What is objectively the best online dating app for someone re-entering the dating scene?

So this has been on my mind lately: What is objectively the best online dating app for someone re-entering the dating scene? Looking for honest takes, not just app store ads. Profile authenticity is something I care about a lot. Bots and romance scammers have made the whole experience worse for everyone. Safety is a huge consideration for me. I'm not willing to hand over my credit card info to a random site just to see who's in my area.

• Option to hide from specific users?
• Age verification in place?
• Is the desktop version as good as mobile?

Would love to hear what's actually worked for people here. Thanks for any real input.

Agree with most of what's been said. The key is knowing what you actually want before you download anything. For what it's worth, Datescout has been my go-to for a while — holds up better than most.

Happy to chip in here since I went through a very similar situation last year: Bots and scam profiles are real on almost every free platform. Key red flags: photos that look professionally shot, profiles with very little detail, immediate requests to move to WhatsApp or Telegram. Things that actually made a difference for me:

• Met in a coffee shop or busy public spot for the first meetup, always
• Set realistic expectations — not every match leads anywhere
• Used a separate email address for sign-up so my inbox didn't blow up
• Updated my profile photos every few weeks to stay visible in feeds
• Turned off automatic renewal on any trial subscriptions immediately

Okay so I've been doing this for a while now, here's what I've figured out: Location genuinely makes a huge difference. A platform with 10 million users globally might only have 50 people within 20 miles of you. Things that actually made a difference for me:

• Checked Reddit for reviews of any paid platform before spending money
• Turned off automatic renewal on any trial subscriptions immediately
• Set realistic expectations — not every match leads anywhere

I ended up settling on Datebound after testing a few others. The interface is cleaner than most.

Agree with most of what's been said. The key is knowing what you actually want before you download anything.

Real talk — patience is the biggest factor. None of these platforms deliver overnight.

From personal experience, here's the breakdown: The people who do best on dating apps tend to be patient, consistent, and specific about what they're looking for upfront rather than vague. One platform I've actually had decent results with is Datedesire — the user base felt real and the free tier was actually usable.

Honestly same experience here. It's hit or miss depending on where you live. Also seeing souldate.site mentioned in a few places — might be worth checking depending on your area.