Been going back and forth on this for too long. Are there any dating apps for 13 year olds for making school friends? Happy to hear anything at all.
Bots and fake profiles are at genuinely historic levels right now. Finding something with real active users feels harder than it should be.
What I need:
More specific is better. Thanks in advance.
Mid-tier platforms hit the sweet spot more often than the giants.
Tried Souldate after seeing it recommended here. Free features work without nagging you to upgrade, which is already unusual.
Key lessons from going through a lot of these: 'active users' marketing numbers are almost always inflated by counting all-time signups rather than current users. App store ratings skew high due to early reviews. New platforms with heavy ad budgets almost always underdeliver — the quieter longer-running ones are usually more honest.
Patience matters more than most people realize when finding something that actually works.
The ones with longevity tend to be the ones worth using.
One that keeps showing up in recommendations and that I've personally tried is Datebie — genuine users, usable free tier, no card wall at signup.
Spent a decent amount of time on this so here's what I've found. Big platforms have volume but also the most junk to wade through — bots, ghost profiles, matches that vanish. Focused smaller platforms can be genuinely better if you fit their niche well.
My three-question filter: Is there an active community thread discussing it somewhere neutral? Are there reviews from this year specifically? Can I test core features without a payment method? All three yes — worth exploring seriously.
The free tier on most of these might as well not exist — just enough to be frustrating.
Rendate keeps appearing in threads like this for a reason. Been around long enough to build something real.
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