The Best Dating Apps to Make This One a Year for Love
Time to make a connection.
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Everyone knows someone who met their "forever person" though online dating but just like dating itself, finding the right site for you can take some trial and error. The Kochava Collective, host of the largest independent mobile data marketplace, crunched the numbers to recommend a few sites based on the number of users. “We have data available on more than 7.5 billion devices,” says Jake Courtright, Kochava’s lead manager. “As part of this data set, we have 'app graph' information on these devices, which is essentially the list of apps installed on these devices. We took a look at all major dating apps in the Google Play and app stores, and then identified five apps that have the most installs within our data set.”
But because not all of us make decisions based on numbers alone, we also rounded out this list with a few other options that may suit your specific situation. Some of these cater to LGBTQ+ people, users of a certain age, Black or BIPOC users, those with specific interests in common and others that might not find their perfect date on one of the most popular apps. Whether you’re looking for a casual fling, a rebound to get over a breakup or your next long-term relationship, you can start by downloading one of these dating apps.
For Those Trying to Cast the Widest Net: Tinder
If you've been online at all, you probably know of Tinder. According to the Kochava Collective, the app has the highest number of users of all dating apps out there. While lots of users turn to Tinder for casual meet-ups, others have found longterm love here.
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If You Want to Make the First Move: Bumble
On Bumble, women are the ones who get to initiate communication. Of course, which gender makes the first move is less of an issue for LGBTQ+ women, but ladies seeking dudes may find it a breath of fresh air. Kochava says most of its users also fall in the 26- to 35-year-old age range, so younger daters may like that too.
Best for In-Depth Profiles: OkCupid
Anyone who's been in the dating game for awhile has probably heard of OkCupid, which has been around since 2004. The OG now has an app with its signature questionnaires about everything from religion to peanut butter vs jelly to help you find your perfect partner.
For Daters Just Out of College: Plenty of Fish
Of the apps profiled by Kochava, this one had the youngest user base after Bumble, with more than half its users coming in under the age of 36. And, true to its name, the site claims to be one of the world's largest dating platforms.
For Dating After 40: MeetMe
Users who have a few more laugh lines and silver strands may find kindred spirits on an app with more people in their demographic. Kochava's data shows that most of MeetMe's users are in the 46- to 55-year-old range, closely followed by the 55 to 65 bracket.
For Gals Looking for Guys: Happn
In addition to having a wide user base, Kochava notes that way more guys than women downloading Happn, a location-based dating app. Ladies seeking gents, may the odds be ever in your favor.
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For LGBTQ+ Daters: Grindr
Grindr bills itself as "the world's largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans and queer people." We've heard reports that even Fleabag's "hot priest" uses Grindr, so there's at least one dreamboat on the site. While it's most popular with cis men seeking cis men, every shade of the rainbow can find their match here.
For Ladies Seeking Ladies: Her
Both a dating app and LGBTQ+ social media platform, Her was created by and for queer women. Both cisgender and nonbinary people who want to go on a fun date, find forever love or even queer events nearby, Her is a great choice.
For Those Who Need a Little Push: Coffee Meets Bagel
If navigating online dating makes you feel all shivery, Coffee Meets Bagel can help. The platform holds your hand through the process, offering icebreaker questions and gentle nudges to respond to those messages waiting in your inbox. And it won't barrage you all day either: "Bagels" get delivered daily at noon.
For Dating After 50: Lumen
Lumen is geared towards daters ages 50 and up, so you don't have to wade through a bunch of recent grads to find your match. And, to keep the catfish away, the site verifies the photos on every single profile, which also needs to have at least three photos and a bio.
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For People Who Can't Make Decisions: Ship
If you run all of your potential beaus by the gal pal group text, Ship is for you. The app lets your friends weigh in and vet your matches before you set sail. That way, if your date is a total bust, at least you know it wasn't all on you.
For People Who Are Over Tinder: Hinge
Hinge uses the same swiping system that Tinder turned into common vernacular, but the site encourages better dates through a robust profile and matching algorithm. It's hyperfocused on finding relationships, not just one-night hookups. In the site's words, it's the app that's "designed to be deleted."
For Black Singles: BLK
To find other Black singles nearby and form a meaningful connection with someone who has similar life experiences to you, try BLK. It uses a similar swipe feature to Tinder, but premium members can also "rewind" to give someone a second chance, if you may have been too hasty the first time.
For Those Who Want (Or Have) Kids: HeyBaby
Dating with kids can be hard. Not everyone's ready to enter into a package deal, and that can be heartbreaking to navigate. Or if you're ready to settle down and start a family, sorting through those who aren't there yet takes precious time. HeyBaby removes those barriers.
For the Country Club Set: The League
If you're the type of person who likes to be a part of something, The League is an exclusive app that requires users to apply by supplying their job title, college, and LinkedIn profile. It can take time to get approved in big cities, but sometimes good things come to those who wait.
For Sober People Seeking Love: Loosid
Dating can often seem like a booze-centric endeavor, but not at Loosid. A community of people living the sober lifestyle, the app can help you find like-minded folks, treatment options and support for maintaining your sobriety, and dates with others embracing the alcohol-free life.
For Christian Singles: Upward
Those who live their faith may want others who do the same, and Upward can connect you with other Christian singles. Whether you're Evangelical, Catholic or nondenominational, you can find someone who's walking a similar path.
For Non-Monogamous Daters: Feeld
Those who are living a polyamorous or non-monogamous lifestyle or looking for partners who are open to less traditional arrangements, try Feeld. It's an open, accepting community for all gender identities and sexual preferences so you'll feel welcome no matter what you're into.
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
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