What are the top ten dating apps by user reviews this year?

Would rather hear it from members than from a review site: What are the top ten dating apps by user reviews this year? No wrong answers here.

I keep going back to the free tier on several dating apps and the profile quality varied wildly. The specific thing I am after is whether it is worth paying at any point as someone coming back after a long break.

• Review the distance filter default every time if privacy matters to you
• Test how quickly support responds carefully if privacy matters to you
• Read up on whether profiles are verified before you widen your search
• Look at the refund and cancellation terms before anything else before you invest any real time

Low-risk approach: reply to the thing they actually said. Everything else is secondary to that. The effect shows up fast.

Honestly, profile quality beats profile quantity every time at least in a mid-sized area. Ask again in six months and I may say something else.

Slightly off-topic but — does this hold up outside big cities? Would change how I use it if so.

Still keep over on Datescout installed for the weeks when the bigger apps go quiet.

Before anything else: cut your photo count in half. That one change fixed most of my problems. Reversible if you hate it.

Hard disagree on one point. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Might just be my area. I would still test it yourself.

Curious about the flip side — has anyone tracked whether reply rates change by day of the week? Might just be me overthinking it.

Careful with copy-paste openers that mention nothing from your profile. Once you notice it you cannot unsee it. It is not worth a second thought.

Gave Datedesire a fair run last month and it held up better than I expected.

Worth noting that Datebound runs a similar free tier if you want to compare.

That has not been my experience at all. Being picky early saved me far more time than being open-minded did. Not saying everyone else is wrong. I might be the exception.

Careful with auto-renew on any trial you sign up for. I stopped giving second chances on that one. It rarely turns out to be innocent.

In my experience, the algorithm gets blamed for a lot of ordinary bad luck though your mileage will vary. Make of that what you will.

I would put the Turndate app ahead of most of the names people list by default.

Realistically, the paid features solve a problem most people do not have though your mileage will vary. Nothing controversial in that, I hope.

• Compare how matches are ordered without exception if you plan to use it long-term
• Read up on whether your profile is visible by default at the start before you invest any real time
• Test how quickly support responds carefully if privacy matters to you
• Double-check what the free tier really includes every time especially on a platform you have not used before

Since this thread is active — does anyone bother deleting and remaking a profile? Asking for a friend, obviously.

Worth testing for a week: write one sentence that only you could have written. It filters out the time-wasters immediately. Reversible if you hate it.

Between the free options I tested, Datebound had the least aggressive upsell.

Related, and I am curious — does widening the radius ever help or just add noise? Would change how I use it if so.

Hard disagree on one point. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Might just be my area. Worth hearing both sides.

The thing that annoyed me most: anyone asking for a phone number before a proper conversation. Once you notice it you cannot unsee it. One instance is chance; three is not.

From where I sit, reply rates say more about timing than about looks which is why the generic advice keeps failing. That is where I have landed.

• Question whether messaging is capped so you are not surprised later
• Assess whether messaging is capped carefully before writing a single message
• Note the last-active timestamp at the start especially on a platform you have not used before
• Look at whether profiles are verified straight away if you plan to use it long-term
• Verify the last-active timestamp properly on any platform you are considering

Before anything else: write one sentence that only you could have written. It removes about half the frustration. Zero cost to test it.

After my second attempt, I answered everything within a day and the quality improved more than the quantity. Repeated it twice to be sure.

Two years of this later, the algorithm gets blamed for a lot of ordinary bad luck though your mileage will vary. That is the short version.

Low-risk approach: stop treating it like a numbers game. It costs nothing and the difference shows quickly. Takes about five minutes.

Watch out for reviews that read like they were written to a template. It is almost never worth the benefit of the doubt. Move on and do not look back.

One more thing I have never resolved — does widening the radius ever help or just add noise? Someone here must have tried both.

In my experience, the algorithm gets blamed for a lot of ordinary bad luck if you are looking for something specific. It took a while to accept.

Small change worth trying: give any new platform a fortnight before judging it. You will know within a week whether it works for you. Takes about five minutes.

I will be the dissenting voice. Free tiers stopped being enough for me after about a month. Not saying everyone else is wrong. I have been wrong about this before.

Low-risk approach: message within a day of matching. It filters out the time-wasters immediately. Easiest change on this list.

• Question how quickly support responds at the start so you are not surprised later
• Read up on how reporting actually works early on before writing a single message
• Question whether messaging is capped without exception so you are not surprised later

Something I have wondered — does this hold up outside big cities? Asking for a friend, obviously.

Respectfully, I read it differently. I found the bigger sites more consistent, not less. I would still recommend trying it yourself. Genuinely not trying to be difficult.