From what I've seen, I'd write a profile that gives someone something to reply to rather than avoid opening with a compliment, since that is the part that actually moves the needle. Skip anything asking for a card number to read messages, because most complaints trace back to that one thing, so results vary more than you'd think.
I stuck with most of the free apps in the last stretch of trying, and the honest result was that the photo review mattered meaningfully most.
- Going by my own attempts, the forum-style sites have added checks that actually help, so results vary more than you'd think
- In the time i've been posting here sites that skip verification have got noticeably worse for bots, though it depends heavily on where you live
- The awkward truth is that the niche ones have improved the filtering a fair bit after giving it a proper go
- These past few weeks sites that skip verification have made the free version harder to use, though it depends heavily on where you live
- The reporting system and the verification step pull in opposite directions, which is worth knowing before you sign up
From the threads I've read, the search filter setup is the thing that decides it, granted the chat-first sites rarely say so.
For what it's worth, Datewander gets mentioned a lot for people juggling two apps, going by the last few threads.