12 of the best dating sites for working professionals
There are three realizations you come to once you enter the real world as a working adult:
1. A 9 to 5 job is rarely ever just 9 to 5.
2. Your free time is pretty limited.
3. Dating sucks.
The social freedoms you enjoyed before joining the rat race take a hit once you're working for The Man. Unfortunately for singles, this can be hazardous for your dating life.
For busy professionals, the idea of "finding someone" might seem like a daunting task. With deadlines, work dinners, and meetings galore, trying to meet someone often falls to the very end of your to do list. If you're an introvert as it is, your social meter is way too drained from small talk with colleagues to even think about introducing yourself to a cute random. This is why dating apps were invented though: to make online dating way easier, enabling you to use your free time wisely.
Being a single, working professional is actually kind of a weird time: Somehow, you can have the career and money part of your life so together while the love part is a flaming pile of garbage. While the gist of online dating is easy (Tinder for hookups, eharmony to get real serious), finding someone who's also goal-oriented and will understand your lifestyle can be tricky. Not every dating app will make sense for career-focused folks, but looking at things like user base, requirements to sign up, and overall vibe of the app can up your chances of finding what you're looking for.
Whether it's something casual or a long-term relationship that you want, there's an app that will make your search a whole lot easier. Ranking highest on our list were EliteSingles and Match. We found that with sites like eharmony and Match, the initial output (i.e a lengthy sign up and/or membership fee) is worth it for the return. After all, those who are willing to pay the price for love are clearly serious, unlike some swipe-based free apps where the likelihood of even meeting up in real life can be slim to none. No working person has time for that, but our app choice, Hinge, is full of singles who are on the app specifically to go on dates, and it's especially popular in big cities where more people are bound to have moved for work.
Here are the 12 best online dating apps for people who work too much:
EliteSingles
Meet other busy professionals who took a lengthy personality test and are likely to have a college degree.- 6 months: $44.95/month
- 3 months: $57.95/month
- 12 months: $31.95/month
Why it works: EliteSingles members are more than likely going to be in a similar boat as you. They're educated professionals who took the time to fill out a lengthy questionnaire in hopes of finding someone just as serious as them (not to mention that they have enough disposable income to pay for the site — if the questionnaire wasn't enough to weed out the pretenders, the membership fee would probably do the trick). These people know what it's like to work hard and can be empathetic when you've had a long day at the office. EliteSingles also only shows you members who it deems you compatible with based on your personality, so you can be at ease knowing the odds are already in your favor.
Match
Match has the benefit of a huge user database and years of perfecting the algorithm, but it takes patience and effort.- 3 months: $23.99/month
- 6 months: $20.99/month
- 12 months: $19.99/month
Why it works: is great for the working professional who doesn't want to feel like they're missing out on the "real life" dating experience by being limited to the confines of other curated dating apps. Similar to being out in the real world, mingling with all kinds of singles, gives you access to the entire pool. However, you can filter options however you want.
There's also a "dealbreaker" option that lets you rule out profiles of people whom you know you could never make it work with. Time is money, people, and we can't afford to waste our hard-earned money on dead-end leads. For professionals who are darting back and forth between meetings, the Missed Connections feature is clutch for the days you don't have time to stop and get the number of the cutie you on the Starbucks line.
Hinge
It's less hookup-based than Tinder, less serious than Match, and is extremely popular in big cities.- Basic subscription: Free
- Hinge Preferred: $7/month
Why it works: To ensure that Hinge is based on more than thinking someone is hot, the app pushes for more interaction and engagement by only giving a few potential matches per day. Instead of a tacky bio, it’s designed to give a little piece of information about a potential match as you go through a profile, including where they went to school, and random facts like "Dream celeb dinner date" or "Go-to Karaoke song." also encourages you to scroll through entire profiles before you make a decision to "like" or "dislike."
Hinge recently introduced a new feature called "We met," where users who actually meet up IRL can tell Hinge that the match worked, if it went well, and if they plan to see that person again. It's one of the first apps to measure real-world success, which gives the algorithm a better idea of the people you like so that the app can send you better options and get you on more date IRL. According to Hinge, 90 percent of members said their first dates were great, and 72 percent said they wanted to go on a second. Working professionals don't have time to waste playing games, and Hinge seems like an option with the perfect mix of seriousness and fun.
OkCupid
OkCupid has lots of users, a good price, and helps you weed out potential dates by political views.- Basic subscription: Free
- 1 month of A-List: $9.95/month
- 3 months of A-List: $7.95/mpnth
- 6 months of A-List: $4.95/month
Why it works: By the end of the work day most of us are pretty fried. After eight hours in an office it can feel draining to sit and try to be creative when filling out a dating profile. is great because it gives prompts and ridiculously-detailed questions that help you out in showing your true colors without having to think too hard about it. Filling out an profile is actually fun. Plus, it helps narrow the field and allows you to put your best foot forward. Get the hard questions out of the way to avoid spending an extended period of time with someone who has clashing views or interests that you consider a total deal breaker.
Bumble
Bumble puts women in the driver's seat, changing the dating dynamic.- Basic subscription: Free
- Bumble Boost: $24.99/month
Why it works: Women do not have the time or patience to sift through a hundred "hey" messages. helps to empower women and weed out some of the unwanted sleazy messages they might receive on other dating apps. Bumble is a win for the guys as well though, since they can use the app knowing that all of the matches they receive are from women who are interested. Plus, they won't need to stress over formulating the perfect pick-up line.
Ship
When you're too busy with work to even think about a relationship, Ship lets your friends make picks for you.Why it works: Released in January 2019, Ship is the love child of Match Group (owner of Match.com, Tinder, Hinge, and OkCupid) and digital media giant Betches. Since launch, it's had some serious matching technology and a huge user following right out of the gate. Potential matches are shown to your group of friends via trusted algorithms from the veterans at Match, while Betches takes care of the marketing and ensures that the blind date model feels hip and not lame.
To get started, a single user creates a group of people who will do the swiping for them. That group can send the potential dates to each other before it's a confirmed "yes," as well as send pictures and have a regular group chat. (If your friends in a relationship miss the single days of swiping, this is a chance for them to do so while using their expertise to pick you a winner, too.) Unfortunately, friends can't talk to matches in order to groom them before introducing them to you, but hopefully that's coming soon.
An idea this unique is bound to generate some hype, but does it live up to it? Absolutely. The app sees pretty awesome reviews in the App Store and has been covered by major publishers like The Verge and Elite Daily, although you've probably seen it before in the form of YouTube ads. Most complaints are about flaws in the app's design and random glitches, but people seem really gung-ho about the concept.
Happn
Happn shows you the people you walked right by and didn't notice and isn't ultra time consuming.- Price: Free, but with optional purchases like "charms"
Why it works: If you're a busy professional whose workday is jam-packed, you may barely have time to pay attention to anything other than the task at hand. Unfortunately, this could mean you're not paying attention to the people around you, some of whom you may really hit it off with. For those who spend their days darting from meeting to meeting, spending their lunch breaks on the phone, or generally rushing from one task to the next throughout the day, it can be hard to notice, let alone strike up a convo, with people who could pretty much be your destiny if you'd just take a minute to talk to them. gives you another shot.
Adult Friend Finder
When your career comes first and dating comes last, AdultFriendFinder can at least help you fill the sexual void.- Basic membership: Free
- 1 month of Gold: $30/month
- 3 months of Gold: $20/month
- 1 year of Gold: $15/month
Why it works: Also known as the "world's largest sex and swinger community," AFF's 25 million users are very open to sex as the main reason why they are there in the first place. Users don't try to hide what everyone on the site is looking for, and it makes the experience quick while avoiding a lot of awkward "I'm not looking for anything serious right now" moments. Sites like Match and Elite Singles are great for finding a like-minded partner, but not every working professional has settling down on the brain.
But be warned: Just because it could work for some working professionals, that doesn't mean it's safe to use at work. The site is drenched in porn ads and nudity, and it's not something you'll want your boss to see when he or she walks past.
BeLinked
BeLinked hopes to be the Tinder version of LinkedIn, but it's having a hard time getting off the ground.Why it works: Sometimes you just want the simplicity of Tinder without the worry of spending countless hours swiping past profiles of undergrads. If you're past that part of your life and need someone more mature and well-established in their career, but you're not quite ready to commit to a 200-question love survey, then .
As you can expect from an app with such specificity, BeLinked is still having trouble finding its niche (though its niche market is extremely obvious.) There are still design kinks to be worked out, and there are plenty of amazing people on LinkedIn who don't even know this app exists.
Zoosk
Zoosk uses technology to work behind the scenes and learns what you like as you use it — just avoid all the fake profiles.- Basic subscription: Free
- 1 month: $29.95/month
- 3 months: $19.98/month
- 6 months: $12.49/month
Why it works: Like Match, gives you a wide variety of options in terms of finding other single people. What's even better though, is that Zoosk actually analyzes your interactions and uses them to find you more matches you'll like. This is a dating site that pays attention to what you're into, and when they spot a winner, they'll throw them into your radar like a qualified personal assistant. So just know, that the precious time you're allotting to outside business hours is not being wasted. The more you use the app, the higher your chances are of being paired with a match you'll be super excited about.
Coffee Meets Bagel
Coffee Meets Bagel is all about getting users to actually meet up and talk.- Basic subscription: Free
- 1 month: $34.99/month
- 3 months: $24.99/month
- 6 months: $19.99/month
- 1 year: $14.99/month
Why it works: Look, you're busy. You have meetings, your hours are long and sometimes you just feel like there aren't enough hours in the day, especially not enough to pencil in a date. Instead of getting stuck in complacency in the world of swiping and one-liners, will give you the little push you need to actually take this thing into the real world.
Once you've made a match (with someone who's already interested), the app will take you into a private chatroom and set you up with some prompt questions to get the ball rolling. will even follow up with you and encourage a date, so you're less likely to forget about a promising match when a busy work week takes priority.
99 Flavors
Working couples can expand from their M-F routine with this site that's dedicated to couples finding playmates.- One month of Gold: $40/month
- Three months of Gold: $27/month
- One year of Gold: $20/month
Why it works: When you advertise as a swinger on such a mainstream app, most of the bites you'll get are people looking for a threesome or people who don't quite understand the "partner swapping" concept.
If you're tired of explaining the setup you want, it's time to make the switch to a site devoted to swinging. There are about 93 million active profiles, so finding a match that's down for whatever won't take long.
Signing up as a couple has its benefits: The other users instantly know who's involved and if it's something they're interested in, both of you can search for partners, and both of you can participate in video chats and sexting. Their whole thing is that it's always couples talking to couples — so there don't have to be any "Oh yeah, my girlfriend is also here," type conversations that are almost inevitable on singles' apps.
But be warned: Once you confirm your email address and choose a subscription plan, you will see genitals everywhere. It's your average ad-ridden splatter of nether region close-ups and X-rated self-timer photos — but hey, some people want that.
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