List of Free Dating Sites in the UK

Want to know the best free dating sites in the UK? well we have you covered.

One in three relationships now start online and there is more demand than ever for dating sites. There are many different sites out there and it can be hard to know which ones to sign up to.

There are apps and sites which give you basic access to their service for free. Many of them allow you to upgrade to paid membership for extra features, but it is your choice whether to do this or not.

Some of the best dating apps and websites to sign up to for free are listed below.

Bumble

Bumble is different to other websites because the first message between two people that are matched has to be sent by the woman. Reviews of the site suggest that this is a popular feature. Women like the fact that they can stay in control of who they receive messages from.

You can sign up to Bumble using your phone number, or by linking it with your Facebook profile. With a free account you can upload a maximum of six photos. You are able to look at photos of other people on the site, like them, and then match with people that have also liked your profile.

Happn

Happn allows you to find matches that are close to your physical location. It uses GPS to show you people that you have been within 250 metres of in the recent past. The app will not tell you where this contact was, but it will let you know when it happened, so this may give you some idea of where you crossed paths.

To sign up you just need to create an account and add a description of yourself. Once you have uploaded some photographs, your profile is ready to be matched.

Hinge

Hinge markets itself as an app that you can soon delete because of the way that it successfully matches people together. You are given three questions to answer when you sign up, and these answers will be displayed between the photos on your profile.

Hinge is a good site if you sometimes find it difficult to think of what to say in that first message. The questions that you are asked when you sign up are designed to be talking points and get a conversation going.

Lumen

Lumen is a dating app for the over 50s, and it was the first app to exclusively serve this age group. It is very strict about not letting anyone younger than 50 join because the aim of the site is to help mature single people connect.

When you send a message to someone for the first time, you have to use a minimum of 50 characters. This means you have to say more than just hello. Lumen also verifies the identity of everyone that signs up to the site which helps prevent fake accounts being set up.

OkCupid

OkCupid is one of the longest running dating apps and it has established a reputation for being one of the most inclusive sites in this time. It is also a very liberal site.

There is a personality test that you need to take in order to complete your profile. You are then able to search for people who have similar hobbies and interests to you.

Plenty of Fish

The phrase ‘there are plenty more fish in the sea’ is certainly true on this app, as it claims to have more than 65,000 members. A unique feature of this app is that you are able to message an unlimited amount of people without having to pay to upgrade your account.

The profiles are easy to complete and there is also a chemistry predictor that you are able to complete. This measures five factors that the site believes are the best indicators of compatibility. You can browse profiles or use the ‘Ultra Match’ feature to see the people that the site thinks you are most compatible with.

Tinder

Although Tinder does have a reputation where people meet just for a couple of dates, there are long-term relationships which have started on this site. Tinder was the original site that used swiping and they have copyrighted the terms ‘swipe left’ and ‘swipe right’.

When you have signed up you can browse through profiles of other users. If you are not interested you swipe left, and swipe right if you like what you see. If someone also swipes right on your profile then how will be notified that you have matched with someone.

Dating Sites That Require Subscriptions

If you are happy to spend some money on a dating app or website, then you will have more options available to you. Dating sites that you pay to join are also more likely to have people that are looking for something serious. There are free options for all the sites listed below, but the things that you can do with a free account is very limited.

eHarmony

eHarmony has quite a lengthy sign up process, but this is so they can find out what it is that makes you tick. There is a lot of detail about your opinions and ideals that they ask for when you are filling out your profile.

You can browse matches with a free account, but there is no facility for you to exchange messages. You are able to wink at someone, but if you do not have a subscription, then they will not be able to contact you.

When you pay for membership, you are able to see photos of people that they have posted on their profiles. You can also see who has looked at your profile and added you to their favourites list.

The monthly price for membership varies depending on the length of your subscription. The cheapest option available is for a 24 month subscription, but most people would hope that they would have found a relationship before this point. If you sign up for 24 months, you won’t get any money back if you choose to cancel your subscription at any point.

Match.com

There are over 9 million people that are signed up to Match worldwide. It is one of the best known dating sites that is operating today.

With a free membership you are able to browse other profiles and you can wink at someone as well as receive winks.

You can send messages to other people on the site if you have paid for membership. You can also attend the singles events that Match hold all over the country. These include things such as quiz nights and cooking classes. These can be a good way to make new friends even if you do not find romance.

The prices for Match are quite a bit cheaper than eHarmony. This makes it a good choice if you only want to sign up for a few months at a time. You also get a three day free trial when you sign up, which may not sound like a lot of time, but it gives you a good chance to explore the site and decide if it is right for you.

EliteSingles

When you sign up for EliteSingles you will be required to fill out a personality test. The site will then use the results of this test to match you with between three and seven people every day.

If you have a free account, you are able to create a profile and upload photos of yourself. You can also receive messages but you will not be able to respond to them.

You are not able to search for matches yourself, as you will be sent them by the site. This is also the case with paid memberships. All profiles on EliteSingles are verified and this makes it very unlikely that you will come across a fake profile.

When you are a paid member of EliteSingles you are able to send messages to people you have been matched with. You are also able to view all the photos that they have uploaded to their profile. Paid members are able to use the website or the app, while the app is not available to members with free accounts.

As a paid member you can also access the ‘Have you met….’ feature. This gives you the details of up to 20 people that you may be compatible with that haven’t been sent to you as a match.

The length of membership that you can choose varies between three, six and twelve months. The twelve month membership gives you the lowest monthly cost.

The target market of EliteSingles is professionals who may or may not consider themselves to be elite. One of the points that the site makes on its homepage is that 85% of its members have an education level that is above average.

Parship

The application that you fill out when you sign up to Parship will look at 30 different aspects of your ‘essential personality characteristics’.

The site prides itself on matching people that have a real chance at a long-term relationship. This means that it is probably not worth signing up to if you are not looking for something serious.

As a free member you can take the personality test and you will also be able to send and receive contact requests. However, you cannot do anything with these requests unless you are a paid member because free members do not get access to messaging.

As a paid member you will also be given an overview of the results from the personality quiz. You will be able to see all the members that have visited your profile and people are able to send photos to you.

As with most other paid memberships, the monthly cost is lower if your take out a membership for a longer period. However, with the amount of matches you get sent and can view on a daily basis, you may not need to be signed up for too long.

Parship also put a lot of emphasis on the work they do to keep members details private. If you only have a free account you will not be able to view any photos on the site, they will be blurred out. Photos can only be viewed by people who have a paid membership.

Niche Dating Sites

Another option to consider is to sign up to a niche dating site, where you can find people who you share a particular interest with. These sites will all have free and paid options, so you can decide which one is going to work best for you.

There are dating sites based on the newspaper you read or the radio station you listen to. Examples of these sites include Guardian Soulmates and Classic FM Romance.

Date a Gamer

Date a Gamer can help single gamers who are looking for love. There are over 150,000 profiles on this site of people who love gaming that are ready to share this love with a special someone.

Green Singles

If you are passionate about the environment, then greensingles.com may be the site for you. The site introduces you to likeminded people, and it is considered one of the best sites to meet partners that are vegan or vegetarian.

My Lovely Parent

There is even a dating site where you can help your single parents enter the world of dating. You can enter their details at mylovelyparent.com and you will be able to review all their matches. It can be used for any older relative, not just parents.

Is Online Dating Worth It?

Statistics suggest that online dating is becoming a very common way for people to meet. The percentage of people who met online and are now married is higher than you may think.

If you are unsure if online dating is going to work for you, then you have nothing to lose by signing up to one of the free sites mentioned above. The sites that you have to pay for may be better suited to you if you are trying to find a serious relationship, rather than just having a bit of fun.

Further Reading… 

• How to Collect MyMail Reward Points for Free
• How to Make Money Selling on RedBubble