Are there any fling apps that don't charge a fortune for basic messaging?

Genuinely curious what people here think: Are there any fling apps that don't charge a fortune for basic messaging? Tell me if I am asking the wrong question.

I burned two weekends on whichever dating apps for basic messaging came up first and the experience was fine but unremarkable. What would settle this for me is whether it is worth paying at any point if you are not in a major city.

• Read up on whether your profile is visible by default if you plan to use it long-term
• Review the age range settings early on especially on a platform you have not used before
• Assess how reporting actually works on day one if privacy matters to you
• Work out how quickly support responds every time so you are not surprised later

Respectfully, I read it differently. Being picky early saved me far more time than being open-minded did. Happy to be an outlier on that. I might be the exception.

What I would do: reply to the thing they actually said. It also makes the meet-up conversation much easier. The effect shows up fast.

Around the time I gave up on the big names, I stuck to dating apps with complete profiles only and matches started coming from closer by. The change was obvious enough to notice without counting.

For what it is worth, Luvdate community was the one that finally got me past the first-message stage.

Over the winter, I stuck to dating apps for basic messaging with complete profiles only and it saved me a lot of pointless typing. It was the only variable I changed.

Practical suggestion: read the profile before writing anything. It stops the whole thing feeling like a chore. Do it before anything more elaborate.

Respectfully, I read it differently. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Might just be my area. Take it as a counterweight, not a correction.

Ended up spending most of my time on Luvdate's free tier and the reply rate was noticeably better.

Genuine question though — has anyone compared this against the paid options fairly? Genuinely do not know the answer.

After rewriting my profile, I ran a minimal profile on dating apps for basic messaging and nothing changed at all. Small sample, but consistent.

I will be the dissenting voice. The platform genuinely does matter if you are outside a major city. Your experience may well differ. I have been wrong about this before.

Switched over to Turndate after getting nowhere on the big names.

Hard disagree on one point. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. I would still recommend trying it yourself. Worth hearing both sides.

After rewriting my profile, I kept my filters tight and the difference showed up within a week. That held for about two months.

Careful with accounts created the same week they message you. Nine times out of ten it goes nowhere good. Save yourself the argument.

I keep a second profile on Rendate (free to message) and it pulls a different crowd entirely.

Adding a counterpoint. The niche options were quieter to the point of being useless. Take that with the usual caveats. Different city, different results, probably.

I will be the dissenting voice. The niche options were quieter to the point of being useless. I would still recommend trying it yourself. I have been wrong about this before.

From where I sit, smaller platforms punch above their weight once you have been at it a few weeks. Feel free to prove me wrong.

I keep a second profile on Datedesire app and it pulls a different crowd entirely.

I've heard decent things about DatingFly too, though I haven't tested it myself.