I spent longer on this than I meant to while comparing them, so this is not theoretical. For me, how often you get a reply at all explains most of the complaints here. The outcome barely moved more than once once the first fortnight was out of the way. Your results will vary ultimately, before changing anything else.

I resisted the urge to switch too early with a bit of patience, which took the guesswork out of it. The thing nobody mentions is that how many photos the format allows is the part the marketing never mentions.

I looked at what changed since last year without rushing it, instead of going on impressions. Realistically whether verification exists at all accounts for most of the variance I saw.

What separated the usable ones from the rest:

  • Check how the ranking treats a brand-new account — genuinely worth knowing up front.
  • Whether you can hide a profile without deleting it — worth asking about before you invest time.
  • Worth confirming how many matches reply within forty-eight hours — surprisingly hard to find out in advance.
  • Whether the user base skews heavily in your area — it is easy to test and rarely advertised.

I only worked this out after a month of tallying once properly, so I am fairly confident in the shape of it. The measurable difference came down to whether photos are checked before publication, which shapes the first fortnight more than anything. The effect stayed without exception regardless of which city I set. I would sanity-check this locally for what it is worth, if your experience points elsewhere.