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Best Personals Sites 2024 in the U.S.
• Reading Time: 13 minute(s)
Long gone are the days when meeting someone from the internet is a taboo. So if you're single and ready to mingle, you might want to try your hand at online dating. You can leave it to these experts (ehem, dating algorithms) to find you a match that's right for you.
Read on below and discover how dating apps and websites have shaped and influenced the current dating scene that we know now.
Personals Dating Sites at Your Service
In the last two decades, we’ve seen the rise of commercial online dating sites—from a budding new avenue to meet potential romantic partners, it is now a multi-billion dollar industry that serves people all over the globe to find their perfect match.
Its rise in popularity has forever changed the way people viewed and went about dating. No doubt it has transformed dating experience and made the world smaller as we know it in 2024.
As the name implies, online dating is a type of dating experience where one person meets another. People on these sites can access it via desktop or mobile app to meet and interact with other singles. With the advancement of technology, online dating sites have also advanced in numbers as well as its services. Not only do these dating sites provide an avenue for busy people to find someone to date, but it has also become a way for people to meet friends and foster friendships.
Different Types of Online Dating Sites
More and more people are trying to find their match through online dating. With the increasing number of users, online dating service providers are scrambling to offer the best dating site for these singles. Depending on your interests, dating sites could be exclusive such as niche dating sites like seniors dating or kinky stuff. It could also be as broad as meeting people in general either for friendships or romantic relationships such as personals dating sites.
So if you’re looking to date and want to find someone for a long-term relationship, personals is for you.
What are Personals?
An online dating site allows you to upload a profile, often for free initially, and search and browse other member's profiles seeking someone of interest. On most sites you can filter searches based on multiple criteria, for example height, education and if someone has children or not, to find someone who has the characteristics that most appeal to you.
Often you can send a 'kiss', 'wink', or 'smile' to another member for free to indicate that you may be interested in making contact with them. To communicate further, you generally need to buy a paid membership and costs are mostly very reasonable for this.
Why Choose Personals?
Peronals are great for singles looking to meet new people, date and also for those seeking a longer term relationship.
You can usually get started quickly compared to other sites such as matchmaking services as you can search for and contact members immediately rather than wait for match suggestions.
If you are quite relaxed about online dating and have the time to search and browse profiles, personals offer enable you to check out a large number of potential matches to find those you feel you'll click with.
How Do Personals Differ from Other Sites?
Unlike social media networks like Facebook dating, online personals app or websites appeal to a broad range of people with a number of different objectives. Some will be seeking new friends, many will be looking to date and see what happens and a lot will be seeking a longer-term relationship. Moreover, personals are a little more relaxed, unlike other matchmaker services which have different sections like personality surveys, filtered search options, and detailed profile information. These sections are used to identify highly compatible matches for primarily long term relationships or for casual dating which are usually for individuals seeking adult fun and encounters,
What are the Benefits of Personals?
- Usually they have high membership bases so you'll have plenty of choice
- You can search and browse other member's profiles based on specific criteria important to you
- Most sites will have some form of free messaging to gauge interest from other members before paying
- Has premium membership options that remove ads from its platform for seamless user experience
How to Get Started with Personals Dating?
In this day and age, there is a personals for everyone. There are niches and interests specifically catered for people like you. And no matter your age, gender preference, background, or ethnicity, there is a personals for that. If personals is something new to you, here’s how you can get started with it:
1. Decide on the type of relationship you’re looking for
If you’re sure that you are ready to enter the dating scene or re-enter it again, then you have to decide on what you want and what you’re looking for. There are so many personals dating sites out there that serve different purposes. There’s an app for casual dating and encounters, for having an affair, for friendships, and even for long-term romantic relationships.
It is important that within yourself, you know what you’re looking for so that you don’t have to spend so much time jumping from one personals to another. Managing your expectations at the onset of your personals dating journey is the first step.
2. Look up personals dating apps or websites
Researching the dating apps or websites you plan to join in should also be your priority. This will save you the time and trouble if you already know the type of community or environment that the site or app fosters.
In your search for the best personals app or websites, you have to bear in mind your objectives in signing up for a personals account. But if there are others that tickles your fancy, you can further check them out and give in to your curiosity.
3. Be truthful in the information you share in your account
As the cliche goes, honesty is the best policy. Any great relationship has honesty being its foundation. Now, being truthful means you have to disclose what you want on the site and the information you provide in your account profile does not mislead other users.
Also, being truthful doesn’t mean that you have to reveal all of your identifying information. You also have to be careful of what you share as there are some individuals who might take advantage of you.
4. Take your time
Once you’re on the online dating scene, you don’t need to rush yourself in finding a potential match. Take all the time that you need until you match with someone you are genuinely attracted to. Just because you have options to choose from doesn’t mean that you have to decide right then and there.
Don’t pressure yourself to find a match when there doesn’t seem to be a good one there for you.
5. Don’t lose hope
Now you’re on the personals app, you’ve taken your time but still haven’t found someone yet, don’t despair. Love at first sight doesn’t happen to everyone—it’s a rare phenomenon and even rarer is finding a match that suits you well on the first try.
So do not be disheartened, charge it to experience and learn from it. So the next time you try again, you’re already equipped with knowledge on how to navigate the online personals dating sites.
How to Keep Yourself Safe on Personals Dating Sites
Before diving into the safety tips, you have to understand that there are some people who would take advantage of you if they get the chance. So just like meeting people in real life or in person, you also have to be careful when you’re on these personals dating sites. The good news is that it’s easy to keep yourself safe from online dangers as long as you're vigilant and be on the lookout of the online scammers. Here are some unwritten rules that you have to live by:
1. Watch our for the warning signals
Regardless of the length of time you’ve been talking online, you need to look out for warning signs. Don’t ignore them; the red flags are there for you to keep you safe. Some of the signals to watch out for are, especially if they say these things but they’re not willing to meet in person:
- Asking for money for donations or solicitations
- Asking for your personal address to send you gifts or flowers
- Asking for your identifying information
- Declarations of love
2. Don’t share your personal details
Word of advice, never ever share your identifying information on your personals account nor in your private chat. Some people might see this as an opportunity to use your pertinent personal details for illegal and criminal online activities. Moreover, scammers can use your personal details to steal your identity and access your financial accounts for their own personal gain.
3. Speak on the phone or video chat first before your first date
Get to know your match further by talking to them on the phone, or better yet, on video chat. This is to ensure that the person on the other end of your conversation is real and not a scammer trying to catfish you. Personally “seeing” each other first albeit still online. It gives you a little assurance that you’re talking to someone real and not a made-up persona.
4. Check their online profiles
Should you want to go on a date with them, make sure that you’ve done your research. Put on your investigative hat and go full-on stalking mode—online. Verify if the person met online is real or not. Check their online presence and you can start on their social media accounts and their activities. You don’t want to see your potential match having multiple social media accounts.
5. Tell your family and friends that you’re online dating
Telling your family and friends about your online dating journey may be too personal, but if it keeps you safe, then you should. Let them know about the details of your date—who, what, when, where. This gives you a sense of security that someone knows your activities.
Founder of Dating Scout and Author of the book "Online Dating for Dummies"