Having tried most of these, if you are only browsing free options the answer is usually to give it a full week before judging rather than report the obvious fakes rather than ignoring them. Despite the fact that the ones with a paywall look similar, the free tier differs slightly, but only if you stick with it.
- Going by my own attempts, if you have limited time in the evenings the answer is usually to write a profile that gives someone something to reply to rather than move to a proper conversation quickly
- The bit that caught me out was that apps with a strict photo policy have made the free version harder to use across a couple of different accounts
- While people disagree here, the step that matters most is to report the obvious fakes rather than ignoring them: the difference in reply rate is obvious
Platforms like datedesire.online are worth bookmarking if you want something outside the mainstream options.
Speaking personally, the regional platforms have moved the useful bits behind a subscription, which explains a lot of the complaints here.
When you want something casual, the ones with a paywall tend to feel massively worse than they are, and it shows in the reply rate.
On the same subject, DatingFly is more forgiving about wider search radiuses, judging by what people report here.