Long-distance ‘relationships’ can be great, but most times, when looking for love (or even just a little fun…), it makes sense to look a little closer to home!
Local dating sites are the scene for anyone interested in finding love or a new relationship. Although most dating sites are free to use, the advanced features often come at a price. However, the convenience and comfort of looking through potential matches at home are unbeatable. Prepare your next Netflix and Chill while, y’know, watching Netflix and chilling!
With so many local dating sites out there, it can be hard to sift all their promises to find the best one for your situation and your particular needs. This article will do that very thing for you! So kick back, and let’s see what we have here…
10 Best Local USA Dating Sites | 2023
Whether you are looking for The One or just The Next One, we’ve reviewed the 10 best local USA dating sites and apps. Here is a breakdown describing their main features to help you decide which is the right one for you.
Free Local Dating Sites
The best free local dating sites to find love (or lust) on your doorstep! Free local dating sites will help you find your perfect partner. Right there on your doorstep!
Local Dating Sites: Eharmony
Best For: Finding long-term love based on detailed compatibility.
eHarmony is one of the biggest online dating sites in the world that works wonders as a local USA dating site and internationally. With more than 10 million users, eharmony has mastered the algorithm to make great matches with their registered 32 Dimensions program and advanced feature options.
The basic and free version of eharmony allows members to create a profile, search for singles, and browse through various profiles. However, only premium members can send messages freely. Basic members can use the free communication on weekends or opt for subscription discounts to take advantage of the full eHarmony experience.
Local Dating Sites: Match.com
Best for: People seeking serious or long-term relationships online.
Match.com is one of the pioneers that laid the blueprint for other local dating sites. Match.com has worked hard to perfect its algorithm too. They go as far as giving a guarantee that you’ll be able to find someone interesting within 6 months. And, if that doesn’t happen, you will receive additional 6 months, free of charge. Not too shabby.
The matching algorithm at Match.com requires members to go through a detailed personality quiz regarding basic choices to intimate stuff. A bonus is that most essential features of this website are available for free.
Local Dating Sites: Tinder
Best for: Casual dating and people who may not need much information about their potential dates.
Tinder is the casual dating app that took over the world. It’s simple interface of swiping right and left to match or reject potential partners. Luckily, if both swipe right, it’s a match, and the partners can start a text conversation or access the video chat feature within the app. In addition, the “Discover” mode also works like a charm and makes Tinder among the best local dating sites online.
The basic plan allows users up to 100 right swipes daily. For upgrading to unlimited swipes, Tinder Plus charges $10 per month for members under 30 and $20 per month for older members.
Local Dating Sites: OkCupid
Best for: People who would like to know in detail about their date before meeting them.
OkCupid also falls in the same category of local dating sites as Match and Tinder, which allows people to browse profiles and reach out to anyone they find interesting.
OkCupid offers premium packages starting from $39.99 per month, in which you get an ad-free experience and see people who have liked you so you can like them back. Though, the free version also works fine (minus the ads).
Local Dating Sites: Hinge
Best for: People who value individual preferences and like compartmentalizing their thinking.
“Designed to be deleted”: Hinge markets its platform as the one where you will hopefully meet someone special, and you’ll never need dating again.
Originally, this app was created to match people based on their mutual friends, but over time it has evolved into a fun icebreaker that helps people to bring humor to their profiles. Hinge offers premium packages for more advanced features like location, likes, visibility, etc.
Local Dating Sites: Bumble
Best for: Women or people seeking quick hookups, friendships, or relationships.
Like Tinder, Bumble is a swipe dating app but with a twist. It encourages women to make the first move and kickstart a conversation. The messages on the app come with a 24-hour live window. If the other person fails to respond to a message within that time frame. This unique feature promotes fast-paced conversations and weeds out ghosters and players.
The women-message-first concept is also ideal for combating the endless creepy messages women on several dating apps are tired of getting.
Local Dating Sites: Elite Singles
Best for: People seeking intelligence, a higher lifestyle, and good-looking matches.
Elite Singles is a local dating site that targets a much smaller but higher-quality dating pool of individuals who value appearances, intelligence, and lifestyle.
The free plan lets users sign-up, create a profile, take a personality test, and receive messages. So, it’s a great place to start and see if this site might work for you. However, to enjoy the full scope of the platform, it would be better to upgrade to a Premium account from $17 per month.
Local Dating Sites: Facebook Dating
Best for: More casual and short-term relationships and hookups.
Facebook is a renowned social app with more than 2.6 billion active users monthly, making it one of the largest user bases worldwide. Facebook Dating works with both Facebook and Instagram, and a user’s Facebook friends can’t see their dating profiles. Since it started in 2019, Facebook Dating has helped more than 2 billion people meet each other, proving that its algorithm is reliable and focused on users.
This dating site is a completely free local dating site and applies several filters like location, age, height, religion, and more to refine the search. With a special feature called “Secret Crush,” users on the dating app can list people from their Facebook friends and Instagram followers as secret crushes. If your crush likes you back, then it would be a match.
Local Dating Sites for Local Adult Personal Ads
Some people prefer local dating sites with more old-fashioned ways. These are the very best places to look for local adult personal ads!
Local Personal Ads: Double List
Best for: People looking for any kind of relationship, including platonic, casual, or hookup nature.
Doublelist is not a typical dating site. Instead, it is a platform where people create accounts to post local adult personal ads to search for people who may share similar interests. This local dating site is open to people with diverse sexual orientations and sexual boundaries.
The members can view others’ ads on the platform and connect with each other on the website. One of the best unique features of this dating site is that it allows users to filter the classified ads by city and locality. As a result, people get to engage specifically with people who can contact them or meet them at their location after all the safety checks (of course!). Plus, this dating platform permits users to make two daily posts with up to 4 pictures, join group chats, leave comments, engage in web camera blogs, and even get involved in hot and cold games.
Above all, Doublelist is free and among the safest platforms for posting dating ads. So, as long as you are mindful of your behavior when communicating with others, there’s nothing to worry about.
Sites for Local Gay Personals
Local gay personals are an option for the shyer guys and girls out there. The ones who enjoy a bit of romance; a little more left to the imagination. For local gay personals, this is our best recommendation:
Local Gay Personals: Gay Meeting
Best for: local gay personals
Now this one you may not have heard of… Before local dating sites dominated how we find our partners, the local gay personals were the method of choice. Gay Meeting promises “real men, really free” for gay men who prefer this more old-fashioned approach. Search with your chosen criteria, send a wink or a kiss, then hope you get some interest back… The site has been going on for almost 20 years now. With 50,000 users on its IM messaging at any one time, you have plenty of options!
How To Avoid Scams on Local Dating Sites?
There are probably an equal amount of scammers and fake profiles on local dating sites than real and legit people. As one user engages with others on the platform online, they may start to pick up on certain red flags or warning signs. Things like asking for personal information and financial details, pressuring to meet up right away, boasting, requesting explicit content, etc., all indicate that something may be fishy.
Here are a few points to consider to avoid scams on local dating sites:
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Report any suspicious profile so that the dating platform can investigate it
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Perform due diligence and never share any personal detail online
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Try to verify the other person before meeting them in person
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Refrain from giving or asking for money
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Look out for overly edited or fake photographs
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Take notice of anything that may seem excessively curated, too good to be true, or fake
Local Dating Sites Conclusion
It is not always easy to find the right person online. But you can give yourself the best chance by choosing the right platform first, ensuring you are both looking for the same thing. No crossed wires. No games. Just love. Or lust. And everything in between.
Doublelist checks every point and provides a safe platform for people to find the relationship they crave. Sign up today and see for yourself!
Finding love online is not just a game of luck but also about the platform you choose. The one for you could be just a click away. Here is where to look
