Please note that these dating websites are the ones that Elaine Sihera has personally tried out - and liked - and which cover the UK market primarily. Apart from Plenty of Fish, they do not include other popular sites that Americans might use, for example.
If you know of a website that should be added to the list, please send an email to tell us about it, preferably using the style and format that has been used in the reviews. If you have had any bad experiences with the listed sites - or you would also like to add your praise - please tell us about it. The sites are ranked according to their overall appeal.
Sihera Relationship Guide© (SRG) Rating: ***** (5 Stars)
By far and away, this is the best dating site on the Internet. It is very easy to use, it has millions of members, it covers the world and it is FREE - the only website where it costs you absolutely NOTHING to join. It is run by one man, Canadian Marcus Frind, who manages it efficiently, is always updating it, and who treats it like a family business, with all the members as his personal friends. Great dating site to use as a back-up site which can be used at any time without having to worry about a fee.
GOOD Points:
* Plenty of Fish is FREE to join and use;
* Very user friendly to navigate;
* LOTS of members to choose from and most of them have photographs ;
* New members every day;
* Lots of people in one's locality from all age groups and types;
* Interesting quizzes used to help match the members;
* Has an online chat button which can be controlled by the user as desired;
* Blocking etc is used in a mature way and those who block for silly or vengeful reasons run the risk of being penalised;
* Photos and profile words are monitored with the members' help, so profile details are immediately available to other users on the site;
* Feels truly global, inclusive, safe and friendly, especially for a woman;
* It has cute little gifts daters can send to one another;
* Very few scammers seem to operate there;
* Regular party and meeting events organised by members themselves.
BAD Points:
- The matching (chemistry) formula seems to be worked out in an obscure way, which is not easy to understand by members
- Being free, it attracts all sorts, especially players, who might not take it too seriously
- In-your-face and deliberately obtrusive advertising which seems never ending.
SRG Rating: **** (4 Stars)
DatingDirect is a little gem of a site that has dramatically improved over the years. It used to be full of scammers but these days they get short shrift, which makes the dating experience much more enjoyable. Profiles and photos are approved in rapid time, the monthly fee does not break the bank and they are always giving discount deals, anyway, which means there is something for everyone. It claims to have millions of members which is borne out by the sheer number of members in any given locality. It attracts a good cross-section of daters, which might not suit the professional type who might be seeking lots of similar members.
GOOD Points:
* Very user friendly to navigate and explore;
* LOTS of members to choose from and most of them have photographs;
* New members every day;
* Lots of people in one's locality from all age groups and types;
* Members can use specifically selected quiz questions to sort potential daters and check suitability;
* Blocking etc is used in a mature way;
* Scammers are being dealt with effectively;
* Members tend to be loyal and stay on it a while;
* Very clean and attractive layout and tools.
* Advertising more sensitively positioned and displayed.
BAD Points:
- It has a DatingDirect Affinity sister site which seems more like a rip off than a good service. Not worth joining that!
- Often sends recommended matches who either no longer exist, have hidden their profiles or haven't logged on in months.
- Online chat button can only be controlled by the user for an extra fee;
- Allows closet racists to flourish by publicly expressing their racial preferences, which predominantly excludes minorities.
SRG Rating: **** (4 Stars)
For a site which boasts in its adverts to be specifically for the over-60s, it is pretty popular with other age groups, especially daters in their 50s! This is because it is actually a combination of sites pooling members! Avery good idea, but not so much for the younger guys expecting younger people. Nevertheless, this one is a neat little site, very simple in design and layout and actually works well too! Quite user-friendly, it is the only dating site which seems to offer an Icebreaker which goes to any number of people you select and which dramatically improves your exposure to other daters.
However, that wonderful opportunity is then spoiled by the ability of other daters to block you without you even contacting them! The question then arises: Why offer an Icebreaker and then allow people to block the person without even having any contact? It seems rather counter-productive to me. A handy tool for little controllers, in fact! Nevertheless, it's a great website with a wide range of daters available for the over 40s and its diary section makes it feel like a real community instead of faceless daters.
GOOD Points:
* Quite cheap to join compared to the other dating sites;
* Very user friendly to navigate and explore;
* Many members have photographs;
* Lots of people from one's locality of suitable ages;
* Quite a few new members every day;
* Scammers seem to be fewer or caught quickly;
* There is NO obvious advertising. Obviously the members' fees, along with added extras, pay for the site;
* One can see the visitors and favourites clearly from one's home page
* A GREAT diary section where members can talk about their experiences and appear much more human.
BAD Points:
- Blocking etc is used in a juvenile immature way by members, which would perhaps encourage all kinds of petty prejudices;
- Online chat facility does not reveal who wants to speak, and cannot be switched off by the dater;
- Does not demarcate between Icebreakers and normal email, which can often be confusing, especially if it looks like an Icebreaker (the dater doesn't use your name) but it is actually addressing you and vice versa!
- Weekend service is pretty poor/non existent if things go wrong.
- Inconsistent method of approving diaries which makes it more like a lotetry, and sometimes take ages to approve.
SRG Rating: *** (3 Stars)
Guardian Soulmates tends to cater for the younger professional type. About 70% of all its users are under 40. However, they appear to be Guardian readers in their outlook, eccentric and often quirky, and would appeal to the more liberal-minded dater. It is a bit old-fashioned in its layout and, though it seems to have at least 60 new members each day, the action seems very limited because it's chat facility isn't really user friendly. However, it does have other perks worth noting.
GOOD Points:
* Very user friendly to navigate and explore;
* Quite a few new members every day;
* Blocking etc is used in a mature way;
* Scammers seem to be virtually non-existent;
* Allows a dater to respond with a one-liner if he/she is not a paid-up member;
* Attracts mainly professional users who tend to be very articulate;
* Feels like an elite club than a dating site.
BAD Points:
- It is rather expensive to join compared to the other popular sites.
- Online chat facility too laborious to use. Not at all user-friendly;
- Allows closet racists to flourish by publicly expressing their racial preferences, which predominantly excludes minorities. Moreover, it's matching system gives very high percentage suitability to such racists which makes no sense at all. One would have thought that if someone begins by saying that he needs a Caucasian/White date, then no matter how a date might match in other ways, he/she wouldn't be suitable at all because they would have the wrong colour!
- Site revamped recently which did not go down well with existing members.
SRG Rating: *** (3 Stars)
This site, along with the Times' Encounters use the same dating template. If it feels as though you are reading the same thing again, that is the reason why. Telegraph dating tends to cater for the older professional type with about 50% of all its users being over 50. If you are older, professional and single, this would be the site for you. The only drawback is that the actual members seem fewer than on other dating sites. However, it is a well run site and is very easy to use and pleasant to experience. Once again, members appear to be affluent, older Telegraph readers who share its pro right wing ethos.
GOOD Points:
* Very user friendly to navigate and explore;
* Many members have photographs;
* Blocking etc is used in a mature way;
* Scammers seem to be virtually non-existent;
* It actually allows a dater to respond with a one-liner if he/she is not a paid-up member;
* Attracts mainly professional users who tend to be very articulate;
* Feels like an elite club than a dating site.
BAD Points:
- It is rather expensive to join compared to the other popular sites.
- Online chat facility too laborious to use. Not at all user-friendly;
- Allows closet racists to flourish by publicly expressing their racial preferences, which predominantly excludes minorities. Moreover, it's matching system gives very high percentage suitability to such racists which makes no sense at all. One would have thought that if someone begins by saying that he needs a Caucasian/White date, then no matter how a date might match in other ways, he/she wouldn't be suitable at all because they would have the wrong colour!
SRG Rating: *** (3 Stars)
A very attractive site on one hand, but rather old fashioned in its feel and administration. It is the worst for approving profiles and photos. Members have to wait DAYS to be approved even though its own policy stresses no more than 24 hours. Yet, they also stress how one does far better if one has a photo. People have been known to wait up to five days to be approved, which robs them of attention during that time. Otherwise, it has a very good online chat system, though it could clearly do with some more members.
GOOD Points:
* Rather cheap to join compared to many dating sites;
* Very user friendly to navigate and explore;
* Online chat facility reveals the person beforehand and offers an 'accept' or 'decline' option;
* There is NO obvious advertising. Obviously the members' fees, along with added extras, pay for the site;
* One can see the visitors and favourites clearly from one's home page;
* Each dater has a 10-word description which can be used as a matching guide;
* Members can send each other e-cards, a rather cute idea!
BAD Points:
- Members have to wait too long to be approved;
- Too many members have no photographs;
- Not enough new members;
- Blocking etc is used in a juvenile immature way, which would perhaps encourage all kinds of petty prejudices;
- Automatically makes anyone you correspond with a favourite, even if you are telling them to bugger off!! Not good.
- Despite their obvious monitoring, too many scammers still get through.
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