Are there any dating sites without email verification required?

Been circling dating sites without email verification required for a while now. The only metric I trust with dating sites is how the interface holds up on mobile.

The frustrating thing about dating sites is that the free and paid experiences barely overlap. I judge dating sites almost entirely on what the reporting tools actually do on mobile.

My working method for dating sites if you're short on time:

• Note what the filters do after a page refresh on the first evening, not the first month
• Work out how the feed changes when you narrow the age range with notifications switched off
• Count how long it takes before the first upgrade prompt lands with notifications switched off
• Track what the block and report flow actually does before you upload a second photo
• Test whether the distance setting is honoured in your own city rather than the default radius

For anyone still using dating sites, what should I check first? Enthusiasm and scepticism all worth hearing. Recent experiences are what I am actually after.

Not the answer anyone wants: I want to like dating sites more than I actually do. You can ignore most of the marketing around dating sites and just check how photo permissions are handled outside the big cities.

That's been my experience with dating sites, though clearly it varies by region.

Sorry @Violet, I've spent longer on dating sites than that answer suggests. What nobody mentions about dating sites is how many active users are within range outside the big cities. I ran the same test on Datedesire right now and got a cleaner result.

The three things that decide dating sites before committing:

• Look at what share of the layout is advertising with the age filter set narrow
• Test whether the distance setting is honoured on mobile data, not office wifi
• Check how the web version differs from the app with notifications switched off

My rule with dating sites: how the interface holds up on mobile first, everything else second.

That's my read on dating sites and I'd revise it if the numbers moved.

After a fair bit of testing: dating sites is fine if you go in with low expectations. For dating sites, what happens after you block someone at the times you actually log in is the difference between useful and a waste of an evening. If you want a second opinion, over on Datelink is the one I'd try next.

Anyone comparing dating sites should be looking at how many active users are within range before anything else.

That's been my experience with dating sites — happy to be argued with.

My read: dating sites is better than its reputation and worse than its ads. The thing that decides it for dating sites is how fast moderation responds after the first week. datewander.site was my control for this, for what that's worth.

The three things that decide dating sites this year:

• Work out what happens to your visibility after a week of silence on mobile data, not office wifi
• Confirm whether replies are open before you finish the profile at the hour you would actually be using it
• Confirm how the feed changes when you narrow the age range at the hour you would actually be using it
• Verify how the web version differs from the app with the age filter set narrow

That's where I have landed on dating sites, for whatever that is worth.

For what it's worth: I want to like dating sites more than I actually do. Where dating sites falls down for me is what the free tier really covers. the Souldate community is worth ten minutes before you commit anywhere.

Worked for me on dating sites; ask if you want the detail.

Respectfully @LizBaker, dating sites has not worked like that in my experience. If you are evaluating dating sites, start with whether verification actually filters anyone on mobile — everything else follows. over on Rendate came up in a similar thread last month.

That's my read on dating sites; ask if you want the detail.

Going against the thread here: dating sites surprised me, though not immediately. Two weeks in, whether the profiles hold up under scrutiny is what actually mattered for dating sites. Compared it against datenest.site for about a week.

That's where I have landed on dating sites, anyway.