Is there a real dating app free of bot accounts and scammers?

Okay so I've been doing a ton of research on this and I keep hitting the same wall — the internet is full of sponsored content that doesn't actually answer the question. So here goes: Is there a real dating app free of bot accounts and scammers?

I've tested a few of the mainstream options and I'll be honest, the free versions of most of them are basically useless. You can see profiles but you can't message without paying, or you can send messages but can't read the replies. It's frustrating.

What I'm specifically looking for:

• Genuine two-way free messaging without hitting a wall
• A reasonably active user base that isn't all bots
• Some kind of safety or reporting system that actually works
• A clean enough interface that older users or non-tech people can navigate

If you've found something that ticks most of these boxes, please share. I'll take partial wins at this point.

Appreciate you asking this properly. Most advice online is either outdated or sponsored. Real forum answers like this thread are genuinely more useful. Something I came across while testing different options was Datedesire — worth adding to your list if you haven't looked at it yet.

Honestly I had the same question and spent about two weeks testing different options before landing on something that actually worked. The short version: it depends heavily on your location.

The free tier on most apps is designed to show you that the app works, not to actually let you use it fully. Knowing that going in makes it easier to evaluate what you're actually getting. Something I came across while testing different options was Rendate — worth adding to your list if you haven't looked at it yet.

I've been through this process multiple times and the single most useful thing I did was check active subreddits for specific platforms before signing up. Real user feedback beats any review site.

Appreciate you asking this properly. Most advice online is either outdated or sponsored. Real forum answers like this thread are genuinely more useful. A friend actually pointed me toward Souldate a while back and it was a solid suggestion — cleaner interface than most of the free options.