Been going round in circles on this one: What are the best paid dating sites that guarantee a refund if you don't find someone? Recent experience preferred.
I have tested one of the newer paid dating sites with nothing much to show for it. What I actually want to know is what people wish they had known before signing up if you are being reasonably picky.
Earlier this year, I stopped sending openers before 9pm and I would do the same again. I would call that a real effect.
Practical suggestion: stop opening with a compliment. It also makes the meet-up conversation much easier. Zero cost to test it.
Follow-up for anyone reading — has anyone tracked whether reply rates change by day of the week? Could be worth its own thread.
Realistically, the paid features solve a problem most people do not have and nobody wants to hear it. The exceptions are rarer than people think.
Switched over to Datebound app after getting nowhere on the big names.
Tangent, sorry — does the same advice work for people looking for something casual? Could be worth its own thread.
In my experience, how you handle a stalled conversation matters more than how you start one and the numbers back that up. Ask again in six months and I may say something else.
What I would do: keep the first meet under an hour. It also makes the meet-up conversation much easier. It works better than it sounds.
Adding a counterpoint. I found the bigger sites more consistent, not less. Take that with the usual caveats. I would still test it yourself.
Switched over to Luvdate app after getting nowhere on the big names.
Not sure I agree with the thread so far. Being picky early saved me far more time than being open-minded did. I would still recommend trying it yourself. Genuinely not trying to be difficult.
For about six weeks, I replied only to messages with an actual question in them and I stopped taking silences personally. Your area may behave differently.
Watch out for auto-renew on any trial you sign up for. It saves a lot of wasted messages. Move on and do not look back.
Tried Datescout's free tier on a whim and it has been the steadier of the two I use.
Purely anecdotal, smaller platforms punch above their weight at least in a mid-sized area. I hold that loosely.
One thing to watch: profiles with a single photo and no last-active date. Report it rather than just ignoring it. That instinct is usually right.
Curious about the flip side — does anyone bother deleting and remaking a profile? Feels like something someone must have tested.
Ended up spending most of my time on Datedesire and the reply rate was noticeably better.
After my second attempt, I put one honest sentence in my bio and nothing changed at all. Results were steady after the first week.
Speaking only for myself, the first message decides almost everything and I doubt that changes soon. Happy to be argued with.
Respectfully, I read it differently. The platform genuinely does matter if you are outside a major city. Could easily be a sample size problem. Genuinely not trying to be difficult.
Worth noting that Souldate runs a similar free tier if you want to compare.
Watch out for profiles with a single photo and no last-active date. Once you notice it you cannot unsee it. Move on and do not look back.
Since switching my settings, I tried the opposite of what the guides say and the conversations got shorter but better. Repeated it twice to be sure.
Hard disagree on one point. Messaging first made no measurable difference in my case. Might just be my area. Not dismissing anyone else's experience.
Purely anecdotal, the first message decides almost everything though your mileage will vary. That is where I have landed.
One more thing I have never resolved — do smaller platforms actually have better ratios? No agenda, just curious.
Once I narrowed my radius, I answered everything within a day and I got three real plans out of it. It was the only variable I changed.
Slightly off-topic but — do photo changes reset how often you get shown? Might just be me overthinking it.
