download Best dating apps for 2022
The
best dating apps can help you find new friends or start a more serious
relationship
The best dating apps can help you find a summer fling
or something more meaningful — it all depends on what you're looking for in
terms of companionship and which apps you use. And even if you're not out for
romance, some dating apps have expanded their focus to simply connecting you to
people who share your interests.
Dating apps are a popular (and convenient) way to meet
people. And it's not just swiping to start a chat message anymore: new dating
app features like video chats and similar tools can help you get to know
someone remotely before you decide whether you'd want to meet up in person.
For the most part, the best dating apps aim to help
you find romance. But a few have also broadened their mission to helping you
forge relationships of any kind, even just friendships. That's why we're
looking at apps that offer more than simple swiping, but tout other
capabilities including video meetups and security checks to make the world of
online dating a lot better than it was before.
If
you find yourself looking for some companionship, we can help you sort through
a bunch of competing options to find the best dating apps that fit your
particular needs.
What are the best dating apps?
When it comes to finding love in the mobile age, it's
hard to topple Tinder, one of the biggest and best dating apps that also enjoys
a wide reach. Tinder has a reputation for helping you find quick hook-ups,
though it's also geared to finding more permanent partners and recent additions
to the app have improved user safety while adding video features.
Other apps are better geared toward long-term
relationships, including Bumble (which gives the power to make new friends to
its female members) and Match.com. OKCupid now offers several different tools
for finding romance, while Hinge's ultimate goal is to get you to delete the
app since you've found your ideal match.
Looking for a same-sex partner? Grindr was the pioneer in that space, while Her offers a dating app for lesbian and bisexual users. There are also a number of dating apps for gamers, professionals and other interests.
How to find the best dating app
You're going
to have the biggest success finding romance through a dating app if you first
settle on what exactly you're looking for. If casual flings and hook-ups are
your focus, shy away from apps designed to help you find long-term
relationships. Similarly, if you're tired of one-night stands, dating apps that
put a greater emphasis on swiping than on matching up compatible people are
more likely to frustrate you.
Speaking of
frustrations, nothing's more irritating than using a dating app filled with
fake profiles. Pay attention to what dating services do to make sure that
you're only being paired up with people who are taking things seriously (or at
least as seriously as you are.) It's also a good idea to pay attention to what
services are doing to protect the privacy of their users.
If you're not
comfortable meeting people in bars and other crowded settings just yet,
consider apps that offer some form of video chat, so that your love life
doesn't get put on hold while you practice social distancing. Conversely. some
people aren't comfortable on camera, so we've also included selections in our
best dating apps list for services that rely on other ways to connect, such as
messaging.
Before diving in to find
the right dating app to find the best possible mate, don't forget to consider
privacy. Don't just skim past the privacy policies of any dating app you use,
as those policies can outline exactly what a dating site does with your
personal data. Because dating sites can suffer security breaches just like any
online service, use good password practices and don't re-use login info you've
tied to other accounts.
It's worth
noting that many dating apps — including several on this best dating apps list
— are owned by the same company. The Match Group, for example, not only
operates Match.com but also Tinder, OKCupid and PlentyOfFish.
How
we pick the best dating apps
We research
dating apps by going online and reading customer reviews and listening to
word-of-mouth to see which dating services have captured the interest of
people. We then evaluate the services based on how much they cost and what they
offer in return.
We favor apps
that reach a wider range of users — the wider the dating pool, the better
chances at finding someone who's a good match — and that let you sample at
least some of the service at no cost. We also rate services more highly if they
offer multiple tools for meeting new people and if they have security measures
in place to report fake accounts and bad actors.
Because
there's no one-size-fits-all approach to dating, we also try to showcase a
variety of apps so that you can better find one that matches your personality,
comfort level and interests.
