Craigslist single ads were once the go-to place for singles seeking no-strings-attached encounters and short-term relationships online. It was a section on Craigslist that offered an avenue for people to connect with like-minded individuals in their area.
However, in 2018, Craigslist closed its personals section due to the passing of the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA). This left many singles who enjoyed the freedom and convenience of Craigslist personals stranded.
Fortunately, many excellent alternatives to Craigslist personals have emerged to fill this void. These sites and apps help singles the same way Craigslist singles ads do. They let singles browse local personal ads and find compatible partners for casual dating or hookups.
This article will explore the top 10 alternatives to Craigslist personal ads to help you find potential matches online. But first, let’s discuss what happened to Craigslist’s personals section.
What Happened to Craiglist’s Personals Section?
Craigslist is an online marketplace where users can post goods and services for sale. You could find anything from jobs to housing and, until 2018, personal ads.
For nearly two decades, Craigslist has offered a beloved online dating section. The personals section allowed individuals to post ads seeking relationships and sex freely. The site fostered countless connections between people seeking relationships on their terms. Users could indicate their sexual preferences and desires in personal ads without judgment.
However, in March 2018, Craigslist closed its personals section in response to the passing of FOSTA-SESTA laws. These laws held websites liable for any user content that promoted prostitution or sex trafficking. This was because many sex traffickers had leveraged classified sites like Craigslist to carry out their malicious operations.
Although not all users used the personals section for illegal purposes, Craigslist had to remove it to avoid legal issues. This massive shutdown disappointed Craigslist personals users, leading them to seek new places to find casual dates.
Top 10 Alternatives to Craigslist Single Ads
There are so many online dating platforms that still offer many exciting options similar to Craigslist personals. Here are the ten alternatives to Craigslist single ads:
AdultFriendFinder: Overall Best Dating Site for Adult Personals
AdultFriendFinder, or AFF, is one of the largest, most popular hookup sites. Its large user base of over 100 million users makes it an ideal replacement for Craigslist personals.
AFF embraces people of all genders and sexual orientations. You can specify your preferences in your profile, whether seeking a friends-with-benefits arrangement or a one-time thing. The site offers multiple ways to interact. There are chat rooms for discussing dating topics with other users and instant messaging for talking to a match.
AFF’s basic membership is free, offering access to features like matching and chatting. You’ll need a paid membership to unlock all features and remove annoying ads.
Reddit Personals: Largest Platform for Exploring Single Ads
Reddit is a social media platform and one of the largest online communities in the world right now. Although not exclusively a dating platform, Reddit helps users connect through shared interests on topic-specific forums called subreddits. So, people leverage this to find romantic partners and casual dates.
The subreddit r/r4r, called Reddit Personals, enables Redditors to post and respond to personal ads. The major advantage of Reddit Personals is access to Reddit’s massive, diverse user base. Whether you are seeking short-term hookups, casual dating, or serious relationships, you can make it happen on Reddit Personals.
Since Reddit is 100% free, r/r4r provides a cost-effective way to post and explore personal ads.
Ashley Madison: Best Dating Platform for Discreet Affairs
Ashley Madison launched in 2002 and has since been a renowned dating site with unique offerings. It is not like mainstream dating platforms catering to everyone. Ashley Madison helps married individuals seeking discreet affairs without judgment. While this may be controversial, both ethically non-monogamous people and people having extramarital affairs can leverage this site for matches.
Due to the kind of services it offers, Ashley Madison has robust privacy features like anonymous profiles and private chatting. This discretion boosts users’ confidence to pursue affairs without getting caught.
While women can use Ashley Madison for free, men must buy credits to access the site’s features. Ashley Madison provides a judgment-free platform for attached men and women to seek affairs safely.
Personals on Facebook Marketplace: Best Craigslist Single Ads Alternative
You must know Facebook Marketplace, the online market that lets you post items or services to buy, sell or offer. Believe it or not, Facebook Marketplace has become a popular platform for posting personal ads. However, individuals must craft their ads carefully to avoid suspension from the marketplace.
Some clever singles have leveraged Marketplace as an alternative to Craigslist personals by making personal listings seem like legitimate offers. For instance, a “Single male offering house cleaning services – men only” ad implies the poster seeks a male sexual partner.
Locanto Personals: Best Craigslist Lookalike for Casual Encounters
Locanto Personals offers a familiar Craigslist-like platform to post and explore local personal ads for free. It has over 60 category sections, like jobs, real estate and personal ads. Under the Personals category, Locanto has sections like Dating, Men Seeking Women, Casual Encounters, Missed Connections and more.
Locanto’s interface and posting style closely resemble Craigslist, making it ideal for former Craigslist personals users. Anyone can respond to ads for free, but you must subscribe to post ads. The classified site makes an excellent global alternative for meeting singles seeking casual flings.
OneNightFriend: Best Craigslist Alternative for One-Night Stands
As the name suggests, OneNightFriend caters to singles seeking one-time casual adult encounters without commitment. People often call it “Tinder minus the relationships,” as it connects locals for convenient, discreet hookups. With over 57 million global users, OneNightFriend offers users a wide range of options.
OneNightFriend prioritizes user anonymity for stress-free hookups, which makes total sense. Sometimes, people just want to sneak in and out of dating apps without worrying about people recognizing them. You don’t have to put a photo on your profile; you can send them to matches in private.
The platform has a straightforward interface, which makes finding and meeting partners for one-night stands easy and enjoyable.
Oodle Personals: Another Great Craigslist Lookalike Classified Site
Oodle is another classified ads site just like Craigslist, with categories for services, jobs, pets and personals. It provides a familiar, simple design for posting text and photo personal ads.
Under the personals section, Oodle offers categories like Men Seeking Women, Casual Encounters and more, catering to diverse dating preferences. The site draws a decent user base across the United States, especially in big cities like LA.
Oodle’s minimalistic user interface makes browsing and posting quick and easy. While it has a small user base, Oodle is a great platform for posting and finding free personal ads.
Kasual: Best Platform for One-Time FIings
Kasual presents a unique approach to online hookups where, instead of swiping mindlessly, you can find matches for instant sex. It uses location-based matching to connect you to someone nearby for spontaneous casual fun instantly.
Kasual is unlike other dating apps, where you must establish a connection before meeting physically. It randomly pairs singles in the same city who are online at the same time for one-time flings. There’s no need to fill out lengthy profiles or waste time chatting endlessly before meeting up.
While the free version is quite usable, a membership unlocks more instant matchmaking features. Overall, Kasual delivers fast, convenient hookups similar to Craigslist casual encounters.
Seeking: Best Craigslist Alternative for Sugar Arrangements
Seeking, formerly SeekingArrangement, connects younger members (typically women) with wealthy older partners. While unconventional, Seeking presents an intriguing alternative to Craigslist personals for those seeking sugar arrangements.
On Seeking, attractive young women offer companionship to generous, successful men seeking beauty and youth. In exchange, the men pamper them with fine dining, trips, allowances and gifts. Think of it as a mutually beneficial relationship between a sugar baby and a sugar daddy/mommy.
So, if you’re looking for a sugar arrangement with another consenting adult, we recommend this platform.
Tinder: Overall Best Dating App for Adult Personals
There is a reason why Tinder is one of the most popular dating apps in the world right now. It has millions of users globally and is the go-to dating app for all generations. While it primarily markets itself as an app for dating and relationships, Tinder can also facilitate casual adult encounters.
Tinder’s interactive swiping mechanism makes finding and flirting with hotties exciting. The app empowers people to be more forward in expressing interest than other dating sites. It is a great alternative to Craigslist personals.
DoubleList: Best Alternative for Browsing Singles Ads Like Craigslist
Maybe you’ve grown so attached to Craigslist that you can’t imagine trying any of the mentioned alternatives. If that’s the case, then you should consider joining DoubleList.
DoubleList emulates the Craigslist classified ad style, so former Craigslist personals users will feel at home using it. It offers localized singles ads like Craigslist so that you can find personal ads of singles in your city.
DoubleList also goes beyond what Craigslist personals offers because it protects you from romance scams and privacy breaches. It requires email or phone number verification for new accounts to reduce spam and fake profiles.
Like Craigslist single ads, you can browse or post listings under various sections, like “Women For Couples” and more. This allows you to find what you want on your terms, whether casual dates or serious commitments.
Join DoubleList today for a true old-school Craigslist personals experience!
