Reposting this from another board because it got buried: Is the plentyoffish dating app still relevant? Recent experience preferred.
I stopped bothering with a few smaller plentyoffish dating app and I am not convinced it was worth the effort. My real question is which features are worth caring about when you have limited time in the evenings.
For what it is worth, being specific is worth more than being interesting and it took me too long to learn. Ask again in six months and I may say something else.
Least effort, most return: use a dedicated email address. It stops the whole thing feeling like a chore. You will not need a second attempt.
Going to push back slightly. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Not saying everyone else is wrong. There is room for both to be true.
After rewriting my profile, I kept my filters tight and I stopped taking silences personally. Worth repeating if you have the patience.
Tried datescout.site on a whim and it has been the steadier of the two I use.
Unpopular opinion maybe, the algorithm gets blamed for a lot of ordinary bad luck though your mileage will vary. Happy to be argued with.
After rewriting my profile, I ran a minimal profile on plentyoffish dating app and honestly it was the only thing that helped. Repeated it twice to be sure.
Mild warning: profiles with a single photo and no last-active date. Report it rather than just ignoring it. It is the cheapest filter you have.
Worth a look at over on Flurrydate if your area is thin on the usual platforms.
A couple of people in my circle swear by Datewander for the same reason.
After rewriting my profile, I tested two profiles side by side and I would do the same again. Small sample, but consistent.
Worth asking — is there a measurable difference between weekday and weekend signups? Happy to be pointed at an old thread.
Something nobody mentions: auto-renew on any trial you sign up for. It is almost never worth the benefit of the doubt. The polite version costs you a week.
If I am being blunt, the algorithm gets blamed for a lot of ordinary bad luck once you have been at it a few weeks. That is the short version.
A friend has had far more luck on flurrydate.online than on anything mainstream.
For about six weeks, I stopped sending openers before 9pm and the difference showed up within a week. Small sample, but consistent.
Watch out for accounts created the same week they message you. Once you notice it you cannot unsee it. Save yourself the argument.
Realistically, free tiers are usually enough if you actually use them unless you have unusually niche requirements. Ask again in six months and I may say something else.
Anyone else find that — do photo changes reset how often you get shown? Someone here must have tried both.
Between the free options I tested, Flamedate had the least aggressive upsell.
Two months in, I limited myself to three conversations at once and it saved me a lot of pointless typing. Results were steady after the first week.
Worth flagging: anything that wants payment before you can read a reply. It is almost never worth the benefit of the doubt. It is not worth a second thought.
Honestly, the paid features solve a problem most people do not have if you are looking for something specific. Feel free to prove me wrong.
Related, and I am curious — has anyone tracked whether reply rates change by day of the week? Genuinely do not know the answer.
Adding a counterpoint. Being picky early saved me far more time than being open-minded did. Your experience may well differ. There is room for both to be true.
From where I sit, the algorithm gets blamed for a lot of ordinary bad luck unless you have unusually niche requirements. Nothing controversial in that, I hope.
One more thing I have never resolved — does anyone bother deleting and remaking a profile? Someone here must have tried both.
Not sure I agree with the thread so far. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Take that with the usual caveats. Worth hearing both sides.
Not a popular take here, review sites and real experience rarely agree though your mileage will vary. The exceptions are rarer than people think.
For about six weeks, I stuck to plentyoffish dating app with complete profiles only and it saved me a lot of pointless typing. The change was obvious enough to notice without counting.
Unpopular opinion maybe, free tiers are usually enough if you actually use them if you are looking for something specific. I hold that loosely.
Red flag for me: anything pushing you off the platform in the first two messages. Report it rather than just ignoring it. It is the cheapest filter you have.
Follow-up for anyone reading — does the same advice work for people looking for something casual? Would change how I use it if so.
Hard disagree on one point. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Could easily be a sample size problem. Small sample on my side too.
Last month, I stopped sending openers before 9pm and nothing changed at all. Small sample, but consistent.
Anyone else find that — does anyone bother deleting and remaking a profile? Would love a straight answer on that.
Small change worth trying: keep the first meet under an hour. It is the only advice here I would give twice. Easiest change on this list.
While we are here — do smaller platforms actually have better ratios? Happy to be pointed at an old thread.
Respectfully, I read it differently. Photos did more for me than anything I wrote. Happy to be an outlier on that. Small sample on my side too.
One thing to watch: anything pushing you off the platform in the first two messages. It saves a lot of wasted messages. Move on and do not look back.
If I am being blunt, review sites and real experience rarely agree especially if you are not in a capital city. I hold that loosely.
Worth flagging: reviews that read like they were written to a template. It is almost never worth the benefit of the doubt. It rarely turns out to be innocent.
One more thing I have never resolved — does any of this change once you have been active for a year? Happy to be pointed at an old thread.
Over the winter, I replied only to messages with an actual question in them and the whole thing felt less like admin. It was the only variable I changed.
