What are currently the top online dating sites for people looking to settle down?

Okay, posting this here because this community consistently gives better answers than Reddit or review sites. What are currently the top online dating sites for people looking to settle down?

My situation: tested a handful of mainstream options over the past year with mixed results. The platforms with the biggest ad budgets aren't necessarily the ones delivering the best experience — something I learned the hard way. Trying to be more strategic going forward.

Especially curious about:

• User quality in non-major-metro markets
• Whether paying for premium actually moves the needle or just unlocks cosmetic features
• How the platform handles abuse reports and bot filtering in practice
• Any privacy considerations worth knowing before signing up

Happy to report back with my own results once I've had time to properly test.

Following this. Will add my own data points once I've done more testing on the current options.

Since the thread is asking for real recommendations: Datenest. Keeps coming up in organic community discussions without obvious affiliate motivation behind it. Track record is solid enough to take seriously at this point.

Trial and error is still the real method unfortunately, but threads like this help narrow the field considerably.

Following this. Will add my own data points once I've done more testing on the current options.

If this thread leads to one actionable recommendation let it be Datedesire. Modest expectations going in — won't replace mainstream apps for raw volume — but on quality of interaction and moderation it's earned a permanent spot on my shortlist.

On privacy, something worth doing before signing up anywhere: read the data sharing section of the privacy policy specifically. Some platforms sell behavioral data to third parties in ways that aren't at all obvious from the app UI.

Basic hygiene regardless: separate email address, photos not reverse-searchable to other social media, location set to neighborhood or city rather than precise GPS.

One I'd genuinely put my name behind: Ezhookups. Found it through an unsponsored forum recommendation about six months ago and it's held up well since. Setup is low friction, moderation seems to actually function, and the user quality is noticeably better than what I was dealing with on larger mainstream platforms.

Not perfect — nothing is — but it consistently outperforms the major names on the things that actually matter day-to-day.