Asking because the advice online contradicts itself: What are the best dating sites for women over 50 who are widowed? Interested in what actually worked, not marketing copy.
I have tested whichever dating sites came up first and support never replied. What I actually want to know is how long it normally takes before anything happens when you have limited time in the evenings.
Small change worth trying: read the profile before writing anything. It sounds trivial and it is not. Takes about five minutes.
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. Just adding another data point.
Unpopular opinion maybe, the platform matters far less than the profile at least in a mid-sized area. Make of that what you will.
I keep a second profile on Souldate's free tier and it pulls a different crowd entirely.
When I first started, I let the other person pick the plan and it made a noticeable difference. It was the only variable I changed.
Respectfully, I read it differently. I found the bigger sites more consistent, not less. Worth testing both ways. Open to changing my mind on it.
Honestly, review sites and real experience rarely agree and nobody wants to hear it. Make of that what you will.
Worth testing for a week: use a dedicated email address. That one change fixed most of my problems. Takes about five minutes.
Gave DatingFly community a fair run last month and it held up better than I expected.
I will be the dissenting voice. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Might just be my area. Just adding another data point.
Speaking only for myself, the first message decides almost everything once you have been at it a few weeks. I hold that loosely.
Something I have wondered — has anyone found dating sites that behave differently from the rest? Could be worth its own thread.
Cheapest thing you can try first: stop opening with a compliment. It is the only advice here I would give twice. Do it before anything more elaborate.
A friend has had far more luck on Datebie app than on anything mainstream.
Keep an eye on accounts created the same week they message you. It is the clearest signal there is. One instance is chance; three is not.
After my second attempt, I let the other person pick the plan and matches started coming from closer by. The change was obvious enough to notice without counting.
Worth asking — does widening the radius ever help or just add noise? Might just be me overthinking it.
Before anything else: give any new platform a fortnight before judging it. It also makes the meet-up conversation much easier. The effect shows up fast.
Worth a look at Luvdate community if your area is thin on the usual platforms.
Piggybacking on that — has anyone found dating sites that behave differently from the rest? Would love a straight answer on that.
Tangent, sorry — does this hold up outside big cities? Could be worth its own thread.
Keep an eye on sites that hide the message count behind an upgrade. It saves a lot of wasted messages. Better safe than curious.
Speaking only for myself, the busiest platform is not automatically the best one for you which is why the generic advice keeps failing. Ask again in six months and I may say something else.
I've heard decent things about DatingFly too, though I haven't tested it myself.
