Looking for a partner? Use these best dating apps that can help you find new friends or start a more serious relationship
It’s cuffing season! Winter is coming, and the world of online dating apps has opened many doors and changed how we are looking for love in the modern world. Whether for hookups, one-night stands, long-lasting relationships, or marriage, dating apps cater to your needs.
You don’t have to give in to the pressure of settling down with the next available prospect you meet. Whatever your choice is, dating services offer various options, and you can meet like-minded people.
Being on the right dating app is important to meet great potential matches and find the soulmate among them. The top dating app claims to fulfil your wish, and several independent reviews confirm that also.
Most dating apps offer consumers a diverse user base and complete services. You will be amazed to know the role dating apps play in everyday life. There is no need to stick to one place or compromise when there is plenty of fish in the sea.
17 Best Dating Apps to Find True Love in 2023
Online dating apps have changed the way people meet their love. Meeting your potential partner is not limited to your hometown, state, or country. These dating apps save you from a bad date.
In this article, we will look inside and discuss insights in detail about some of these dating apps. By the end of this article, you will know which one app is the best dating app for you based on your preferences.
Let’s begin:
Best for mature daters: Match
Best for serious relationships: eHarmony
Best for christian people: Christian Mingle
Best for single: Plenty of Fish
Best for those looking for something specific: OKCupid
Best for Fast & Free Dating App: Seeking
Best for Easier to Date: Badoo
Best for Meet local singles: Zoosk
Best for Gay Couples: Scruff
1. Match.com
Does it need any introduction? It’s one of the first-ever official dating sites for mature people looking for potential matches. It is best for mature people who want a suitable partner of their age.
The more relationship questionnaire you’ll have, the broader your match. Since it was much older than other dating apps, it has a broader user database to view members with similar preferences as yours with in-app features like the mixer, video calls, voice snippets, safety options, privacy features and more.
The best thing about Match.com is that it is available for all long-term relationships, short-term connections, and casual relationships. However, it is expensive and not easy to get verified on the site.
Match lets remain the longest-running dating app and the most reliable for people looking for relationships and marriage. Even though you can start with the free plan, you can consider a premium or standard plan for more options for finding romance in your love life.
Pros-
- Vast user base
- versatile user demographic
- best for a lasting connection
- Both web & mobile version
Cons-
- Mainly for mature people only
Download: Android, iOS ; Visit: Match.com
2. eHarmony
It is a dating platform based in Los Angeles, California-launched in 2000- later owned by Nucom e-commerce.
eHarmony is open to all Jewish singles: men and women. However, it does not support LGBT profiles. The website uses detailed questionnaires like characteristics, beliefs, views, etc., to match profiles and allows contact between them. You can browse through profiles using the search option and make contacts.
Though It launched a separate platform for same-sex marriages or LGBT community Compatible Partners, where over 200k people registered for match-making, the same company saw quality results.
Since its launch in the dating world, eHarmony has established itself as the most trusted dating app among serious relationship seekers. There are over 750k paid subscribers and more than 10 million active users on eHarmony.
Pros-
- Best dating app for straight people
- Quality people
- for serious relationships
Cons-
- A separate platform for queer people
- not for hookups or casual dates
Download: Android, iOS ; Visit: eHarmony.com
3. Christian Mingle
Christian mingle was launched solely for Christian people who desire God-driven relationships. People with the same belief can register themselves and form meaningful connections.
It takes pride in contributing to 30% of Christian marriages, as per a 2015 study. It is growing with over 3.5 million active users and a database of over 16 million users worldwide. You can try the free trial and upgrade to premium later.
The best thing about the dating app is that it doesn’t cater to people’s cast, race, age range, orientation, etc. Christian people can join and find prospective daily matches.
ChristianMingle’s monthly subscriptions offer-
- $14.99/month (12 months)
- $24.99/month (six months)
- $34.99/month (three months)
Pros-
- Best for Christian marriage
- Quality profiles
- Inclusion of other races and cultures
Cons-
- Expensive premium version
- Limited free services
- Several fake personality profiles
Download: Android, iOS ; Visit: Christianmingle.com
4. Plenty of Fish
Plenty of Fish is one the best dating apps, launched in 2005 and is a Canadian dating app that offers services primarily in Canada, the UK, the Republic of Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Brazil, and the USA. It supports nine languages with a board user base of 70 million active users. Plenty of Fish is also owned by Match group.
Pros-
- Wide user base
- Free messages
- Versatile dating pool
- Live-streaming option
Cons-
- Lacking in features
- Security threat
- Quite a several perverts and fake profiles
Download: Android, iOS ; Visit: pof.com
See more: Successful Best Tech Mobile App Ideas For Business
5. OkCupid
OkCupid is an international dating app launched in 2004. The app started as a social networking site and slowly moved towards building friendships, casual dating, and building relationships. It is one of the best federally registered trademarks.
Last year OkCupid started a campaign, ‘For every single person,’ encouraging people to join the platform and celebrating their dating preferences and choices to find romance.
Pros-
- Free registration
- Versatile user categories
- Refined search tool
Cons-
- Expensive membership
- Mode of communication restricted to messaging online daters only
- No video calls
Download: Android, iOS ; Visit: okcupid.com
6. Seeking
Seeking, previously known as Seeking Arrangements, is an American one of the best dating services founded in 2006. It is most known for finding a sugar baby and sugar daddy/sugar mama arrangement.
It is only for casual dating, short-term relationships, or non-serious relationships. It is suitable for mature people seeking SD/SM/SB arrangements. The robust verification process, security features, premium quality matches, and exclusive benefits & offers from SD/SM makes it the most sought-after dating app.
Pros-
- Free registration
- The popular app for singles over 40
- Detailed verification process
Cons-
- Limited to specific preferences of arrangements
- Only for people seeking SB/SD/SM
- Quite many fake profiles
- Existence of abandoned profiles
7. Badoo
The Badoo dating app, launched in November 2006 in Moscow, is a Russian dating app that matches potential partners based on common locations they share. You can choose multiple places you have been to match with the best real person. The app keeps the favourite location information private for safety reasons.
It became famous, with over 370 million users in more than 190 countries. The robust verification process, clearing out bugs on good time, social media integration, selfie request button, and phone verification made it one of the most popular apps.
The premium version of the dating app gives access to “Superpowers” to gain more subscribers with some additional features. It costs only $2.99. The free version of the app is also available for first-time users.
Badoo, one of the best dating apps, has over one million paid users and over 500 million users since its launch. It has now launched an online trauma centre for people suffering from abuse & sexual assault in collaboration with Bloom.
Pros-
- Legitimate dating app
- Multilayered robust security verification
- Removes cat-fishing
Cons-
- The Ukraine-Russian war created trust issues.
8. Zoosk
Zoosk, launched in 2007, is one of the best dating apps for singles. The profile matches are based on the behavioural pattern of users. The app has over 40 million users worldwide.
It analyses the type of people you are interacting with and matches you with the same type of people using SmartPick™ Introductions via Behavior Matchmaking™. Though, this feature is for premium users only. The membership starts from $7.50 per month.
One of the premium features allows adding five crushes daily. Zoosk is for both casual flirting and long-term relationship seekers.
Pros-
- Fake accounts are suspended instantly
- Affordable paid membership
- Special browsing facility
- Quick like or swipe feature
- Customizable feature options
- Allow you to send free smiles and hearts
Cons-
- Customer support is sometimes unresponsive
- Quite a several inactive users
- Existence of fake profiles
- Unavailability of free unsolicited messages services
9. Scruff
Scruff is an international social networking site for gay men, trans, bi, and queer users, specifically for gay men. It was launched in 2010 and now has 20+ million from different ages, races, and cultures. Its powerful search filter will help you find your perfect match by location.
It was regarded as one of the popular dating apps by The Daily Dot for gay men & trans belonging to the LGBTQ community. You can send messages or use the “woof” feature to interact with the person you like.
There are some unique features in the app that make it the best gay dating app.
Unique Features
- Scruff Venture: share your travel details with locals or companions, chat, meet, and enjoy local queer events with fellow travellers.
- Woof: An alternate option to direct messaging
- Stealth mode: keep your location private for security reasons.
- Insights: notice users’ responsiveness towards other communities
Pro-
- Most trusted among bisexual men & trans from the LGBTQ community
- Users can volunteer to be an ambassador
- Use of AI in match-making
- Unique Travel and Queer event feature
Cons-
- Crashes often
- A lot of ads and popups for free users
Related: Best Mobile App Ideas
10. Coffee Meets Bagel
Coffee Meets Bagel takes a unique approach compared to other dating apps. It gives power to females in deciding the ideal match. Also, Men receive a fixed number of options per day at noon to choose from, known as ‘Bagels’. It is the best option for single people to find romantic partners while simultaneously breaking the ice through its special features.
After the woman accepts the potential match who is interested in her, the man receives 7 days to be straightforward and impress a woman. The coffee meets bagel approach attracted more women to the platform and ensured their safety.
Pros-
- The coffee meets bagel is one of the best dating apps for mature daters, who looking for perfect relationships
- Fast ice-breaking questions
- Can comment on profile and Uploaded photos
Cons-
- Not suitable for free users
11. Tinder
Tinder is the best dating app for hookups, casual sex, dating, and non-committal relations. The app offers the simplicity of usage and a short profile creation option to choose a potential match by swiping right, otherwise, swipe left.
Irrespective of gender identities, Tinder is best for casual connections and finding like-minded people. Tinder continues to shine with in-app safety features, a vast database, unlimited profile searches, video chats without sharing personal details, and many more.
Its premium membership starts at $4.99 per month with advanced features like Super Like, boosting search profile, and a wider user base to reach irrespective of location.
Tinder allows the Super like feature to let other parties know how interested you are in them, the Tinder passport feature to connect with people from other cities before your arrival, and many more premium features. You can also quickly scan their profile to respond and make a better decision.
Pros-
- Easy to use, simple and modern
- Addicting feature, short profile
- No location-based search
- Free to use, easy navigation
- Wider userbase with safety features
- Affordable premium subscription
Cons-
- Famous for casual encounters, bringing “Hook-up Culture” to the USA
- Less suitable for relationships seekers
- Large men-to-women ratio
12. Hinge
Hinge is one of the best dating apps that started with the motto “Designed to be deleted” app. You need to set up an elaborated profile to find the best suitable match by looking at equally detailed profiles of other users. You can send likes and messages to mutual connections regarding special elements in their profile.
The app is suitable for people looking for serious and committed relationships or long-term commitments to settle in real life and live a dating life. While the standard feature suggests the potential match based on your type, the premium feature boosts your search profile.
During the Pandemic, Hinge introduced a ‘Date from Home’ feature in collaboration with Chipotle and Uber Eats to encourage users to have dinner dates with potential matches.
Pros-
- Fast response to customer needs
- Weed out scammers quickly
- Less complicated and quality userbase
- Personalized dating advice
- Video chat and video recording
Cons-
- Limited options in the free version
- No desktop version
13. Her
Suppose you’re looking for a dating app solely focusing on LGBTQ women. In that case, Her is the best dating app and different compared to other similar apps for finding love life, making new friends, queer-related articles, news, dating tips, and sharing stories. It was launched in September 2013 by queer people for queer people only.
With more than 10 million queer flox, Her provides a safe space for LGBTQ people. You can register yourself using your Facebook or Instagram account. After setting up your profile, you can see the activities of other verified users.
Pros-
- One of the best free dating apps
- Safe for Queer women, bisexual users, pansexuals, etc
- Niche for specific qualities in a partner
Cons-
- Not for people who’re not active on social network
- No desktop version
14. Happn
Happn lets you meet the people you’ve crossed paths with. It helps you find every Happn user nearby, including features, times, and locations. The concept makes approaching your secret crush and setting up dates at a nearby favourite coffee shop a simpler process.
Living in a close neighbourhood has the possibility of people running into the same people they met on Happn.
Since its launch in 2014, the best dating app with a special feature of connecting people who just pass nearby, Happn has reached over 100 million users worldwide.
Pros-
- Finds a potential match in your area
- Location-based potential matches
- Fewer scammers and bot profiles
Cons-
- small town people may run out of good matches
- potential safety issues
15. Bumble
One of the co-founders of Tinder launched the dating site keeping women’s safety in mind. The app gives women the power to match and interact first. Men can send messages or access the profile only if women match with them. After the connection establishes, women have 24hr to give responses. After that, the message disappears.
The Superswipe option (5 per week) will let you know how much the potential match interests you. There is also a “Virtual dating” badge premium feature to let the other party know you’re interested in video calling.
The sole purpose of this dating site is to make the dating space safe for women & protect them from harassment and abuse. The concept made the platform highly successful and increased the user demographic.
Bumble has launched two other platforms to build friendships and connect with professionals, Bumble BFF & Bumble Bizz. You can connect and make new friends through Bumble BFF globally, while Bumble Bizz is the best dating app for professionals who want to expand their network with other professionals globally.
The premium version of Bumble gives access to additional BFF feature like Bumble boost, advanced filters, travel mode, Beeline, unlimited swiping, and many more.
Pros-
- One of the best dating apps for women
- Better user demographic
- Voice call & video chat options are available
- Vast user base
- Balanced user demographic
- Fewer scammers and bot accounts
Cons-
- Not for hookups
- Not for people who don’t like to message first move
- Not for women who don’t like to make the first move
16. The League
The League, launched in 2015, is exclusive to people who aspire to have serious relationships. You need explicit permission to join, known as the “waitlist”. It puts users on the waitlist to verify & pull out real information through Facebook and LinkedIn user profiles. However, references from existing members and an extra fee can increase the chances of acceptance.
It offers the Prospects daily at 5 pm, called “Happy hour,” to swipe through for non-premium users. The premium member gets 5-9 prospects daily based on their provided information.
It offers all the basic functions like other apps with little modifications to its users. Other features include allowing users to interact within 21 days or the match gets lost. The lack of activity and lying can get you banned.
Pros-
- Secure and legitimate dating site
- Weed out scammers, inactive users
Cons-
- Lack of diversity
- Expensive membership fee
17. Facebook Dating
Facebook Dating is a digital dating app by Facebook, partially launched in the USA in September 2019. By 2020, it expanded to Canada, Thailand, Mexico, and several European countries like the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Norway, Spain, Germany, France, etc.
You need to register and set up your own profile & it will access all your info using your Facebook profile. The filter shows results based on race, age, Religion, height, location, etc., and matches with prospects within a 100km range. You can use the Lucky match filter to broaden the search and start a voice chat and messaging.
It also allows adding Instagram followers and Facebook friends to their secret crush list. Users can add Instagram posts to their Facebook dating robust profiles and share both Facebook and Instagram stories.
Only the future will tell how popular Facebook dating will be.
Pros-
- Location-based search
- Free dating app
Cons-
- No web version
- Not many people are using it
Make sure you read in-depth reviews before choosing the dating app and setting up your profile.
Market Potential of the Online Dating Site
The online dating segment shows the bright future of dating apps among youth. It has the potential to provide the highest amount of service and grab the versatility of the users’ demographic. The best dating apps for catching users’ attention are Bumble, Tinder and Match.
Their robust business models have captured the largest user database and unique quality services from people of various backgrounds, races, age groups, cultures, and more.
While Tinder and Bumble focus mainly on casual relationships, building networks, and friendships, Match focuses on building families and serious relationships along with significant revenue generation.
The below graph shows the market size and potential of dating apps worldwide. Market revenue is set to reach $2.86 billion in 2022. It is estimated to reach $3.41 billion by 2027, with a CAGR of 3.59%.
User penetration and market revenue are expected to increase by 440.9 million by 2027. The USA generates the most revenue and has the largest user base compared to other countries.
As more people accept the online dating concept, Asia and South America are promising markets for the future of dating businesses, considering more revenue generation and the presence of more dating apps coming into the market.
Basic Key Features in a Dating App
- Easy Registration
- Social media integration
- Safety features
- Free instant messaging
- Audio calling
- Easy & multiple verification processes
- Location Access
- Like/heart options
- Affordable premium services
- Push notification
Significantly Advanced Features
- Video calling & recording
- Automatic verification to weed out scammers
- Access to worldwide user demographics
- A boost for profile search & more recommendations
- Detour option for accidental swipes & unlimited likes
- Unlimited profile choices
- Ad-block & advanced filter options
- Unlimited messaging
Cost & Revenue Calculation
Cost estimation
- Developer’s cost
- Website & mobile development platform
- Third-party integration
- UX/UI design
- Project manager
- Advanced technology integration
- Post development costs like debugging, new feature integration, etc.
Revenue Generation
- Premium app model
- In-app purchasing
- In-app advertisement
- Paid applications
- Subscription services
- Lead generation
- Influencer marketing
Conclusion
There is no particular definition of the best dating app. We all are human and looking for genuine connection, love, trust, and a true companion. Many dating apps offer, and some people did find all these qualities in their partner through them for making a perfect dating scene.
The market review shows that dating apps successfully attract more users and generate more revenue. There is so much potential that’s yet to discover in the dating apps business.
Hire a talented mobile app development company and dive in.
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