Finding love and companionship online can feel like a daunting task, but the best senior dating sites and app make it easier for people over 50 to get back into the dating game —and there's good reason to find love. Research shows that the quality of our relationships at age fifty is the greatest predictor of our health and well-being at age eighty —and there's a direct correlation between loneliness and cognitive decline 1.
Ready to make meaningful connections? I tapped dating and relationships experts for input on the best dating sites for people over Along with testing these dating apps, i enlisted seniors who are actively dating to provide honest feedback on their experiences with every app.
Below, find my top picks for the best senior dating apps, along with a full rundown of my testing criteria. Online dating can be overwhelming at any age, but people over 50 have the added variables of a smaller dating pool and a lot of changes to best dating landscape. I gathered feedback from experts to narrow our choices to dating apps that actually cater to a demographics over Then I had people over 50 put our selections to the test to rate them on the sites criteria:.
To set our testers up for success, we prioritized apps that were either designed specifically for people over 50, or that have a fairly large user base overall—because no one wants to spend time setting up an awesome dating app over just to have no one see it.
As a generation that wasn't born with phones in their hands, our over testers gravitated toward dating apps that are easy to use, with simple interfaces that don't require calling your children or internet-savvy friends for help. Some of our testers preferred a lengthier signup process because they felt best gave them better matches in the long run, while others would rather get onto the swiping quickly. I believe in quality over quantity when it comes to being successful on dating apps, so I emphasized 50s with my suggested matches.
I asked also senior testers to give feedback on their matches to help determine the best algorithm. You won't find time-wasters or people looking for casual flings on eharmony. Every member must fill out extensive questionnaires about themselves and what they're looking for, and eharmony does the work of vetting who you're most compatible with—and the app even provides compatibility scores for each match.
Looking for Love? Here Are 17 Dating Apps and Websites for Over-50 Singles
I find this approach to be particulary beneficial in finding compatible partners with similar life experiences and perspectives for seniors seeking meaningful connections.
Now add that to the two million people and counting to have found love—it's an impressive stat! It weeds out people who are less serious about dating, dating the personality tests seem to help eharmony provide more compatible matches. I went out on dates with men from eharmony and felt more confident knowing they had similar interests, preferences, and dating intentions—plus, I didn't get caught in the "pen pal" stage trying to learn if they would be compatible.
Check out our full eharmony review. Silver Singles is targeted at daters aged 50 and older. Its user-friendly interface and emphasis on creating a supportive community make it an appealing option for folks of this demographic. I like that it's a cheaper option than OurTime. You'll have to pay extra for all the best features, but I recommend signing up for free and looking around click at this page deciding if you want to continue with a subscription.
Silver Singles was mentioned by several experts mindbodygreen reached out to as one of the most well-known sites for older daters. My favorite feature best sites college students that you can "like" a specific parts of another user's profile, which is a helpful gateway to making conversation, especially for older daters who might not be used to online dating. As someone with plenty of dating app experience, I found the questions were refreshingly unique, prompting you to share information about both yourself and the type of person you are hoping to meet.
I also appreciated that the questions were clearly geared toward senior daters, but still lighthearted. I love that Silver Singles considers what you want in a relationship overall, not just the type for partner you want. It asked me questions about how I resolve conflict, the amount of time I prefer to spend with a partner, and how likely I am to initiate a kiss.
As with eharmony, it was clear when testing Silver Singles that the algorithm prioritizes compatibility. My daily matches were almost always closely aligned with my preferences and interests—and most users are very responsive and eager to set up dates. OurTime specifically caters to people over age 50 and comes highly recommended by Shannon from both personal and professional experience. My uncle met his long-term partner on OurTime, and a former client also met his partner on OurTime," she told me. When I swiped through the app, I was impressed by its interface and speedy profile setup.
I also love the focus on dating app safety and security. When I tested the free version of OurTime, it was enough for search for potential matches and message back and forth. I found setting up these robust profiles could be a lengthy but worthwhile! Sexologist and love coach Suzannah Weiss says that it's "one of the more established dating sites out there" and "is generally regarded as a place for people to find love rather than hook-ups.
The match recommendations are a little hit or miss in terms of compatibility, but I appreciate that there seems to be a large pool of daters over 50 and that the profiles are detailed enough to learn quickly if the person could be a fit. I've found a handful of serious relationships on Match. Check out our full Match. OkCupid is one of the most fun dating sites in my check this out. Seniors or individuals over 50 may find OkCupid appealing for its inclusive and over user base, allowing them to connect with people of various ages and backgrounds.
The basic concept is that you answer a lot of questions about your interests and values, and then the all-knowing algorithm shows you how compatible you are with other users. You can also rate how important each question is to you so that you don't accidentally miss the love of your life due to a trivial disagreement about pineapple on pizza for example. With other apps, you feel the need to chat back and forth a lot before feeling comfortable enough to set up a date; With OkCupid, it was much easier to identify whether someone is a good match, given the focus on shared interests and values.
While the over pool does feel slightly smaller than apps designed specifically for seniors, I think OkCupid would be great in a major city and you wouldn't be likely to run out of matches. Check out our full OkCupid review. Tinder dating actually a very viable option for daters over 50, according to Weiss. While the dating app is not specifically geared toward seniors, it's unbeatable when it comes to sites numbers. While for are more options than on other apps, the vast majority of them are not looking for anything serious.
Since I'm looking for a serious relationship, Tinder doesn't quite land on the top of my list—but I do recommend it for those who are just hoping to have best and meet new people. Check out our full Tinder review here. Check out our full Hinge review. Hinge wins the distinction of being the best app for people of color over 50 because of its ability to filter by race for free.
Sites other sites offer this option, but it's usually behind a paywall. However, Hinge offers this for all members and even includes a little prompt that explains why it might be important for people of color to not want to date white people. You can select as many or as few of them as you like, and then you'll only be shown matches that fall under those categories.
Aditi Paul, Ph. Since I live in Westchester County, most of my matches are in Long Island and New York City, which does bring down the convenience factor, as the senior dating pool is much less vast in smaller cities.
My selection process
As is the case with most swipe-based apps, the profiles are less in-depth than your eharmony, Match. It's easy to tell who's serious or not based on how unique their profile is. I also like to use Hinge to dating while traveling because you can easily change your location to check out the options in a new area even before you're there. It's important to best the right app for you, especially if you're navigating the realm of online dating for the first time.
Dating app safety is crucial for all ages, but it's especially important for older people who are often the target of scammers. Unfortunately, these sneaks have gotten incredibly good at delivering convincing performances. As you begin your online dating experience, there are a few important rules you should adhere to:. Dating app bubbles includes your bank account, social security number, home address, work address, or phone number.
Go here we often like to assume the best in people, scammers can be especially manipulative toward those seeking a romantic connection, so stay on your guard.
Your guide to the most popular digital spots to find your special someone
Look, we love love! But if someone is showering you with affection way too early in the conversation, it should raise an eyebrow or two about their motives, especially if you haven't yet met in person.
Read more about how to spot love bombing. Always plan dating have for first meeting at a https://passive-income.info/hookup-loop.php place.
Pick a busy spot where you know you won't be alone and always let a friend or family member know where you'll be and who you're seeing. If someone's giving you the "ick," trust it.
You might not be able to put your finger on why you feel uneasy, but if you get the feeling that a prospective date has ulterior motives, you can typically report them to the dating platform who will take the investigation into their own hands. We've got a full checklist of online dating tips for seniorsbut here are a few key ones to keep in mind:. You're learning how to navigate a completely new terrain.
There's a learning curve, but sticking it out could really pay off. Sites expect you to be https://passive-income.info/best-dating-profile-usernames.php and direct. So when others ask you "What are you looking for? Whether you're looking for a serious relationship, casual companionship, just looking for friendsor just sex—say it, recommends Paul.
After matching and messaging with someone you're interested in, it might be tempting to head straight to meeting up. However, it's best to organize a video chat first so you can make sure that the person matches the pictures.
If 50s app you're using has a video chat feature built in, then make use of that, as it's the most secure and easy way to connect. An outside perspective can help your profile to really pop, and they can also be a good gut check to make sure anyone you're chatting with seems safe to meet up with.
Be wary of anyone who doesn't want to meet in person but who asks you lots of personal questions. Similarly, you should absolutely never send money to anyone you've connected with through a dating app.
Scammers will reel you in by appealing to your best nature and heaping you with flattery. If someone starts to ask you for 50s, block them and report them to the app or site you're using. They all have different mechanisms for doing this, which are usually well signposted.
Dating as a person who's 50 and 50s comes with numerous benefits besides companionship. According to the National Council on Agingbenefits include lower stress levelsbetter healing after surgeryhealthier behaviorsand even a longer lifespan.
A different study found that older daters had better health, better driving ability, and greater involvement in extracurricular activities than older non-daters.
Longevity is always top of mind at mindbodygreen—and dating plays a larger role in this than you might think. In fact, one recent study from indicated a direct correlation between loneliness and cognitive decline 1. When over with intention, dating apps can be a great way to bring connection into your life, over enhancing your well-being and improving your longevity.