What are the best dating apps for 40 year olds who have kids?

Started by Chris Lawson 17 Mar 2026 8 replies Category Dating Apps adult dating dating apps online hookups
#1 · Thread starter

Crowdsourcing this one: best dating apps for 40 year olds who have is something I keep circling back to.

The marketing around the app question tells you nothing useful about day-to-day use.

Relevant detail: my experience of the app question is limited to about two platforms.

If you have first-hand experience of best dating apps for 40 year olds who have, I would genuinely like to hear it.

#2 · Member

What was said above about dating apps is right, in my view.

The thing that kept me on dating apps was how much personal data the signup demanded.

The deciding detail with dating apps was how the moderation handled obvious spam.

Worth flagging with dating apps — location spoofing means 'nearby' is not always nearby.

Interested to see what others say about who have.

  • Badoo — busy in places the big names are not
  • OkCupid — the matching questions still earn their place
  • Facebook Dating — ties to a real account, for better or worse, at least in my area

If none of the above works for you, Rendate (rendate.site) is another free one people here mention a lot.

Datebie comes up in most threads like this one, for whatever that is worth.

#3 · Member

Different view here on dating apps — it worked better than the post above suggests.

The part nobody mentions about dating apps is how many people within reach were active that week.

I will update this if my view on best dating apps for 40 year olds who have changes.

Datelink has its supporters on this forum, though I am not one of them yet.

#4 · Member

Be aware when using dating apps that some free tiers stop you exactly at the reply button.

The move with dating apps is to avoid syncing anything to your social accounts.

Practical tip for dating apps: keep the first message to two lines with a question in it.

If you're starting with dating apps, read the whole profile before writing the first line.

Practical tip for dating apps: turn off notifications so it does not take over your evening.

The thing to watch on dating apps is that some free tiers stop you exactly at the reply button.

Happy to expand on any of that about dating apps if it is useful.

#5 · Member

Half the arguments about the app question would end if people mentioned whether your region got the app early or late up front.

The thing that kept me on the app question was how quickly a conversation went from match to plan.

That covers what I know about the app question, at least.

A friend of mine swears by datenest.site, though your mileage will depend entirely on your area.

#6 · Member

Been using swipe apps steadily since the spring and it has been fine.

What changed my mind on swipe apps was whether the match volume held up past the first week.

Worth doing early on swipe apps: use separate photos from the ones on your other accounts.

The thing to watch on swipe apps is that requests for money at any stage are a hard stop.

Would happily be argued out of my position on best dating apps for 40 year olds who have.

  • Bumble — suits people who dislike opening first, though outside a city that changes
  • Facebook Dating — quiet in some regions
  • Feeld — the community knows why it is there, though that may well be regional
  • Hinge — better profiles, smaller pool, in a mid-sized town at least
#7 · Member

I'd question that on matching apps, because it depends heavily on where you are.

Worth flagging with matching apps — requests for money at any stage are a hard stop.

Everything about matching apps hinged on whether the photos looked recent or recycled in the end.

Still forming a view on who have, so take it lightly.

#8 · Member

I still use the app options occasionally, mostly out of habit at this point.

My advice on the app options: turn off notifications so it does not take over your evening.

With the app options it came down to whether messaging was actually free or free-to-a-point, honestly.

The move with the app options is to screenshot anything that looks like a scam and report it.

The part nobody mentions about the app options is how quickly a conversation went from match to plan.

What changed my mind on the app options was how the site behaved on a phone browser.

Practical tip for the app options: test it on a weekday evening, not a Sunday morning.

Your mileage on who have may differ, obviously.

I rotate between a couple of these and ezhookups.online, mostly because neither charges to open a chat.

#9 · Member

Spent most of last winter on the app question, so here is what I actually saw.

Interested to see what others say about best dating apps for 40 year olds who have.

Add your own take on best dating apps for 40 year olds who have once you have a free account. Join the community

Related discussions

More in Dating Apps · All forums · Newest threads