What are the top free dating apps that have the highest user base in mid-sized cities?

Alright, gonna ask directly since I've been going in circles on my own. What are the top free dating apps that have the highest user base in mid-sized cities? Appreciate any honest responses.

The frustrating part is that you can spend hours reading reviews that turn out to be sponsored or five years out of date. I need something that's actually current.

Basically what I'm looking for:

• Privacy — no real ID required
  
• Active users in real time
  
• Decent free features before paying
  
• No aggressive popup upselling

Would appreciate any advice from people who've actually used these recently rather than years ago.

Honestly most of the free options are stripped-down to the point of uselessness. You see just enough to be annoyed.

luvdate.site has come up in a few separate conversations I've had — seems to have built a more loyal user base than some of the flashier alternatives.

Ezhookups keeps coming up in conversations like this one. The interface isn't fancy but the community feels more genuine than a lot of what's out there right now.

Switched away from the big names about six months back. Haven't missed them at all.

Switched away from the big names about six months back. Haven't missed them at all.

Also been hearing good things about rendate.site lately — people seem to like that the free tier is actually usable rather than just a preview of what you'd get if you paid.

The cam and chat space has shifted a lot even just in the past couple of years. Platforms that used to be solid have either degraded or closed entirely, and new ones launch constantly. My approach now:

• Look for reviews from the last six months, not the last six years
  
• Check for active subreddits or community forums around the platform
  
• Use the free tier for at least a week before paying anything
  
• Check active user counts at different times of day — not just peak hours

Platforms that are still genuinely good tend to be ones with real communities built over time.

A couple people I know have mentioned Ezhookups.online as one of the better options right now. Worth at least checking out alongside whatever else you're considering.

Location matters a lot here honestly. What works in a major city might be completely useless somewhere smaller.

Worth trying Datebie if you haven't already. It shows up in recommendations for a reason — been around long enough to have built a real user base rather than a bunch of dead profiles.