Best Online Dating Sites

Online dating is definitely a great and non-intimidating way to put yourself out there in 2020. The rise of online dating apps and sites have made it possible for anyone to find someone with whom they could connect. Moreover, they are gaining popularity because of the current uncertainty around the world.

Due to the internet’s reach in urban locales around the world, a sizeable population is driven toward online dating. Grabbing the business opportunity many international online dating sites have mushroomed in the past few years. All these sites together cater to every preference, niche, religion, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Believe it or not, there are exclusive online dating websites for Pagans, Geeks, Nerds, Bikers, Rockers, Truckers, Cougar, and many such communities, and we have reviews of all of them on our dating platform Dating Blush.

Whether you are looking for someone for a stroll in the park, for meaningful conversation over a cup of coffee, or raunchy sexual encounters for a night, there is something for everyone in the online dating world.

There is no doubt that dating apps and sites have transformed the way people meet and develop relationships. According to statista.com both the total number of online daters and total revenue of online dating platforms are rising every year. Online dating users are expected to rise to 161 million by 2023. However, not all dating websites and apps are contributing to this success journey. Most dating sites are just there and don’t have much to offer. Therefore, not all sites are worthy of your time and money.

With all these dating sites available how would you choose the best one for yourself? To ease your pain and confusion we have gathered a list of top dating sites and apps. The list consists of all the prominent mainstream dating sites and several niche sites which are on top of their particular niches.

Top Online Dating Website Reviews

eHarmony

eHarmony Dating Site

Relationships: Long term, serious and deep relationships
Profile: All singles*
Gender Ratio: 51% male and 49% female*
User Base: 4.2 million visits/month*
Popularity: Over 9 million active users worldwide*
User Rating:  4.8/5.0*

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eHarmony became a household name in 2002 when it claimed to be responsible for creating 4% of marriages in the USA that year. It is one of the top online dating sites for marriage and long term relationships. It guarantees if you are not satisfied in 3 months, you will get another 3 months for free. The eHarmony has a unique-matchmaking system that requires you to be painfully honest while filling up the personality test. This makes it one of the best online dating sites for serious relationships.

Special features

Calming color scheme and minimalistic layout.
No search feature available.
All users receive a decent number of matches daily.
Automated conversation starters.
Paid membership gets you 30 extra matches outside your preference list.

eHarmony is one of the top dating sites for marriage. It has done wonderfully well in creating a clean and hassle-free matchmaking system. It can be your best bet to find someone who is looking for something serious like you.  Read Full Review of eHarmony.

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Zoosk

Zoosk Dating Site

Relationships: Flexible dating, fun & short term dates, serious relationships
Profile: All singles*
Gender Ratio: 48% male and 52% female*
User Base: 3.9 million visits/month*
Popularity: Over 40 million active users worldwide*
User Rating:  4.7/5.0*

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Zoosk had a humble start as a Facebook app. Now it has grown to be one of the largest online dating apps with presence in several countries. The site has a reverse matchmaking system, where the algorithm picks up from your online behavior. You can use Zoosk to look up for a variety of relationships.

Special features

Packed with unique and innovative features, Zoosk is extremely popular amongst the young generation.
You can buy virtual gifts.
Profile pictures are visible to everyone.
Super Send allows you to send a flirty message to all at once.

Zoosk is one of the top online dating websites and an amazing choice for modern singles. The site features several success stories that reconfirm your faith in its success rate. Read Full Review of Zoosk.com.

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Silver Singles

Relationships: Friendship, companionship, casual dating, serious relationships
Profile: All singles over 50*
Gender Ratio: 42% male and 58% female*
User Base: 900,000 visits/month*
Popularity: 25,000 new signups every month*
User Rating:  4.6/5.0*

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Silver Singles is a premium dating site for seniors over 50. It is one of the two prominent online dating destinations for people who are 50 but still young at heart. Belonging to the family of Elite Singles, Silver Singles also works on the compatibility match system. According to Silver Singles, it is never too late to find the person with whom you want to spend your life with. Most of its users are either widowed or divorced, seeking a second chance at love.

Special features

You can customize your search.
Chat and messaging are available only for premium members.
Design is simple and clutter-free.

Silver Singles provides a hassle-free environment for mature singles to find dates. The site has a concentrated user base which ensures better results. It is no doubt one of the best online dating sites for seniors and a go-to site for senior online dating. Read Full Review of Silver Singles.

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Match.com

Relationships: Casual dating, friendship, romance, long-term relationship
Profile: All singles*
Gender Ratio: 45% male and 55% female*
User Base: 37 million visits/month*
Popularity: Over 10 million premium members worldwide*
User Rating:  4.9/5.0*

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Match.com is the pioneer in the world of online dating. Back in 1995 when creators of Match.com came up with the concept of finding love online, it seemed like an alien concept. The site has witnessed all the ups and downs in the industry, so managed to become one of the largest networks of online dating platform.  It has been a pro-LGBTQ supporter right from its inception, while the rest of the early entrants took time to warm up to it.

Match is available on both the website and app version. Both are easy to use and loaded with lots of features.

Special features

Extensive search filters.
You have the choice to send your Match profile to one of the sister sites, to increase your chances of finding a match.
MatchPhone is a paid service that lets you interact with your matches without disclosing your phone number.
Boost is another feature that users can use to push their profiles up in the search results and match suggestions.
Free 6-month subscription for users who fail to find a match in the first 6 months of paid membership.

The fun and useful features of Match increase the possibility of finding a perfect match. The site is all-inclusive and does not discriminate against anyone based on their preferences. The site has everything to be in the list of best online dating sites. Read Full Match.com Review.

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Elite Singles

EliteSingles Dating Site

Relationships: Serious committed relationships
Profile: All singles*
Gender Ratio: 43% male and 57% female*
User Base: 2 million visits/month*
Popularity: 82% members are university educated*
User Rating:  4.7/5.0*

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Elite Singles is a mature dating site for educated singles who are looking for real meaningful relationships. The site prefers to identify itself as an online matchmaking service than just another dating site. EliteSingles claims to have cracked the formula to find a compatible match, especially for educated professionals. The whole system of Elite Singles is built around the 5-factor personality assessment. This sophisticated matchmaking system ensures that the algorithm finds you matches that are most compatible with your personality.

Special features

Verified Profiles keep scammers and fraudsters away.
Most of the site’s traffic comes from the USA, UK, and Canada.
You can look for matches who are both intellectually and financially compatible.
The deep personality report is free to all users.
A high level of security ensures that only paid members can view profile pictures.
SSL encryption and fraud detection system ensures safe online dating.

The hookup minded audience may not find this site appealing at all. Elite Singles is all about mature singles finding real connections in the online world. It is one of the best online dating sites for professionals. Moreover, with all the advanced safety features it is one of the safest dating sites. So, if you are ready for a serious commitment, then Elite Singles is worth your time. Read Full Review of Elite Singles.

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OurTime

Relationships: Friendship, dating, serious relationships
Profile: All singles over 50*
Gender Ratio: 48% male and 52% female*
User Base: 8.9 million visits/month*
User Rating:  4.5/5.0*

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OurTime is another successful online dating site for 50 plus crowd. Slightly different from Silver Singles, OurTime encourages its users to explore all sorts of relationships. The site has proven to be an excellent platform for people over 50 to meet people for love and friendship.

Special features

Easy registration process.
Active chatrooms to keep you occupied.
The design is simplistic and linear.
Large font sizes are easily visible.

Single men and women over 50 are a growing demographic. OurTime offers these singles an excellent and safe platform to find someone to begin their next chance at love. It's a popular and one of the best online dating sites for seniors over 50. Read Full Review of OurTime.

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Christian Mingle

Relationships: Date, serious relationship
Profile: All Christian singles*
Gender Ratio: 44% male and 56% female*
Popularity: Over 16 million users worldwide*
User Rating:  4.5/5.0*

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Christian Mingle is undoubtedly one of the most sought after online Christian dating sites. It is a preferential choice of single men and women who prefer to find a partner who strongly believes in the Christian way of life. Without it creating much fuss about the latest features, it focusses on its core functions. It has everything which a basic online dating site or app needs.

Special features

Look Book feature is similar to the swipe feature in Tinder.
You can set your discovery page filters.
Forums to study the Bible and share thoughts and views about it.

Overall, it provides a great environment for Christian men and women to find potentials partners. So, if you are looking to settle down in a relationship rooted in Christian faith, ChristianMingle is one of the best online Christian dating sites for you. Read Full Review of Christian Mingle.

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BlackPeopleMeet

Relationships: Casual dates, romantic dating, serious relationship
Profile: Black singles*
Gender Ratio: 47% male and 53% female*
User Base: 5.7 million visits/month*
Popularity: Over 5 million active users worldwide*
User Rating:  4.3/5.0*

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Black People Meet is one of the largest and oldest dating services for black singles in the United States and Canada. Black singles can look for friendship, fun-time, and long-term relationships. You can start by answering a few questions and create an account in a few seconds. Surprisingly, you may even notice some white singles on the site. This is not unusual as Black People Meet is not strict about who can join the site. The main idea behind the site is to provide a priority position for black singles, which other mainstream failed to do so in the past.

Special features

Easy to navigate clean design.
Small popup window on each search results which tells you in brief about the person and their preferences.
Buy virtual gifts and surprise your special users.

Black People Meet gives you all the tools to find the perfect match for you. It is one of the most popular online dating sites for black singles. Read Full Review of BlackPeopleMeet.

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BeNaughty

Relationships: Dating, Hookups
Profile: All singles*
Gender Ratio: 48% male and 52% female*
User Base: 13.3 million visits/month*
User Rating:  3.7/5.0*

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BeNaughty is one of the most favorite adult dating sites. What sets it apart from other dating sites is that it is just like a normal dating site with sexual undertones. BeNaughty gives you a perfect casual dating environment to mingle with sexy singles in your area.

Special features

Active women users are available to chat 24/7.
The Messaging feature is free for women members.
You can send and receive videos and pictures.

So, if you are looking for something casual, no-strings-attached kind of experience, start right here. Read Full Review of BeNaughty.

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Adult Friend Finder

Relationships: Affairs, Hookups
Profile: All singles*
Gender Ratio: 65% male and 35% female*
User Base: 25.5 million visits/month*
Popularity: Over 100 million active users worldwide*
User Rating:  3.5/5.0*

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Adult Friend Finder is out and out sexy raunchy adult dating site. The site dares you to explore anything naughty that you can think about in your mind. You can rest assured to find someone who has the same crazy fantasies in mind. It claims to be the world’s largest sex and swinger community.

Special features

Ideal for finding quick sexual encounters.
Allows singles and couples.
You can have live video chats with other paid members.
Online instructional videos on anal sex, oral sex, how to meet women online, etc. all are available on the site, but at an additional cost.
For advanced features, you need to upgrade.

Adult Friend Finder is one of the most liked online hookup sites. The site has thousands of articles on dating and sex to help its members take full advantage of this online hookup website. Read Full Review of Adult Friend Finder.

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Tinder

Tinder

Relationships: Friendship, Casual date, romance
Popularity: Over 57 million users worldwide*
Profiles: All singles*
User Rating: 4.1/5.0*

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Tinder is the most popular dating site or app in the world currently. With this swiping feature, it changed the whole mobile dating game. The app has been in the public spotlight for both its good and bad reasons. The site attracted a lot of flak from people for treating people as commodities and age-based pricing model. However, it still has millions of registered users worldwide and people love it.

Special features

Super easy to use.
Registration requires a Facebook account.
Age-based pricing model.
Rewind function helps you to go back and right swipe the person in which you must have swiped left by accident.

Even though it has a casual vibe, there are people who found love through Tinder. So, go ahead and give it a try.

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OkCupid

Relationships: Friendship, casual date, serious relationships
Profile: All singles*
Gender ratio: 65% male and 35% female*
User Base: 55 million visitors/month*
Popularity: Over 50 million active users worldwide*
User Rating:  4.3/5.0*

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Within 3 years of its launch in 2004, OkCupid made it to Time Magazine’s top 10 online dating sites. This creates a vibrant environment for people from all sexual orientations to talk, flirt, and date. It is one of the best free dating sites for singles. Yes, you heard it right all the important communication tools on the site are free including messaging.

Special features

Fun and free dating site for women users.
Easy swiping feature.
You can import photos from Instagram or Facebook.

Since its inception, OkCupid has gone through multiple levels of changes to enhance user experience and be all-inclusive. It’s is a middle ground between mindless swiping apps and marriage-oriented dating sites like eHarmony.

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Her

Relationships: Friendship, date, long-term relationships
Profile: All lesbian, bisexual, and queer women*
Popularity: Over 4 million users worldwide*
User Rating:  3.9/5.0*

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Her is the self-acclaimed largest dating site for lesbians and queer women around the world. Rather than simply being a hookup site, Her aims at providing a community experience to lesbians. In 2015 it rebranded itself from lesbian dating app to lesbian social app. You will get a feel of the social media platform while using the app.

Special features

No manual search options.
You can only send messages to friends and matches.
There is no account verification process, you can sign up through Facebook and Instagram.

Her is popular and one of the best online lesbian dating sites. With Her you can get more than a dating site. It connects you to a large community of fantastic lesbians and queer women all around the world.

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Grindr

Grindr

Relationships: Casual dating, hookups, relationships
Profile: All gay, bisexual men*
Popularity: Over 3.2 million daily active users*
User Rating:  3.2/5.0*

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Launched in 2009, Grindr is the first official location-based dating app in the world. It is unarguably the most desirable dating app and online dating site for gay, bi, trans, and queer people. Apart from finding a date, there are lots of fun things to do on the app. Messaging feature is free on the site but to have a chat feature you must think about upgrading yourself.

Special features

Super easy signup process.
A profile picture is a must which is manually verified.
Gaymojis are customized gay-themed emojis enjoyed by users while chatting.
You can bookmark your favorite profiles.

Grindr follows the path of most new age dating apps of today, with quick-like, quick-chat, quick-meet options. If you are looking for something serious skip this site. Otherwise, it is one of the best online dating sites for transgenders.

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Single Parent Meet

Single Parent Meet

Relationships: Date, friendship, romance, serious relationship
Profile: All single parents*
Gender Ratio: 55% male and 45% female*
User Base: 500,000 visits/month*
User Rating:  3.7/5.0*

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Single Parent Meet as the name says is the site that caters specifically to single parents. The struggles of being a single parent are real and the people behind this dating site understand this. To be able to date a fellow single parent can be great as you could relate to each other’s situations. Thankfully, Single Parent Meet helped people to get a platform to meet and date. Moreover, it managed to become the venue of several successful stories of partners finding true love on this dating site for single parents.

Special features

Editable searching features.
Chatrooms to interact with fellow single parents.
Exchanging ideas about parenting and dating.
Profiles are very detailed.

Single Parent Meet has the largest user base of single parents and targeted services and features. Many premium subscribers have found the site to be great and fun to use. With all its features and services, it is one of the best online dating sites for single parents.

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Bottom Line

In the online dating industry, there is rarely any site that is 100 percent free. Even if you find totally free online dating sites, because of a lack of budget, the 100% free online dating sites are unable to provide you the service that you expect, and you might lose your interest soon. However, if you are on a budget then we suggest you create your account on your preferred sites and wait for promotional offers and free trials. You can also create a free account and get the hang of the website to understand whether you could have something substantial before you go for a paid subscription. Paid dating sites are the best option if you have the budget.

Online dating also provides you the option to go with the mainstream dating sites or to choose from niche dating sites. It can be of any category irrespective of your profession, physical ability, and belief system. For truckers, it has truckers dating sites, and for the deaf, it has deaf dating sites. So, there is something for everybody in the online space.

Online dating is interesting. It connects you to people in a way no other medium can. There is something for everyone here. Our list covers some of the best dating sites in their respective category and niches.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Does online dating work?

Roughly six-in-ten online daters (57%) say they have had an overall positive experience with online dating websites and apps. According to new research from Stanford sociologist Michael Rosenfeld, most heterosexual couples, today meet online. Rosenfeld also mentions that it is surprising online dating has displaced the help of friends, which otherwise seemed indispensable. Algorithms are the new age matchmakers for people looking for love.

However, Dr. Harry Reis, from the University of Rochester, has an altered view of online dating. According to Reis, online dating is not for faint-hearted people. Just because you are meeting more number of people online, the chances of bad experiences also increase. In Reis’s words, “There’s an old saying that you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince, and it applies to online dating as well.”

What is the best online dating site?

There is no one website or dating app which can be termed as the best online dating site. All dating sites listed above are proven to the best in their category. The websites are chosen on the basis of several factors like success rate, popularity, ease of use, and overall user rating.

What is the best dating site for over 50?

According to our experts, there are 2 dating sites that have stood out and managed to be one of the most successful online dating sites for senior singles. Silver Singles and Our Time are the leading senior singles dating sites.

Thankfully, there are a lot of options available for senior singles. Not only the mainstream dating sites are becoming more inclusive, but several niche senior dating sites are also there. You can find our review on top 10 dating sites for a single over 50.

Are there any legitimate free hookup sites?

Relationship apps are not the place to find hookups. Rather than coming out as a creep to other users, it's better to join dating sites that cater to singles looking for something casual. There are several dating sites which are designed keeping in mind the quick, fun, and easy relationship today’s youth are seeking.  The first name that pops up is Tinder which has completely transformed the way people date. There are several other prominent websites like BeNaughty, Adult Friend Finder, etc. You can find the complete list of top 10 best hookup dating sites and their review here.

What is the success rate of online dating?

According to PEW research, over half of Americans (54%) say that relationships, where couples meet through a dating site or app, are just as successful as those that begin in person. The stigma attached to online dating is decreasing with a number of people are embracing the concept.

Is online dating better than traditional dating?

Whether internet dating leads you to marriage or not, finding love online is definitely more fun than traditional dating. Consider this as a job hunt online. Just like finding a job online from a job hunt sites or LinkedIn, can lead you to your dream job. Online dating opens up a long list of compatible candidates to date which you never knew existed. Some of the major benefits of online dating are:

  • You can meet people outside your geographic area and social circle.
  • Matching tools are a great way of understanding your compatibility with your date before you actually go on a date.
  • Dating assistance like matchmaking tools and daily match suggestions.
  • One of the five relationships starts online in the USA.

Apart from the mode of finding a date and developing initial attraction, all is the same with online and offline dating. To nurture a relationship, you will have to go through the different phases of a relationship.

What is the best dating site for educated professionals?

Educated professionals have multiple options when it comes to online dating. It is majorly because educated, professional, and single are the 3 magical combinations most people are trying to find online. Both mainstream dating sites and niche dating sites are available if you are an educated professional or looking for one. You can find a detailed review of the top 10 professional dating sites on our website.