The Best Online Dating Sites of 2025

There's nothing wrong with wanting a relationship that only lasts a short time. And being upfront about it can help you find people who are looking for the same thing. BeNaughty helps users find local hookups and casual dates without judgment or restrictions. And with over 40,000 new members weekly, it has no shortage of people available for these kinds of connections. 

Like most swipe-based dating platforms, BeNaughty lets you swipe "yes" or "no" to profiles and only allows you to contact someone when there's mutual interest. The site also provides icebreaker questions and chat rooms to help users connect.

Men can engage in up to five free chats, while women get all premium functionality for free including unlimited messaging. Members can also pay extra for added visibility and security, which includes private browsing, encryption, and history clearing.

Why we chose BeNaughty: With many mainstream dating apps, it can be difficult to make your intentions clear, which can lead to miscommunication and hurt feelings down the line. BeNaughty's users are transparent about what they're looking for, so you can cut right to the chase. Plus, sign-up is quick and easy—no questionnaires, just a simple two-step registration process.

Our experience: We liked that the site has many different and fun ways to interact with other users, including chat rooms, forums, and virtual gifts. We think this site is a breath of fresh air, especially for being upfront about your sexuality and preferences. 

EliteSingles - Best for professionals

If you haven't been able to click with people on most mainstream dating apps, consider a more specialized service like EliteSingles. This site is aimed at intellectuals who value their professional lives and are looking for someone to have deep conversations with. 

Since SilverSingles and EliteSingles are owned by the same company, they have a lot in common. EliteSingles also asks users to take a research-based personality test and shows them three to seven matches a day based on their answers. The quiz allows users to state what qualities are most important to them in a partner. 

Like most apps and sites we've evaluated, EliteSingles offers free memberships but requires users to pay in order to message others. 

Why we chose EliteSingles: Due to the extensive quizzes members have to take, the sign-up process can become quite lengthy. But we believe this is a good thing because it ensures that the site only attracts users who are serious about finding relationships with like-minded people. Plus, for members' safety, profiles are manually verified, and photos cannot be copied or downloaded from the site, so your personal information stays confidential.

Our experience: We liked using the "Have We Met" feature, which allowed us to browse other profiles on top of our daily matches. We also liked that we could swipe "yes" or "no" to other users. But we were frustrated that there wasn't an instant chat or phone option for support—you'll have to wait up to two days to get a response over email.

Zoosk - Best for a long-term relationship

Zoosk emerged as part of Facebook in 2007, but since then, it's become its own entity (as a website and mobile app) with over 35 million users. 

Zoosk's Behavioral Matchmaking™ engine (the best thing about this site) filters profiles according to ones you've previously liked and gets smarter the more you use it. That way, you waste less time sorting through people who aren't your type. 

Although there's a free version, a subscription lets you message other users to show you're interested in them. Subscription options range from $29.95 for one month to $119.99 for a 12-month plan (which works out to $10 per month).

Why we chose Zoosk: It gamifies dating with fun features like watching and commenting on other users' live streams, participating in virtual speed dating, and playing a "carousel" game that lets you classify others as "yeses," "nos," or "maybes." Zoosk also requires users to verify their profiles with their social media accounts, phone numbers, or photos, so it's easier to avoid fake profiles and scams.

Our experience: We liked Zoosk's quick and easy sign-up process—you can join by connecting your Facebook account. We also found the "dating insights reports" very helpful because they gave us a better idea of what we should be looking for. The personal profiles are pretty sparse though, so you probably won't know much about your date until you work up the nerve to talk to them.