Best Dating Sites
Looking for a dating site you can trust? Search no more.
Singles didn’t always have the option to meet women online. Instead they had to actually go out in the real world and talk to strangers at random. It was tough. Single men had to take a chance at a bar, club, or event — hoping that the pretty woman across the room was available and interested in meeting a guy like him.
Or, if luck wasn’t on his side, he had to rely on personal ads in the newspaper or his family, friends, or coworkers introducing him to the right woman. The whole dating process was time-consuming, costly, inefficient, and exhausting, to say the least.
Luckily, nowadays we have all kinds of technology at our fingertips, and it’s more convenient than ever to find a woman online. As long as you know which online dating sites work and which don’t, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find love at first swipe. That’s why our online dating experts have put our heads together to identify the nine best places to meet women online.
1. Elite Singles
If you like intellectual women, you’ll want to give Elite Singles a try — more than 80% of its users (a majority of whom are women) have earned a college or university degree. Plus, 165,000 people join the online dating site every month, so you’ll always have new women to meet.
Relationships:
Serious Relationships
Match System:
Search, Receive Partner Suggestions
Our Experts Say:
“EliteSingles is a leading dating site just for busy, single professionals. More than 80% of members have earned a college degree, and most are looking for a serious commitment...”
Full Review »
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★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
All Singles*
44%*
56%*
2 Million*
Browse Profiles Free
Elite Singles also doesn’t charge for filling out and editing an online dating profile, uploading photos, or receiving a personality assessment. Plus, a user won’t be charged for searching for and receiving matches, creating a Favorites list, and sending virtual smiles, among other things.
However, once you’re ready to actually meet a person and send a message, you may want to upgrade to an Elite Singles premium membership.
2. Match
With women making up 51% of its 30 million members, Match is hands down your best option for finding a hookup, date, relationship, or marriage online.
The dating website has perfected its match algorithm over the past 25+ years to pair the most compatible people by several different qualities, including sexual orientation, age, location, appearance, education, hobbies, and lifestyle habits.
Relationships:
Friends, Dates, and Relationships
Match System:
Browse by zip, age, appearance, more
Our Experts Say:
“Match has facilitated the most dates and relationships of any dating site, and its large audience and high success rate make it our top review...”
Full Review »
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★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
All Singles*
49%*
51%*
39.7 Million*
Try Match FREE
Match offers a free membership that includes dating profile creation, unlimited browsing, and various tools for flirting (e.g., Likes, Winks, a Favorites list, and limited messaging). If you like what you see on the online dating site or app, you should upgrade your account to a three-month, six-month, or 12-month subscription and get full access to this dating network.
3. OurTime
Mature men looking for women their age have come to the right place with OurTime — but so have younger men looking to meet older women. While the online dating site is meant for singles over 50, anyone over the age of 18 can join. We’re sure you’ll find women who are looking for a guy who’s been there, done that, and we’re certain you’ll find women who are looking for a new person with experience and confidence.
Relationships:
Dates and Relationships
Match System:
Search by profiles by zip and more
Our Experts Say:
“OurTime is well-known in the over-50 dating crowd, particularly because it has a ton of helpful search features and an easy layout...”
Full Review »
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★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
Mature Singles (50+)*
48%*
52%*
8.9 Million*
Over 50? Try It FREE
The OurTime site sees more than 1.4 million visitors a month and has a simple layout and features, so you can quickly get through all the formal stuff and to the more important stuff — meeting potential dates and partners — without messing around.
Single men can use this senior dating service to broaden their horizons and increase their chances of finding a lasting love.
4. Christian Mingle
About 83% of Americans identify as Christian, according to a poll on ABC News, and while that seems like a large number, that also includes men and women who are already taken. To help you weed through the masses, you should consider turning to Christian Mingle, the top dating site for Christians dating Christians.
Christian Mingle has millions of followers who want to find a good Christian to settle down, so they have put their trust and faith in a dating service that understands where they’re coming from.
Relationships:
Dates and Serious Relationships
Match System:
Search by gender, age, education, more
Our Experts Say:
“ChristianMingle is among the largest dating sites in the industry that only caters to single Christian men and women, and the site has some of the best search filters and safety features...”
Full Review »
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★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
Christian Singles*
44%*
56%*
3.5 Million*
Try Now for $19.99/Month
The Christian Mingle site is part of the Spark Networks family, a leading niche dating company that owns and operates more than 30 properties, so you know it’s got a lot of value and success behind it.
“Love is Patient. Love is Kind. Love is Here” is Christian Mingle’s motto, and the team promises to have your back every step of the way.
5. Adult Friend Finder
Adult Friend Finder has a massive database of sexy singles, swingers, and poly groups, and it’s known for promoting kinks and fetishes that don’t get talked about much in the light of day. The AFF network attracts sexy women who know what they want — and it’s not a wedding ring! AFF users are definitely more interested in a one-night stand than a one true love, so online daters needn’t beat around the bush about their desires.
Relationships: Hookups Only
Match System: Search by location, interest, more
Our Experts Say: “Make no mistake: this site isn’t about making friends, it’s about finding hookups and casual encounters. No adult site has a larger or more active user base of those seeking discreet fun…”
Browse Free: View Photos Now
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) |
Free Trial
|
| All Singles* |
65%*
35%*
|
25.5 Million* | 3 Months @ $19.95/Mo |
Since the 1990s, Adult Friend Finder has given sex seekers a place where they feel empowered, not ashamed. Over 100 million people have created personal ads in this network, and the AFF website boasts having over 90 million sexy photos to peruse in its dating profiles and photo galleries.
All users need to join AFF is a valid email address and a few key pieces of personal information (age, gender, location, etc.) — no real names are required. Adult Friend Finder can leverage its search and matchmaking tools to find you a potential partner who meets your standards and then some. This casual dating platform can help a shy guy make new connections and view erotic content without going too far outside his comfort zone.
6. eharmony
With over 2 million relationships under its belt, eharmony is a go-to dating website and app for any man or woman with marriage on the mind. It’s also a top dating site we recommend for Christians because it was co-founded by a Christian theologian and a significant number of eharmony members identify as Christian.
The eharmony site was also built by psychologists who used their knowledge of human relationships to give an online dater the smartest possible matches in the shortest possible amount of time.
Relationships:
Casual Dates, Deep Relationships
Match System:
Personality test suggests matches
Our Experts Say:
“Accounting for 2% of U.S. marriages, eharmony's compatibility-based system and commitment-minded user base are ideal for those seeking a serious relationship...”
Full Review »
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★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
All Singles*
48%*
52%*
4.1 Million*
View Profiles FREE
The most important thing to know about eharmony is that it’s the dating site that’ll do most of the work for you. Once you take the Compatibility Quiz, you won’t have to swipe through a tone of profiles — eharmony will create a short list and send you a notification every time the algorithm finds a potential match in the same area. The compatibility ratings will direct you to the most viable dates based on shared interests, lifestyles, and passions.
7. BlackPeopleMeet
BlackPeopleMeet (also known as BPM) is a fast-growing dating platform that supports singles who want to diversify their date prospects and meet people of color in the U.S. and Canada.
Over 1.4 million Black and biracial singles use the dating website every month in hopes of finding a special person who can understand where they’re coming from and what they want in life.
Relationships:
Deep Relationships or Just Casual Dates
Match System:
Search by location, age, more
Our Experts Say:
“BlackPeopleMeet.com is the one of the largest and most popular dating sites for black and biracial singles, and the site is used by more than 5 million people a month...”
Full Review »
Browse Free:
View Photos Now
★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
Black Singles*
47%*
53%*
5.7 Million*
FREE Trial for New Users
As a sister site of Match and OurTime, BlackPeopleMeet, has facilitated thousands of happy connections, including one couple in Germantown, Maryland. “I was able to find a wonderful woman through the use of your site,” he said in a testimonial. “After one month, I truly feel as though she is the woman of my dreams, and, when the time is right, I will ask her to marry me. Thanks BPM!”
8. BeNaughty
If “I do” isn’t your end goal, you’re not alone. Lots of casual daters out there just want to get laid, and BeNaughty can help with that. BeNaughty is a premier hookup site with millions of sexy members to its name. Here, you can meet single women (and maybe even a few married women) for one-night stands, threesomes, group sex, swinging, affairs, and anything else your frisky mind can think of.
Relationships:
Hookups, Chats
Match System:
Search by encounter, location, and more
Our Experts Say:
“BeNaughty is a premier hookup app where you can feel comfortable expressing your desires. Plus, it's free to join, browse, and flirt...”
Full Review »
Browse Free:
View Photos Now
★★★★★
User Base
Gender Ratio
Popularity (Visits/Mo.)
Today's Deal
All Singles*
48%*
52%*
13.3 Million*
Browse Profiles Free
Similar to most casual sex sites, BeNaughty has a lot of free features, but an aspect that makes it stand out is it uses dating profile verification and SSL encryption to prove that everyone is real, protect your information, and keep out scammers and fake profiles.
It’s completely free to create an online dating profile on BeNaughty and send messages to any hot women who stand out to you in the search results or Like Gallery. You’ll get a notification every time your swiping sparks a potential match, and then the game is afoot!
9. Chat Rooms
Every hookup, date, relationship, and marriage starts with a conversation, and a lot of those conversations are happening online — thanks to the ever-evolving technology we’re privy to. In addition to dating sites, online chat rooms are fantastic places for meeting women.
If you want to meet a new person or make a new friend, you can IM, send private messages, share photos, emojis, and GIFs, and talk online via phone and video chat.
FreeChatNow.com, RendezvousChat.com, and Chatib.com rank highest among chat rooms. They are open-ended with sections for dating chat rooms, sex chat rooms, chat rooms to meet women, and the like. So you’re in good hands by joining any of these chat sites.
FAQs: Where Do I Meet Professional Women?
Let’s be real here, all women aren’t the same, and if you’re a well-educated person with a stable job, steady income, and big life ambitions, you probably want a partner who is on the same level as you are. Or at least in the same league.
If you’re interested in meeting professional women, you can mingle on a dating website for professionals like Elite Singles, or you can start networking at conventions and events in your field.
Sometimes a professional dating service or matchmaker is the most expedient way to skip all the games and find a single woman who is everything you’re looking for and more. It’s Just Lunch is famous for connecting high-powered professionals in the dating scene, and it could be a good way to spend less time swiping and more time meeting dates in person.
How Do I Talk to a Girl Online?
OK, say you meet someone on a dating website or dating app and you like their online dating profile, you feel like you could really hit it off in person, but you don’t know exactly how to bridge that gap from strangers on the web to promising date on the calendar. The short and overly simplistic answer is: You talk to her.
What do you say? Well, you should definitely say more than just hi, for starters. Your first message needs to be a tad more engaging and original than that because the average single woman gets a lot of matches and messages every day. You need to stand out if you want to get her attention — and not in an “omg, what a creep” sort of way.
When you’re talking to a girl (or a woman) you like, you should always play to your strengths. If you’re smart, say something witty. If you’re kind, tell her what you liked about her dating profile. If you’re not sure what you are or what you’re doing, then ask her a question and let her answer direct the conversation.
What’s the Best Dating App for Meeting Women?
When Bumble launched in 2014, the platform caused a buzz by marketing itself as the world’s first feminist dating app. That doesn’t mean it’s only good for the ladies — it means this dating app makes women feel comfortable having a conversation and getting to know guys who can respect their boundaries and priorities.
Women set the tone on Bumble by making the first move (aka sending the first message), and that upends the way online dating typically works. A lot of straight men say they prefer this women-first system because it takes the pressure off and allows them to sit back and let hot girls come to them.
Bumble is the best dating app for meeting women who are willing to pursue men and take the lead in a new relationship. The vast majority of Bumble ladies (over 85%) say they’re more interested in a serious relationship than a hookup, so keep that in mind as you’re mixing and matching on this dating app.
Is Tinder a Good Hookup App?
Yes, Tinder is one of the most popular dating apps of all time, so it’s great for meeting women and flirting your way into their good graces. Whether your end goal is a casual hookup or a genuine relationship, the Tinder app should definitely be on your match list.
Since its launch in 2012, Tinder has generated over 75 billion matches in 190 countries, and it’s just getting started. The app is responsible for over 1.5 million dates per week, so it’s a fantastic option for a single man hoping to mix things up and meet hot women right away.
What Is Facebook Dating & How Does It Work?
Facebook Dating is a new dating service that is trying to leverage Facebook’s popularity into a resource for singles, but it hasn’t gained traction just yet.
Our Facebook Dating review goes into more detail about how to create your dating profile using the Facebook app and what you can expect from potential matches, but the short version is that Facebook Dating is very similar to traditional dating apps like Tinder or Hinge — but it can use your friends list to spark romantic connections. This is good news for some, and bad news for others.
You may have noticed that social media sites like Twitter and Facebook were not on our list of ways to meet single women online, and there’s a good reason for that. Singles often don’t want to date within their social circle because it could get complicated, messy, or awkward if you have a mutual friend, so most single men prefer the relative neutral ground of an online dating site — even if it means being in a smaller dating pool.
Is Coffee Meets Bagel a Good Dating App to Use?
Coffee Meets Bagel launched in 2012 because a group of Silicon Valley women wanted to bring civility and authenticity to the online dating scene. And that mission continues to this day. The CMB community is all about being respectful, thoughtful, and hopeful — even in the face of cynical swiping, social distancing, and hookup culture.
Relationship-minded singles flock to Coffee Meets Bagel because they are more interested in cultivating a long-term connection than a short-term fling.
Coffee Meets Bagel is free to download, and the standard membership includes chatting with your mutual matches. The only catch is that the app limits the number of profiles you can like and matches you can create, so you have to take your time and really hope that someone good shows up sooner rather than later.
The CMB approach to online dating is about quality over quantity, and it encourages singles to put a lot of thought into each match — rather than mindlessly swiping and chatting.
Which Dating Site Has the Highest Success Rate?
As an online matchmaker, Match is the top option on the market. This dating website is responsible for more relationships and marriages — not to mention babies born — than any other dating service we know of. That’s mostly because it had a two decade head start on most of the biggest names out there. Match.com was launched in 1995 — when the founders of Tinder were still in grade school.
Available on: iOS, Android
- Relationships: Fun Dates, Serious Relationships
- Match System: Browse by location, age, interest, and more
- About the App: Available via the App Store and Google Play, Match is a fantastic app for dates and relationships. With a user base of 30 million singles, Match is where you'll have a high chance of success. It's free to download, create a profile, search for date prospects, and receive compatible matches based on personalized preferences. Free members can also chat with select members and send unlimited likes.
- Browse Free: View Profiles Now
| User Base | Gender Ratio | Popularity (Visits/Mo.) | App Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Singles* |
49%*
51%*
|
13.5 Million* | Free Download |
We’ve listed a lot of niche sites, mainstream sites, premium sites, and swiping apps in this article, and Match beats them all in terms of success stories. This online dating site has honed and perfected an efficient system to bring men and women to their perfect match.
Where Can I Meet Women During the Day?
As you go about your day, you’re surrounded by dating opportunities, and all it takes is a little charm and courage to seize them. I’m not saying you should hit on every coffee barista who smiles at you — she may just be doing her job and trying to be polite — but you should be aware of the people in your vicinity and anyone giving you extra attention or sending a romantic signal.
Picking up a hobby or joining a club could be a good way to meet women without needing to go online. Book clubs and dancing classes tend to be full of women, so men can join the fun and have their pick of hot dates.
Now You Know the Basics of How to Date a Girl Online
The internet has improved our lives in so many ways. We can get groceries delivered to our house, pay bills, finish work projects, and check the weather, and we’ll never run out of cat videos to watch. But, most importantly, the internet is bringing singles together faster and more efficiently than ever before.
You can use the online dating sites and chat rooms on this list to meet women online and turn a good conversation into a first date that could lead to a serious relationship.
As a modern single man, you’re lucky to have a lot of ways to get in touch with a woman and potentially find a lasting love — you’ve just got to get out there and have the courage to send the first message! Have fun!
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