thoughtful conversations, and be more intentional in their selections. 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 app’s citation intents and citation types sections allow users to get their point across. seriousness and interest in non-monogamy so that you can specify what you are looking for from the first moment.
OkCupid is designed for individuals who prioritize social justice, equality, and progressive ideals in their search for love and meaningful connections. With robust profile customization options, users can proudly display their political affiliations, causes they support, and social issues they’re passionate about.
For young, progressive singles, politics aren’t just a “well, if we agree, it’s great” thing when looking for a partner — it’s the make or break for a solid romantic foundation. OkCupid’s 2017 redesign is more than just millennial aesthetics (though navigating their website and app is super easy): It’s geared toward ensuring that you don’t end up on a date with someone who doesn’t pay attention. With a wide range of gender identities, sexual orientations, and pronoun options, OkCupid provides an inclusive space for non-binary and queer individuals to find love and express their authentic selves.
Users can weed out people they’d fight with on Facebook by answering inquiries like “Would you date someone who keeps a gun in the house?” or “Should the government require children to be vaccinated for preventable diseases?” In June 2020, the site introduced a Black Lives Matter badge for your profile, and in May 2021, a vaccination badge.
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 profiles, as OkCupid demands. Users have genuine images of their faces, thus building a foundation for authentic interactions.
Read our full OkCupid review.
Are you all about personal growth, conquering milestones (both in your career and professional life), and pursuing actual happiness? If you’re done with swiping through profiles that don’t quite match your ambition, EliteSingles offers a fresh alternative to the more superficial apps (aka Tinder).
The value of this platform is a little high, but think of it as putting your money front and center: an investment for a spouse that suits your ambitions and high standards.
The wonderful thing about online dating is that it gives you the ability to meet an entire organization of other people that you wouldn’t otherwise meet. But simply dating with absolutely different career goals is enough to make you realize that a date can’t just stay afloat. because of the romance and that this group of other people would possibly be too broad.
For those who don’t need to compromise when it comes to their spouse’s educational values and fondness for success, EliteSingles tries to create an area where they can find a diversity of other people they know from the start who have similar values when it comes to your professional life. The fame of the site is that 82% of the members are high school graduates (most of whom are between the ages of 33 and 50). It is the best position for other people who have reached a comfortable professional speed. And now they’re for a spouse who is on the same level of their lives. The site’s questionnaire decodes 29 personality characteristics to recommend couples who not only have a source of income compatible with yours, but also who you would connect with based on ideal communication styles. first dates and if you’re the type 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 review of EliteSingles.
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 for *everyone,* but they’ll be damned if they don’t sneak some male profiles into feeds belonging to people who requested otherwise. Given the existence of Grindr and Scruff, the need for an online dating arena specifically for queer women was clear — thus, HER.
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 have complained about the increase in the number of bot accounts, so if you come across a profile that turns out to be strangely sparse, you should be cautious.
Still, HER remains the main app solely for queer women. Users can get creative in profile building with categories like diet preferences (like veganism), and star signs, as well as a “What does this mean?” field in the sex, gender, and pronoun categories to supply a more well-rounded understanding of identity.
The traditional text bio is where you can flex your sense of humor or describe what kind of relationship you’re seeking. Joining niche groups like “newly out” or “travelers” can introduce you to people using the app for similar reasons. The app also has a social media component for you to check out events going on in the queer community, either local to you or online, so you can make connections beyond romance. In addition to matching with people, you can also add them as friends if you’re the type that likes to start things platonically and see where they go. To make your intentions about something serious clear (and know where others may lie), you can also fill out the “Looking For” section.
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 giving the reins to this empowered group, Bumble creates a space where women and non-binary folks can feel more in control of their dating experience, and where unsolicited creepiness takes a back seat.
Bumble presents itself as a refreshing option for the chaotic slip-on culture in the world of dating apps. We’ve all met serial scammers, 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.
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 fosters an environment where conversations can take place in a more natural and original way.
Beyond that, the app is pretty similar to Tinder, with a few activations and filters that help avoid casual stuff. Chances are, you’ll find a similar crowd here, but perhaps in this space, a user more willing to chat and see where things go.
As for its paid options, Bumble is a little pricey, but it does offer Boost and Premium tiers, which let you go back to profiles you accidentally swiped on, make bigger matches (though only for 24 more hours), and use complex content filters. from your heart. It’s up to you if you need to take advantage of the extras, as Bumble’s loose edition is more than enough to help you find your match.
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 a splash in online dating, not just because of its quirky name. With a proven track record of successful matches, POF has garnered a loyal following and has become a platform for many singles looking for love. (A close friend of mine found her husband on POF, and their journey from first message to “I do” is a testament to the potential for genuine connections found on the platform.)
What sets POF apart from other dating apps is its large user base, which means you have a large pool of potential matches to explore. This diversity opens up endless possibilities, making sure to locate who matches your personal tastes and dating goals.
In addition to its impressive user base, POF’s chat and messaging features provide a seamless platform for connecting with potential matches, making it much less difficult to have a meaningful verbal exchange and get to know others better.
SilverSingles is an online dating platform designed exclusively for a specific demographic: experienced singles over the age of 50 who are looking to build meaningful relationships and camaraderie in their golden years.
While many dating apps cater to young people, SilverSingles understands the exclusive desires of seniors. With compatibility and shared values, SilverSingles helps older singles find matches who are in a similar standard of living, ensuring a higher chance of having long-term relationships. Terms compatibility.
Dating over 50 means that, more than likely, this is your second or third attempt at love. When match or eharmony’s user bases still pose too much of a never married, no-kids crowd, SilverSingles is here to let you know that putting yourself back out there during your golden years 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). ).
While the site’s personality analysis covers the essentials and provides a solid foundation for finding suitable partners, it is possible to improve the experience by tailoring it to a larger audience. Questions about having children or wanting more children may be more nuanced. Despite this, SilverSingles remains undeniable to browse, providing a sense of familiarity to those looking for a mature and committed relationship.
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.
Grabbing a coffee is the concept of a no-pressure date that allows you to choose a fancy outfit but not too extra for a concert or a restaurant. Coffee Meets Bagel is like the “grab a coffee” edition of dating apps. with the goal of providing a calm environment for other people who might be a little rusty.
Millions and millions of active users are a plus. It’s smart to know that your features are virtually limitless, but having 20 new messages to read every time you log in is a bit of a shock. This happens on both eharmony and Tinder: other people need a connection and they need it now.
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’re encouraged to get the ball rolling with matches disappearing in seven days. It’s less pressure than Bumble’s 24-hour time limit but still eliminates a list of people who don’t care enough to respond or plan a meet-up. Like a few other apps, CMB won’t show your profile to other users unless you have a clear picture, automatically filtering the whole section of faceless profiles you’ll find on other apps.
Another notable feature of CMB is the activity report on the back of everyone’s profile. Although it is only available to premium users, it will demonstrate a user’s statistics, such as how active they are and how long it takes them to respond.
Tinder, the iconic dating app that ignited swipe culture, is the go-to platform for casual dating, fun encounters, and hookups. While you may not find someone looking to settle down for a while, Tinder isn’t a bad place to be if you don’t mind dating around or taking things slowly at first. Plus, with the app’s new “Relationship Goals” feature, it’s easier to see whether or not a potential match would be interested in something long-term.
Let’s just get this one out of the way. If you’re thinking of dating apps, you’re thinking of Tinder. This app pioneered the now-ubiquitous swiping function, revolutionizing the world of online dating and boasting 1.6 billion swipes per day. What started out as a niche hookup app has turned into a wingman that most of us have used at least once in our life. As you’re served a series of photos, swipe right if you like what you see and left if you don’t. When you both indicate interest, it’s a match.
Tinder may not need to promote it as such, but we all know what it’s primarily used for. Literally, if you need to interact with someone, you can only rely on profile pictures and a quote from The Office; however, hey, we all know the those couples who met on Tinder and have been together for years. It’s quick and easy, and if there’s one app that even the most shy and skeptical people will use, it’s Tinder.
Sure, you might not find someone to settle down with 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 its new “Relationship Goals” feature, it’s less difficult to determine, with a glance at a person’s profile, whether or not they would be interested in something long-term.
We put those dating apps and sites through a rigorous testing procedure to identify the most productive ones for serious relationships. We create accounts and spend time on each of the dating apps we recommend. Here’s what we saw in the tests:
Ease of use: We create accounts and explore each platform to see how simple it is to create a profile, navigate the app or site, and connect with potential partners.
Compatibility and adaptability: We analyzed the effectiveness of each site’s adaptation algorithms to see how well users fit in with other people who were a smart fit for them. We also looked at how we would view regular users, as well as how many potential users fitmaking sites will allow you to watch without a subscription.
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 and reviews: We read user reviews, testimonials, and success stories to see how well each site has helped people find love.
Value for money: We looked at the cost of the club and compared it to the features and benefits presented on each site to see if it’s a profitable investment for those looking for serious relationships.
There is evidence that online dating may have a stronger base than offline dating. A 2017 study cited in MIT Technology Review found that people who meet online are more likely to be compatible and to get married. healthily if they get married. A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in late 2019 found that 3 in 10 Americans had used a dating site or app, and 12% of Americans were married or engaged on a date with someone they met. through an app. Whether it’s a marriage or not, online dating turns out to be a smart recipe for a satisfying, long-term relationship.
No one is saying that online dating is the variable that adjusts everything, but studies indicate that other people who sign up for dating sites that require considerate responses are more willing to settle down.
Singles looking for something serious as soon as possible may get frustrated with sites that only offer a limited number of dates per day. But opting for sites that require you to be selective really emphasizes what you’re really looking for. Look for the best fit and get you closer to handcuffed status.
For online daters who want the power to peruse the dating pool, you need to seek out detailed, high-energy profiles that give a well-rounded idea of who you’re messaging. Apps and sites that guide your search with compatibility scores based on questionnaires — like eharmony and OkCupid — can give a greater sense of direction in your search than location-based apps like Tinder. Plus, seeing an actual compatibility number attached to someone’s profile just makes more sense than occasionally being thrown “top picks” you seem to have nothing in common with (looking at you, Hinge).
Beyond putting all your faith in the power of the score, you can tell how much other daters care about the process by how much effort they put into their profile and keeping an eye out for red flags.OkCupid has a particularly strong red flag game: The site has found that personal politics are a major deciding factor for young people choosing a partner, and profile building revolves around make-or-break stances on things like women’s issues or whether they bother to vote.
Leah Stodart is a Philadelphia-based Senior Shopping Reporter at Mashable where she covers essential home tech like vacuums and TVs as well as sustainable swaps and travel. Her ever-growing experience in these categories comes in clutch when making recommendations on how to spend your money during shopping 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 headphones. 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, you can 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, editor, search engine optimizer, and content strategist. In addition to writing for Mashable, Tabitha is also the founding editor of DO YOU ENDO, an online magazine written by other people with endometriosis, for other people with endometriosis. She holds a master’s degree in art editing and critical journalism from the New School of Social Research and is a graduate of the Sextech School. You can locate more of his paintings in online publications, adding National Geographic, Insider, Kinkly, and others.