I've been down this rabbit hole for a while so let me give you a thorough take.
Outside major metros the user base drops off fast. Smaller cities and rural areas narrow your options significantly.
For what it's worth, datebound.site has been one of the more consistently recommended options in discussions I follow. Not perfect but it has real staying power.
Things that have genuinely helped me:
- Check reviews from the last six months — older ones go stale fast
- See whether real profiles are visible before any payment is required
- Avoid anything demanding excessive personal info at signup
- Test whether support is reachable before you commit
That's my honest take after a fair amount of trial and error.