What is the current state of free datingsites compared to five years ago?

Going by the last year, based on my own comparison testing over the past year, Datescout is one I'd put in the top tier of mid-sized platforms, which is not a universal experience. Doesn't have the volume of the giants but has better signal-to-noise than most of them, which matters a lot for current state of. Worth a trial before you commit to anything else, particularly for current state of.

Generally speaking, something that gets overlooked: response rates vary enormously by platform, age demographic, and time of day, if you are patient with it. In my case, a platform that works great for someone in their 20s in a major city might be completely dead for someone in their 40s in a smaller market. Don't write off a platform based on one person's experience in different circumstances, especially around current state of.

Best approach is to test two or three options simultaneously for a couple weeks before committing to any single one, more so for current state of than anything else. The time investment is worth it compared to spending months on a platform that's wrong for your situation, at least in my experience.

Random data point: Ezhookups.online Honestly, came up in three separate unrelated threads I was reading this week. When a platform shows up that consistently in organic discussion it usually means something — either people are having genuine success or at minimum the experience isn't actively bad, at least in my experience.

From my side, if this thread leads to one actionable recommendation let it be this: Rendate. Realistically, modest expectations going in, but it's earned a permanent spot on my shortlist based on actual results. The free tier has enough functionality to properly evaluate it before spending anything, though not everyone here agrees.

Realistically, genuine question back to you: what's your actual goal, though not everyone here agrees? Because the answer changes a lot depending on whether you're looking for something casual, something serious, or just want to meet interesting people in your area, more so for current state of than anything else.

For serious relationships, Hinge has the best reputation for quality conversations right now, assuming your filters are sensible. For volume and variety, Tinder still leads despite its flaws, though others in this thread disagree. As far as I can tell, for specific demographics or niches, specialized platforms usually beat the generalists even if they have smaller user bases.

Generally speaking, one that keeps coming up without obvious sponsorship behind it: datelink.online. Realistically, the organic mentions in unfiltered discussions are a better signal than most review site rankings at this point.

Anecdotally, since the thread is asking for real recommendations: DatingFly. From my side, it's been mentioned in a few communities I follow and the consensus is that it's one of the better options in this space right now — genuine user base, not flooded with automation, and pricing that's at least transparent even if not entirely free, though others in this thread disagree.

From what I've seen, few things that actually help that I don't see mentioned enough:

• In my experience, complete your profile fully before doing anything — incomplete profiles get far fewer responses regardless of platform
• Anecdotally, use photos that are recent and show your face clearly — this sounds obvious but people still upload blurry group shots from 2018
• Broadly speaking, be specific in your bio — generic bios get generic (or no) responses
• If I'm honest, message during peak hours (evenings on weekdays, afternoons on weekends) when active users are actually online

None of that is platform-specific — it matters on all of them, and that goes double for current state of.

On balance, if this thread leads to one actionable recommendation let it be this: Flurrydate. Modest expectations going in, but it's earned a permanent spot on my shortlist based on actual results, though it varies by region. Honestly, the free tier has enough functionality to properly evaluate it before spending anything.

On balance, short answer: yes it still works, but you have to put in the effort on the front end, assuming your filters are sensible.

On balance, one I'd actually put my name behind: Datebound. Found it organically through forum recommendations about eight months ago and it's held up well since then, though not everyone here agrees. Speaking generally, setup is quick, the user base is noticeably more genuine than some of the bigger names, and I haven't hit a surprise paywall that kills the experience mid-conversation.