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Lets face it; love them or loathe them, dating apps aren’t going away any time soon. Chances are, you’ll know at least a handful of people who use them religiously, constantly swear them off just to re-download a week later, or only frantically use them at the end of a night out.
You won’t be surprised to hear, then, that according to the Business of Apps, the dating app market made £5.39 billion in 2024 alone.
For many of us, the convenience of being able to find your next relationship or hookup from the comfort of your own bedroom is an alluring one. But despite the high volume of users, ‘dating app fatigue’ is definitely real. It’s impossible (or quite possibly greedy) to spread yourself across the multitude of dating apps and websites in the hope of finding your soulmate.
As a self-proclaimed chronic-but-iconic online dater, I, along with Metro’s sex and relationship reporter Alice have put some of the best dating apps and websites to the test. Here, I’ve broken down the top rated sites and apps out there, so you can filter and find the right dating space for you. Whether you’re on a heart-rending mission to find love, looking for a casual shag, or figuring your dating goals out; there’s something for everyone. You may even think of yourself as slightly too mature to be on the apps, but trust us, the dating world is nothing short of options for the over 50’s too.
Each of these dating apps are LGBTQIA+-inclusive (though you may want to check out our review of the best gay and bisexual dating apps/sites), representative of a number of relationship types from monogamous to polyamorous, casual and friendships, and free to download. To save yourself some time, here’s our quick list below:
The best dating apps & sites 2025 – the quick list
- Best dating app overall: Breeze
- Best app for casual dating: Hinge
- Best app for inclusivity: Bumble
- Best app for beginners: Tinder
- The Best dating app for serious daters: eHarmony
- Best dating site for the over 50s+: Match.com (full review here)
- Best app for people in relationships: Feeld
- Best dating app for meeting IRL: Happn
How we tested the best dating apps and sites
Sex. Love. Modern Mess. Listen to new Metro podcast Just Between Us
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Listen wherever you get your podcasts or watch on YouTube. And be sure to follow and subscribe so you never miss an episode.
You can also join the fun on our WhatsApp Group Chat here – share your dilemmas and Diana and Jack may just give you a call.
Hannah and Alice downloaded some of the UK’s top rated dating apps as well as some newer entries to the dating scene – and used them for a month.
Each of their profiles were tailored specifically to them – primarily looking at potential male matches, aged 27-60, and within their local areas. They used a variety of photos for each profile including full-body pictures, carefully-selected selfies and the odd pub candid or two. They used the apps and websites as a normal user would, matching with people they were interested in, starting conversations and even going on in-person dates.
They reviewed the dating apps and websites based on three main criteria: ease of use, algorithm, available options and success rate. Of course everyone’s experience is subjective, which is why we’ve also considered the feedback of close friends and family who also use each platform, while not ignoring online reviews and ratings.
We’ll be updating this guide monthly to make sure we don’t miss a thing in the everchanging dating scene.
Why trust us
Hannah is a writer/columnist with over half-a-decade’s experience covering dating and sex. She’s been interviewed by British Vogue and Woman’s Hour about her dating hot-takes – as well as featuring in an all-woman panel at the University of Manchester, speaking about sex/love journalism. She was one of the first journalists/speakers to cover sexual dysfunction vaginismus for BBC World.
Alice is Metro’s sex and relationships reporter – she’s in-the-know when it comes to rating and slating the app scene and well-equipped to curate this ‘best of guide’. She even counsels people on their dating woes on the Metro’s weekly podcast Just Between Us.
Aside from their collective professional rendezvous, they’ve both spent the last 10 years on dating various apps and sites – and even thrown themselves at the deep end at multiple in real life dating events.
So, without further ado, here’s the winners list of the best dating apps on offer…
The Best Dating Apps Reviewed By Us
1. The best dating app overall: Breeze
Rating: 5 out 5
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: None – but you need to pay for date tokens in order to go on a date
Age range: 17+
Inclusivity: 17 gender identities and the ability to self-describe; three sexualities; four relationship types
Reasons to use:
- This is intentional dating like you’ve never experienced it before – there isn’t any work-around or potential for endless pen-palling, you have to meet someone in-person if you want to get to know them.
- The ‘blind date’ model completely eliminates message fatigue, and keeps things exciting.
- Better for serious daters or people looking for long-term casual – it’s slightly harder to play out a low-effort hook up when you’ve got an entire date planned.
Reasons to avoid:
- Over-planners and big texters look away now. It’s going to be much harder to send an ‘are we still on for tomorrow?’ message when you can only select a date, time and pay for the date beforehand.
Breeze was first conceived by a group of former Technical University students in Delft, the Netherlands, in 2020 – and expanded to the UK in 2024.
The point of the dating app is to counteract the “addictive” swiping model as featured by other apps, showing a limited number of profiles to best tailor a user’s potential matches. Unlike competitor dating apps, it doesn’t have a paid subscription option – just dating tokens available to buy if you make it to a date with someone. One token includes a first drink.
When I first heard about Breeze, I was extremely excited.
I’ve been on dating apps since I was 17 – that’s a whole decade of my life. If I start thinking about how many hours I spent in never-ending conversations, matches who turned into glorified pen-pals, or ‘dates’ which turned into low-effort hook-ups, I’d probably get a little sad.
Breeze makes me feel like I’m throwing myself head-first into making memories, rather than spending hours staring at my phone, aimlessly swiping.
Yes, they’re just dates, and no, they won’t all turn into meet-cutes with future LOMLs (Loves of my Life) – but there’s nothing more gripping than getting ready to meet a potential match for the first time. Best-case scenario; you have off-the-scale chemistry and you get to tell your grandchildren about Breeze. Worst-case scenario; you have a lovely night to look back on fondly.
Setting an account up on the app was pretty straightforward, and not dissimilar to other dating apps on the market. You type in your basic details (name, age, location) before picking your gender, sexuality and relationship type. Before you know it, you’re presented with four profiles to peruse – either selecting ‘not for me,’ or ‘go for a drink.’
Within a few hours of downloading Breeze, I’d already matched with a gorgeous, 30-something paramedic who paid for the date very quickly. While it hasn’t actually gone ahead yet, I’ll be sure to keep you posted.
Our verdict: Breeze is the latest dating app offering something drastically different from the rest – and that’s enough to earn it the ‘best dating app overall’ title.
2. The best app for casual dating: Hinge
Rating: 4 out of 5
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: £14.99 for one week of Hinge+ and £24.99 for one week of HingeX
Age range: 17+
Inclusivity: 29 pronouns, three gender identities, 21 sexualities, six relationship types
Reasons to use:
- Hinge provides you with Prompts/conversation starters to include on your profile – it takes the emphasis away from looks and gives you a first-glance at potential matches’ personalities – great for intentional daters.
- The free version keeps you on your toes just as much as Hinge’s paid subscription options – you still have a good number of Swipes per day, you can message as many people as you like, and you can even gift someone a Rose to stand out.
- It’s quick and easy to set an account up – you aren’t greeted with a waiting list, lengthy questionnaire or hefty membership fees.
Reasons to avoid:
- Like a lot of dating apps, you’ll probably have a slightly better user experience if you pay for one of the premium options – including more Swipes and Roses – which may not be ideal if you’re on a budget.
Hannah’s review:
Setting up an account on Hinge is quick and easy. After you enter your basic information – like your name, birthday, pronouns and location – you then get to pick your preferences.
Once you’ve added your photos, which will clearly need to show your face, you can start writing your Prompts. This is where you can get creative. Prompts are divided into different categories, like ‘about me,’ ‘self-care’ and ‘LGBTQIA+’ – and you can add answers to conversation starters including; ‘the way to win me over is…’ and ‘give me travel tips for…’
Hinge also invites you to add a Voice Prompt to your profile – in which you can record a 30-second answer to any of the Prompts available.
After setting up your profile, you can start sending Likes to potential matches, alongside a first message. If you match, you can pick the conversation up where you left off. On the free version, you can send one Rose a day to users shown in the ‘Standouts’ section of the app.
Like 30 million people worldwide, I’m certainly no stranger to Hinge. I first downloaded the app three years ago, intrigued at its ‘designed to be deleted’ slogan; wondering if I was going to find my ‘Mx. Right’ after half-a-decade of searching.
As it turns out, in my experience, it was brilliant for finding multiple situationships within my local area. When I downloaded it again last month, I spent about an hour painstakingly painting myself as a witty, intelligent, Bridget-Jones-meets-Carrie-Bradshaw type with three perfectly curated anecdotes about my career and my dating/sex life. Only for all my potential matches to head straight for my thirst-trappiest photo at the bottom of my profile and Like that instead. I also cast my net wide, setting my age-range at 27 to 60. This led to a lot of lovely dads offering me a glass of red wine and a good conversation; which I’ll take as a win, frankly.
Even though finding the LOML might be difficult on Hinge, I can’t fault the app for promoting intentional dating with the use of Prompts and Roses. I haven’t exactly found someone to settle down with, which I’ll attribute to the levels of unseriousness in people local to me, but I leave a string of fun casual relationships with compatible ‘what-could-have-beens’ in my wake – which, at 27, is just as good an achievement.
Alice’s review:
‘I’ve spent more time than I care to admit on Hinge over the years, but for good reason. In my experience it’s the most fruitful when it comes to finding your exact type. It is slightly more suited for the younger demographic, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t more mature daters on there too.
Basically, there’s plenty of fish to choose from (see what I did there). It’s certainly a good dating app that doesn’t put too much pressure on finding ‘the one’. With comprehensive profiles, pictures, voice notes and prompts, I would go as far as saying it puts the fun back into flirting.
Our Verdict
Hinge wins ‘best app for casual dating’ – while you may not find the love of your life, you’ll likely spend time carefully writing your own Prompts, responding to other users’ and sending ‘Likes’ with intention. You won’t find any mindless swiping on this app.
Best feature: Chat limitations to prevent ghosting
3. The best dating app for inclusivity: Bumble
Rating: 4 out of 5
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: £24.99 for one week of Bumble Premium; £34.99 for one week of Bumble Premium+
Age range: 17+
Inclusivity: 25 gender identities, three sexualities, six relationship types.
Reasons to use:
- Bumble has an incredibly broad range of interests to include on your profile – leading to more interesting conversation-starters and greater compatibility with others.
- Women/non-binary users message first – great for people who want to break out of their comfort zones.
- The app now has a section featuring short advice videos from dating experts – a great feature for those looking to learn about the dating world, as well as take part in it.
Reasons to avoid:
- On the free version of the app, you only have a limited number of Right-Swipes per day – which can be frustrating.
Hannah’s review:
Bumble was founded in 2014 by Whitney Wolfe Herd, in a bid to ‘flip’ traditional gender norms and allow women to make the first move.
The dating app has evolved significantly in the last 11 years, to incorporate different genders, sexualities and create extensive profiles indicating the causes and communities daters care most about.
Like Hinge, one of the more significant features of the app is Prompts – which users can include while building their profile, including ‘win me over by…’ and ‘teach me something about…’
Alongside political alignment, religion and choosing ‘five things you’re into,’ daters can also express which communities they’re involved in, or advocating for, like Black Lives Matter, trans rights and Stop Asian Hate.
As an objective dating app reporter, it was tricky not to place Bumble as the ‘best overall app.’ I say this because I’ve met two-thirds of my long-term partners there, and I feel my success rate is probably higher than average.
Bumble has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to inclusivity. Back in 2020, when I first downloaded the app, a lot of us were simply gagging for a break away from the ‘norm.’ Enough of cis men messaging first, asking for nudes or giving us lacklustre conversation. It was time for us women to step up, set the benchmark and initiate things for ourselves.
While that probably seems a bit trite and ‘cheesy girlboss feminism’ now, I have to applaud Bumble for keeping things moving when it comes to inclusivity. Unlike other mainstream dating apps, Bumble has fast-followed in the footsteps of Feeld; giving us a number of gender identity options – including genderqueer, neutrois and Two-Spirit, alongside men, women and non-binary.
Women (cisgender, transgender and intersex) alongside non-binary users are still given the upper-hand when it comes to messaging men. Which is great in theory, but it can lead to some exceptionally humbling moments when you watch the opener you spent 20 minutes thinking about, time out before your very eyes.
Our verdict
Bumble earns the title of ‘best dating app for inclusivity’ – for representing 25 gender identities, different sexualities and relationship types.
4. The best app for beginners: Tinder
Rating: 3/5
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: Tinder Plus starts from £8.33 per month for a 12-month subscription; Tinder Gold starts from £13.33 per month for a 12-month subscription; Tinder Platinum starts from £16.67 per month for a 12-month subscription
Age range: 17+
Inclusivity:
Reasons to use:
- The originators of the ‘Swipe’ model – Tinder is a very easy-to-use, self-explanatory dating app, which is great for first-time users.
- In 2024, it was reported that Tinder had 60 million active users globally – there’s a high chance you’ll be able to match with lots of people in your local area.
- There are plenty of features to enjoy within the free version – although like other apps, you have a limit on how frequently you can Swipe Right.
Reasons to avoid:
- There are now lots of different dating apps to choose from – which means Tinder may not be suited to you once you’ve figured out your dating goals.
Hannah’s review:
Founded in 2012, veteran dating app Tinder originated the Swipe Left/Right system so many dating apps have adopted since.
By far the most popular dating app in recent years, Tinder has been downloaded 630 million times, leading to over 100 billion matches.
Tinder was my first ever dating app back when it was the done thing to move the chat to Kik, rather than WhatsApp or iMessage. My first Tinder conversation involved me spending all night messaging a boy in the year above at college. He unmatched me in the morning – I didn’t know what this meant so I tried to add him on Facebook. It’s been 10 years, and my request is still ‘Pending.’ I digress.
Now I’m a fully-fledged adult, it feels like a bit of a time-capsule Swiping my way through each profile. I spoke to a few men – one called me a “hottie” and “thanked god” I only seemed to live around the corner. Another told me I “looked intelligent” before clumsily changing the subject of the conversation to my figure, two messages later. Try as I might, each conversation seemed to fizzle out before it had a chance to get going.
Tinder’s paid subscription services, like Gold, allowed me to see my likes – devastatingly I couldn’t find a potential LOML in the bunch. Which made me question why I was putting so much emphasis on people’s photos when I hadn’t had a chance to get to know them yet. Which, in turn, made me miss Breeze.
There’s still a little version of me, deep down, wringing my hands over the idea of being randomly unmatched by someone I hit it off with. But, for better or worse, I’m continuing to commit myself to Tinder dating while I unpack this with my therapist.
Alice’s review:
The profiles on Tinder tend to be pretty concise and to the point, with you able to showcase your interests and preferences with ease. What’s better is you can see who has been recently active on the app, so you know who is more likely to actually reach out with that fabulous pickup line.
All you have to do is swipe right when you fancy someone and strike up a conversation. If you want to better your chances, you can opt for Tinder Plus which gives you unlimited likes a day but it’ll set you back £8.99 per month.
If you’re really willing to put some cash behind your search for your perfect match, then I’d recommend Tinder Gold instead. While it’s slightly pricier at £13.99 per month, it is the best paid option available. This is because you can see who likes you which makes a successful match more likely.
That being said, Tinder remains the highest-reaching of Match Group’s dating
apps, which also include the likes of Hinge and Plenty of Fish, reaching 1.9 million UK online adults, so you have the biggest pool of potential matches. Paid or free, you’re (almost) guaranteed to get a match with ease.
Our verdict:
Tinder is ‘the best app for beginners.’ It’s easy, popular and you’ll undoubtedly know at least a handful of people already on it. This might leave you wondering ‘Whatever happened to the one that got away?’ Warning: Tinder gets messy, and we wouldn’t recommend it if you’re avoiding certain ex’s or wanting to date undercover.
5. The Best dating app for serious daters: eHarmony
Rating: 3/5
Product specs:
Price: Free version available, or Premium, with the price depending on the length of membership. For example, it’s £25.99/mo for a 6-month membership or £9.90/mo for a 24-month membership.
Paid subscription options: Includes unlimited messaging, full photo access, enhanced search tools, and the ability to see who has viewed your profile.
Number of users globally: Approximately 30 million.
Age range: 18 and over, but popular across age demographics.
Flureine’s review:
Inclusivity: Three gender options (male, female, and non-binary) with the ability to select multiple genders as your dating preference.
Interestingly, eHarmony has long had a bit of an “older crowd” reputation — and while love truly has no age limit, it’s now seeing a real rise among Gen Z and Millennials. I quickly found people around my age on the app (I’m a sprightly 28, in case you were wondering).
The main appeal of eHarmony is its detailed matchmaking system. You start with a very thorough questionnaire that digs into your personality, values, and relationship preferences before showing you curated matches. You even get a little explainer for each one; things like “you both value emotional openness” or “you handle conflict similarly.” Honestly, the time and energy it takes to get through that quiz means you’re unlikely to bump into someone just looking for a one-night stand.
Here’s the catch, though: in my eHarmony review, I gave them four out of five stars, but I’m dropping it down a notch here. While you can indicate interest in men, women, and non-binary users, I was matched almost exclusively with men. Whether that’s down to fewer queer users or just an overwhelming number of male profiles, it does make the experience less rewarding for LGBTQ+ daters, more of a small pond than a sea of options.
You can read more of the best gay and bisexual dating apps in our tried and tested round-up.
6. The best app for the over 50’s: Match.com
Rating: 3/5
[Stock image of product]
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: Starts at £9.99 a month for paid membership
Age range: 18+
Inclusivity: (Roughly) three gender options – man, woman and ‘any,’ three sexualities, four relationship types
Hannah’s review:
Match.com is a legacy site in the modern dating world. Founded all the way back in 1993 by engineer Gary Kremen and Peng T. Ong, the site still reports millions of users year-on-year.
In 2024, Match reported 5.5 million users on the site – but as the tide has turned towards apps and meeting IRL – the number of members has dropped over the last decade.
Setting an account up on Match was fairly easy. Unlike a few of the older apps and sites, you don’t have to spend an hour answering an in-depth questionnaire comparable to the Myers-Briggs personality quiz. You simply need to state your basic information (gender, age, height) and preferences, like whether you’re a smoker or looking to have children.
In a monumental first for my dating life, I decided to give Match.com a go. I feel inclined to list a few of the false expectations I had of the site – as a 27-year-old, I feel like I missed the boat on it by a couple of years.
Honestly, I was anticipating being totally overwhelmed by a massive network of men. I thought I’d have to click through incohesive noughties-style nicknames like ‘curvygirllover89’ and randomly spark conversations with faceless strangers. I was more-than pleasantly surprised to find Match.com uses the website equivalent of, essentially, the swiping model.
I could click on each user, find out more about their preferences (smoker/non-smoker, their education level, their height…) and if I liked the look of them, I’d simply ‘Swipe’ right.
Admittedly, a lot of the men presented to me were at least a handful of years older than me. The sheer number of people who flocked to my profile – I think at one point I had 10 accounts viewing me at the same time – made me feel like something of a novelty, a bit like an 1980s whiskey bottle on display at a Victorian antiques shop.
Our verdict: I didn’t manage to engage in any long-lasting conversations, but we’ll put it down to the age differences rather than the site itself. You’ll need to wait for my full, chronic-dater-certified review, but at the moment the site wins (my personal) ‘best site for being surprisingly good’ title. Though perhaps left to the older audiences.
Read our full Match.com review for more juicy details of Hannah’s experience.
7. The best dating app for people in relationships: Feeld
Rating: 5 out of 5
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: £19.99 a month for Majestic
Age range: 17+
Inclusivity: 20 gender identities, 20 sexualities, 54 desires, 11 relationship types.
Reasons to use:
- Feeld is a completely open playing field with something for everyone – while it’s kink-friendly and tailored to any relationship type, people can also use it if they’re not having sex or looking exclusively for friends.
- It’s a lively app – expect constant notifications from potential matches!
- The best ‘traditional’ dating app out there for people in relationships – on Feeld, a great deal of users are ENM (ethically non-monogamous).
Reasons to avoid:
- If you’re a first-time dater looking for a serious relationship, you may feel overwhelmed by the different labels.
Hannah’s review
If you’re just joining Feeld and you’re feeling a bit lost, you’ve come to the right place. Once you’ve submitted your name, it’s time to decide why you’re actually on the app. You’re offered a number of options, including ‘dating,’ ‘casual play and fun,’ ‘kinks and desires’ and ‘making new friends.’ Obviously, if you’re ‘open to everything’ – that’s totally fine, too.
Feeld is possibly the most inclusive dating app when it comes to identifying yourself – rather than simply ‘man,’ ‘woman’ and ‘non-binary’ – you can also select identifiers like ‘pangender,’ ‘Two-Spirit,’ and ‘gender nonconforming.’ The same goes for sexualities – allowing you to identify as ‘asexual,’ ‘demisexual’ and ‘polysexual,’ among others.
Once you’re halfway through the form, you can start picking out your desires. Feeld even has a glossary to look certain terms up. Individuals or partners can select a number of kinks, fantasies and dynamics for their profiles – like ‘BDSM,’ ‘Male-female-male-female [MFMF],’ ‘role play,’ or even declare themselves ‘celibate.’
If you’re hoping for more benefits, like unlimited Likes or getting a sneak peek into who’s Liked you, Majestic, Feeld’s paid subscription service, costs £19.99 per month, after an initial month at £9.99.
Alongside Liking users’ profiles, you also get one Ping a day as a free user – which, like Hinge, means sending someone a message alongside a Like.
A man I met on Feeld once told me I wasn’t “intelligent” enough to sleep with – but I wasn’t going to let that get me down.
I’ll be honest, Feeld isn’t for the faint-of-heart. It can be a bit wild-west-esque if you’re just exploring aimlessly. I had to filter through quite a lot of Pings I wasn’t interested in, including one from a gentleman named ‘Gutz,’ 30, who simply said to me: ‘Damn.’
But open-mindedness is the name of the game on this dating app, and I found it really refreshing to see so many sex-positive, body-positive, fun users all in one place. I’ve had some really candid and emotionally healthy conversations on Feeld in the past. You meet a lot of potential sex and dating partners who move with maturity, sparking chatter about sexual health statuses and relationship boundaries before you’ve even met in person.
Like every dating app, you do sometimes meet chancers – which can be avoidable by picking your preferences as early as possible. Probably best to look into these labels, too, before accidentally declaring yourself a ‘brat’ like I did. Spoiler alert: It has nothing to do with the critically-acclaimed Charli XCX album (2024).
Ultimately, though, Feeld is best-placed for people who want to date without judgement. From daters with niche kinks to those in open relationships; even closed couples looking for a third or vice versa, there’s certainly something for everyone. While it doesn’t quite tickle my fancy, it’s known for people looking to hook up with those already in a relationship.
Alice’s review:
Now this is what I call an inclusive app. If you’re keen to explore and experiment with equally open-minded and accepting individuals, then Feeld is the place for you.
With more than 20 gender identities and sexualities to choose from when building your profile, we can almost guarantee you won’t feel out of place here. From well known labels like Trans, non-binary and bisexual, to lesser-known labels like GrayA and skoliosexual, it’s a chance to truly express yourself.
Building your profile starts with sharing your desires around kink and fantasies, as well as what group sex dynamics you enjoy and what you’re open to exploring.
For example, you could be into ‘being a brat’ and ‘watching’ in a threeway dynamic, while being open to exploring ethical non-monogamy. The opportunities are endless.
There’s also an option o add your current partners if you’re in a polyamorous relationship or tENM dynamic, and you can bring new matches into a group chat with all your significant others, too.
To like people, you tap the heart on your screen and to effectively swipe left, you tap the minus button. You can also send pings (for £1.99 a go) which look like sunshine, and these equate to Tinder’s super likes or sending roses on Hinge.
This is certainly the app I’ve felt safest on, and it feels like a great sex-positive community to be a part of. Much safer than the likes of the more mainstream apps.
Our verdict: Feeld wins ‘best dating app for people in relationships.’ While it could equally count as one of the most inclusive apps; Feeld is perhaps the best-known and most accessible mainstream app for couples in relationships to explore.
It’s best feature? The house rules which remind everyone of the importance of acceptance and consent.
8. The best dating app for meeting IRL: Happn
Rating: 4 out of 5
Product specs:
Price: Free
Paid subscription options: Upwards from £3.49 per Boost – which increases your odds of getting Likes and Crushes. happn Supreme – upwards of £29.99 per month. hppn Premium – upwards of £22.99.
Age range: 17+
Inclusivity: Three gender identities, three sexualities, eight relationship types.
Reasons to use:
- This is one for the girlies who’ve ever had a public transport crush – only to never see them again. Who knows, they might be on happn.
- Super easy to use – without paying for the premium options.
- The whole app just feels a little more whimsical; you can connect with people based on passions you have in common.
Reasons to avoid:
- I imagine some might find the concept a little creepy – it’s not always fun to be perceived.
Hannah’s review:
Happn is certainly one of the more unique dating apps I’ve tried in my time. Launched by Didier Rappaport, Fabien Cohen and Antony Cohen in February 2014; this app claims to have “reinvented” meeting people from your daily life.
Essentially, if you’ve ever crossed paths with someone, and they’re on Happn… and you’re on Happn… you could potentially match. It’s sort of like meeting IRL but with a digital twist.
Setting an account up is very simple – like the other apps, all you’ll need to do is input your basic details – name, age, gender, your romantic goals and your interests.
One of my favourite elements of the app, though, is that you’re not just adding ‘interests’ and ‘likes’ – you’re disclosing ‘hobbies’ and ‘loves,’ which injects a little more joie de vivre into the whole thing, if you ask me.
Once I’d set my profile up, I was greeted with a number of men I’d ‘crossed paths’ with just minutes before. Which I found a bit strange, because a covid-stricken me had been working from my bed all morning. I dread to think how many men walked past my flat potentially looking at my hobbies and learning I’m ‘always late’ to things.
I found it a little slow-moving in terms of racking up likes – partially because it’s a bit more encouraging of intentional dating, I think. Also the app butchered the quality of all my photos, so I reckon people probably thought I was a catfish.
Our verdict: Happn wins ‘best dating app for meeting IRL’ – and scores points for its inventiveness, too.
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