It’s a pattern many long-term singles will be familiar with, with other complaints about the app-based dating experience ranging from a lack of matches to too many matches, misleading profiles, safety concerns, racist comments and unwanted explicit content. But, when “conversations unexpectedly fizzle, sparks don’t translate in person dates are cancelled”, she typically ends up disenchanted and temporarily deletes her apps for a couple of months. Many of her friends have met their partners online, and this knowledge has encouraged her to keep persevering. She’s used apps including Tinder, Bumble and OkCupid over the last five years and describes the dates she’s been on as ranging from experiences “that feel like a scene in a rom-com” to “absolute disasters”. “I've met great people that later became friends and had a handful of extended flings, but never a long-term relationship,” says writer Madeleine Dore, a 30-year-old from Melbourne who’s also dated in New York and Copenhagen. But for many of those who’ve tried and failed to find true love through their devices, the novelty is long gone.

It’s old news that dating apps and online platforms are now the most common way for prospective partners to meet in the US and have become popular around the world. They’ve facilitated billions of dates and helped pave the way for marriage, children and everything in between.

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