Do completely free dating apps still exist, or is 'freemium' the only model now?

Every review site says something different about completely free dating apps still exist, or is 'freemium' the only model now. Where dating apps falls down for me is how many accounts are real day to day.

The frustrating thing about dating apps is that every source has something to sell. My rule with dating apps: whether the free plan is usable or decorative on mobile first, everything else second.

Practical notes on dating apps, in order:

• Count how long it takes before the first upgrade prompt lands on mobile data, not office wifi
• Look at how the feed changes when you narrow the age range on mobile data, not office wifi
• Test whether the same faces cycle back the next day with the age filter set narrow

If dating apps worked for you, how long before you knew? The good, the bad and the boring genuinely both wanted. Short replies matter more than star ratings.

Blunt answer: dating apps depends almost entirely on your city. Anyone comparing dating apps should be looking at what share of matches go nowhere before anything else. Worth a look at what Datebie is doing if you want a second data point.

I judge dating apps almost entirely on what the reply rate looks like.

Worked for me on dating apps, and I'd be glad to hear others found different.

Not the answer anyone wants: dating apps surprised me, though not immediately. For dating apps, what the onboarding asks for at the times you actually log in is the difference between useful and a waste of an evening.

The honest test for dating apps is how photo permissions are handled in practice, not the feature list.

That's how dating apps went for me — happy to be argued with.

Sorry @Scarlett, I have spent longer on dating apps than that answer suggests. You can ignore most of the marketing around dating apps and just check whether moderation keeps up with the fakes in practice. The closest thing I found to an honest free tier was the rendate.site crowd.

What nobody mentions about dating apps is whether verification actually filters anyone after the first week.

That's how dating apps went for me, anyway.

Speaking from four months of it: dating apps depends almost entirely on your city. Two weeks in, whether messaging is open or gated behind credits day to day is what actually mattered for dating apps. People keep recommending what Datescout is doing; it is at least worth ten minutes.

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

Disagree with @Luke Baker on dating apps. The version of dating apps I used had none of that. The only metric I trust with dating apps is how thin it gets in smaller towns after the first week.

If you're evaluating dating apps, start with whether desktop and mobile behave the same — everything else follows.

That's the honest picture of dating apps and I'd revise it if the numbers moved.

Blunt answer: dating apps has been mixed for me and I'll explain why. The thing that decides it for dating apps is how much of the layout is ads outside the big cities.

I judge dating apps almost entirely on where the paywall actually sits day to day.

Worked for me on dating apps — happy to be argued with.

Respectfully @Sebastian, dating apps hasn't worked like that in my experience. You can ignore most of the marketing around dating apps and just check whether verification actually filters anyone.

That's where I've landed on dating apps — happy to be argued with.

Having used it a while: dating apps works, but not the way the marketing implies. Anyone comparing dating apps should be looking at how much you can do before being asked to upgrade before anything else.

That's been my experience with dating apps, and I'd be glad to hear others found different.

@Sofia I wanted that to be true of dating apps and it simply wasn't. Two weeks in, what the reply rate looks like outside the big cities is what actually mattered for dating apps.

That's my read on dating apps, and I'd be glad to hear others found different.

Going to push back on @Bella here. Dating apps behaved very differently for me. The only metric I trust with dating apps is whether the free plan is usable or decorative.

That's the honest picture of dating apps, may not hold for you.

Unpopular view, maybe: dating apps gets recommended a lot here and that's half right. My rule with dating apps: how obvious the scripted replies are once you are past sign-up first, everything else second.

If you are evaluating dating apps, start with whether it is busy at the times you are — everything else follows.

That's where I've landed on dating apps and I'd revise it if the numbers moved.