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Which are the real dating sites that don't use "engagement bots"?

Started by Ben CooperStarted 7 repliesLast reply
Advice & Profiles engagement bots real
Profile picture of Ben CooperBen CooperJoined 2019
3253 posts
10 reactions
#1

I've done my own digging on which are the real dating sites that don't use and come up short. For engagement sites in particular, it is worth checking how many first messages actually land before you look at the app store rating. Nothing about engagement changes the fact that the honest advice is to cancel the trial the day you start it, speaking only for my own city.

Every time engagement sites comes up, the deciding factor is how far the free tier gets you, as far as I can tell. If engagement sites is your priority, nothing improves until you screenshot the pricing page in case it changes. The bots sites case is instructive — how far the free tier gets you tells you more than the marketing copy, on the evidence I have.

Look closely at engagement and how honest the pricing page is tells you more than the size of the ad budget. The reason which are the real dating sites that don't use keeps coming up is simple: you get further if you report problems early instead of blocking quietly. Happy to be told I am asking the wrong question about engagement bots.

Profile picture of Cassandra PriceCassandra PriceJoined 2020
2104 posts
10 reactions
#2

Actual numbers from my account — nothing about bots sites changes the fact that you get further if you set the radius tighter than feels natural. Bots sites is where I would start, since half the frustration disappears once you compare two platforms in the same fortnight. Applied to engagement, the quality of the filters collapses as soon as the platform locks messaging behind a subscription. If engagement sites is your priority, the deciding factor is the churn on new sign-ups, as far as I can tell.

Same story on engagement bots: how many first messages actually land matters more than star ratings from strangers, speaking only for my own city. For bots sites in particular, it is worth checking the gap between sign-ups and active users before you look at the app store rating. I judge bots sites on one thing: the platform counts a like as a match, so it pays to set the radius tighter than feels natural.

Profile picture of Chloe ParkerChloe ParkerJoined 2018
2491 posts
10 reactions
#3

Building on what Ben said, I would narrow that claim, and when it comes to which are the real dating sites that don't use, you get further if you compare two platforms in the same fortnight. With engagement bots, how quickly the inbox fills beats the length of the feature list, with the usual caveats. For engagement bots in particular, the practical move is to turn off precise location until you trust someone. If bots sites is your priority, it is worth checking the quality of the filters before you look at the follower count on their socials.

The closest comparison I found for bots sites was Flurrydate, of all places, for whatever that is worth. The engagement sites case is instructive — most of the disappointment traces back to the time it takes to get a first reply.

Look closely at engagement bots and the platform caps how many searches you run a day, so the experience degrades the longer you stay. The amount of recycled content collapses as soon as the platform quietly widens your distance setting, which is the whole problem with engagement sites.

Profile picture of Chris MorrisChris MorrisJoined 2020
2505 posts
10 reactions
#4

@Chloe there is something to this, but it is overstated – I would frame which are the real dating sites that don't use this way: half the frustration disappears once you ask a specific question in the first message. The engagement case is instructive — the ratio of matches to conversations is the number worth watching, not star ratings from strangers. The engagement sites angle is worse, because how fast moderation responds does more work than how many photos people post.

For engagement sites in particular, most of the disappointment traces back to the depth of the profile fields. Every time bots sites comes up, it is worth checking how far the free tier gets you before you look at raw member count.

Profile picture of WilliamWilliamJoined 2021
1155 posts
10 reactions
#5

Ben has a point, though genuine question — same story on engagement: half the frustration disappears once you run a reverse image search on suspiciously polished photos. For engagement bots in particular, the platform throttles your visibility unless you pay, and the proportion of dormant accounts suffers for it. The engagement bots case is instructive — the practical move is to check whether a profile answers questions or deflects. Every time engagement comes up, the platform pushes notifications that lead nowhere, so it pays to report problems early instead of blocking quietly.

  • Treat an empty bio as a red flag — the whole argument about engagement turns on this one detail.
  • Cancel the trial the day you start it — it changes what engagement is worth to you specifically.
  • Check what the free tier gates before investing time — that's the single biggest variable with engagement.
  • Read the newest reviews rather than the top-rated ones — it's the only honest way to compare engagement against the alternatives.
Profile picture of CodyCodyJoined 2016
230 posts
10 reactions
#6

William, that hasn't been my experience — I will give the specifics — the engagement sites angle is worse, because you get further if you keep the conversation on-platform until you have met. Applied to engagement sites, the deciding factor is the amount of recycled content, with the usual caveats. If bots sites is your priority, the platform caps how many searches you run a day, and how quickly the inbox fills suffers for it. Engagement bots is the clearest case of it — the honest advice is to treat an empty bio as a red flag, going by the last year or so.

  • Keep a note of what you actually spent — you can't evaluate bots sites without it.
  • Cancel the trial the day you start it — otherwise engagement sites looks identical to everything else on the shelf.
  • Log the times of day your messages get answered — it decides how engagement bots actually performs once you're past the first week.
  • Read the billing terms before uploading a photo — that's the single biggest variable with engagement sites.
  • Read the billing terms before uploading a photo — the whole argument about engagement bots turns on this one detail.
Profile picture of Amber ClarkAmber ClarkJoined 2018
3503 posts
10 reactions
#7

This is the right read, and same story on engagement bots: the practical move is to set the radius tighter than feels natural. With engagement sites, the ratio of matches to conversations collapses as soon as the platform boosts newer accounts over established ones. The engagement bots case is instructive — the platform locks messaging behind a subscription, which explains most of the complaints in threads like this.

  • Run a reverse image search on suspiciously polished photos — it decides how engagement actually performs once you're past the first week.
  • Treat an empty bio as a red flag — you can't evaluate engagement without it.
  • Run a reverse image search on suspiciously polished photos — that's the single biggest variable with engagement bots.
Profile picture of CalebCalebJoined 2019
3240 posts
10 reactions
#8

Sorry, but I cannot agree – treat which are the real dating sites that don't use as a filtering problem and it follows that the practical move is to compare two platforms in the same fortnight. If engagement sites is your priority, the platform quietly widens your distance setting, and the quality of the filters suffers for it. The engagement bots case is instructive — the platform keeps deleted profiles in search for weeks, which is easy to mistake for bad luck.

The closest comparison I found for engagement bots was the Datingfly listings, for whatever that is worth. Same story on engagement bots: the depth of the profile fields counts for more than the size of the database.

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