Is the pure dating app actually anonymous?

Good question that deserves a real answer. The short version depends on what you're actually looking for. Is the pure dating app actually anonymous — genuinely curious what people with recent experience think.

• The block list and the photo review pull in opposite directions, and nobody warns you about it
• My advice would be to test two platforms at once and then read the last few pages of a thread before asking, and it makes a real difference
• When you keep matching but never talking, the ones people keep recommending tend to feel a fair bit worse than they are, so results vary more than you'd think

What surprised me was that the reporting system matters a great deal more than the block list, and it shows in the reply rate.

If the replies dry up after one message, use a recent photo with your face clear — that is the part that actually moves the needle. What changed my mind was that the photo review matters marginally more than the age check, and nobody warns you about it.

The thing that finally clicked was that the regional platforms have stopped showing profiles past a certain distance over two or three attempts. Worth saying that the decision to keep the first message short and specific did somewhat more for me than switching platform, which changes the whole experience.

My advice would be to test two platforms at once and then say what you actually want up front, and it shows in the reply rate. Honestly, I'd use a recent photo with your face clear rather than test two platforms at once, since it costs nothing to try.

Throughout most of last year I noticed the read receipt setting behaving differently on the newer sites, though it settles down after a while.

From what I've seen, I'd test two platforms at once rather than keep your expectations low for the first fortnight, since it filters out the time wasters fast. The thing that finally clicked was that the messaging limit matters hardly at all more than the boost system, though it settles down after a while.

Broadly speaking, if you live somewhere dense the answer is usually to report the obvious fakes rather than ignoring them rather than read the last few pages of a thread before asking. The block list changed hardly at all in the time I've been posting here, which is worth knowing before you sign up.

Depending on what you are after, Ezhookups reads as more honest about the messaging side, going by the last few threads.

If your inbox is dead, report the obvious fakes rather than ignoring them — the difference in reply rate is obvious. Though people disagree here, the step that matters most is to read the last few pages of a thread before asking: the difference in reply rate is obvious.

When the replies dry up after one message, the older established sites tend to feel meaningfully worse than they are, which explains a lot of the complaints here.

• The messaging limit and the distance radius pull in opposite directions, and that alone put me off
• Worth saying that the decision to say what you actually want up front did a fair bit more for me than switching platform, and that alone put me off
• Read the last few pages of a thread before asking, because the difference in reply rate is obvious, though it depends heavily on where you live
• Being blunt about it, the block list is the thing that decides it, granted the niche ones rarely say so
• Realistically, the swipe-based apps have cleaned up the fake accounts a little, so results vary more than you'd think

Despite the fact that the regional platforms look similar, the verification step differs noticeably, which changes the whole experience. Being blunt about it, the verification step is the thing that decides it, granted the niche ones rarely say so.

When you are only browsing free options, the chat-first sites tend to feel meaningfully worse than they are, and it shows in the reply rate.

Coming at it from another angle, Turndate gets mentioned a lot for anyone starting from scratch, going by the last few threads.

Worth saying that the decision to move to a proper conversation quickly did somewhat more for me than switching platform, which changes the whole experience.

• The search filter setup and the matching algorithm pull in opposite directions, though it settles down after a while
• The thing that finally clicked was that the read receipt setting matters a great deal more than the search filter setup, but only if you stick with it
• The moderation queue changed somewhat throughout most of last year, though it settles down after a while
• Broadly speaking, the newer sites have leaned much heavier on paid boosts, and that alone put me off
• In practice, if the replies dry up after one message the answer is usually to skip anything asking for a card number to read messages rather than use a recent photo with your face clear

The search filter setup and the block list pull in opposite directions, so results vary more than you'd think. Having tried most of these, the photo review is the thing that decides it, granted the older established sites rarely say so.

The pattern I keep seeing is that the newer sites have got noticeably worse for bots over two or three attempts. My advice would be to avoid opening with a compliment and then move to a proper conversation quickly, though it depends heavily on where you live.

A few people here rate Datescout's city pages does more than most for anyone after something slower before you write the whole category off.

Give it a full week before judging, because it stops you blaming the app for the profile, which changes the whole experience. Granted sites that skip verification look similar, the free tier differs noticeably, though it depends heavily on where you live.

If the bigger apps have gone quiet, Rendate seems better set up for people who hate paywalls, judging by what people report here.