Dating apps and sites are an international phenomenon, but for Canadian singles, finding a perfect match can be a tricky proposition. Fortunately, the best Canadian dating apps and sites offer a platform to find what you’re looking for in your area. These dating services bridge the distance between rural communities in the Canadian provinces and help city slickers find time for romance and sex in their busy lives.
With these platforms, you can get online and expand your dating pool, from the 6ix to the Big E, and from Hali to Van.
Ashley Madison is a breath of fresh air for single or attached folks experiencing a sex slump. This exciting dating site and app offer tons of opportunities to mingle, match, flirt, and hook up discreetly. Over 80 million profiles await you on Ashley Madison, and it’s free to create an anonymous account.
- Discreetly arranges one-night stands and extramarital affairs
- More than 80 million profiles worldwide
- Travel-friendly features for seeking matches in other cities
- Browse Ashley Madison profiles 100% free »
Although Ashley Madison has an international reputation and users around the world, the covert dating and sex platform actually launched in Canada. Whether you’re a married person unhappy in your marriage, or a single Canadian who prefers to keep things discreet, Ashley Madison has the tools to help you bring a new person into your life.
Setting up a dating profile on Ashley Madison is quick and straightforward. The process includes one somewhat unusual step: defining your limits. If you’re on the platform for a little fantasy and escapism, you can set things so that every potential match knows you’re just looking for a little sexting, not a real life match. You can also set your limits at short-term dating, a long-term relationship, or even just casual sex.
2. Match
Match.com has come a long way since it launched in April 1995. This well-reputed dating site has honed its match algorithm to identify long-term compatibility and facilitate countless first dates, serious relationships, and successful marriages. Match’s esteemed dating experts go to great lengths to guide singles to a seriously good match.
- Match is the world’s longest running dating site
- The Discover section has search filters by interests, looks, lifestyle, and more
- Match is available in 50 countries and 15 languages
- Browse Match profiles 100% free »
Although Match’s headquarters is in Texas, the online dating site enjoys massive popularity in Canada. The Match dating platform includes a Canada-specific site, so you won’t have to worry about matching with faraway singles in other countries. The dating site knows to keep things local. Match pairs users up based on compatibility and has built its reputation as one of the first online dating platforms to use personality metrics to suggest matches.
Throughout its history, Match has endeavored to support real relationships and meaningful connections between singles of all backgrounds.
Although Match provides a lot of perks for premium members on the site, Canadian singles looking to find new romances for free can access limited messaging with their top picks among the daily matches. Match even offers in-person events around the world, although more rural Canadian single women and men may find that there aren’t as many of these events in their areas.
EliteSingles.com maintains a sophisticated network of young professionals seeking a relationship. Over 80% of its members hold a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate degree, and over 90% are over the age of 30. Elite Singles uses an intelligent matchmaking system to introduce daters to someone on their level.
- Over 2 million monthly users
- Premium members receive 20 wildcard matches a day
- Search features include age, height, education, ethnicity, and lifestyle habits
- Browse Elite Singles profiles 100% free »
For Canadian singles looking for the crème de la crème in dating, Elite Singles makes for a lush hunting ground. The dating platform originally launched in Europe, but came to Canada in 2014. The exclusive dating app then launched in the US the next year.
The Canadian extension of the site and app boasts some of the most eligible singles you can find: More than 85% of the members on Elite Singles possess a Bachelor’s degree.
Free members of the dating service gain access to basic features, including curated daily matches and the ability to browse your less-than-perfect matches via the “Have You Met” function. But for communication purposes, you must have the premium membership package. Elite Singles doesn’t just let you message any mutual match; instead, premium members get unlimited access to messages and icebreakers.
Registering for an account on Adult Friend Finder (AFF) is like speeding into the fast lane of the online dating world. This hookup site puts you in the center of action and encourages sexy singles and swingers to satisfy their secret fantasies. Anyone over 18 can join AFF and browse millions of profiles for free, but only full-fledged members have access to the revealing content in the community forums and chat rooms.
- One of the largest adults-only sex communities
- Free and fast registration process
- Dating forums and live chats foster live flirtation
- Browse Adult Friend Finder profiles 100% free »
Adult Friend Finder (AFF) may not be an exclusively Canadian dating app, but the global audience makes it a popular choice for Canadians looking for a hookup. In fact, AFF is the largest hookup site in Canada, with the highest membership numbers of any of the hookup platforms in the country.
Beyond finding a local hookup, Adult Friend Finder plays host to singles, couples, and groups looking for some sexy fun in multiple formats. The online dating site boasts an avalanche of adult content to keep your motor running, from chat rooms, forum posts, erotic stories, pictures, and videos. Free members on the site can participate in the public areas of the platform, but you’ll want the premium membership to gain access to one-on-one contact options and other perks.
Plenty of Fish prides itself on being one of the best dating sites for conversations. It supports 100% free and unlimited messaging for over 120 million monthly users in 20 countries. Since its launch in 2003, Plenty of Fish has developed a science-based matching system that has proven successful.
- Free registration, searches, and messaging
- The Chemistry Test creates a compatibility framework
- Over 1 billion messages sent per month
- Browse Plenty of Fish profiles 100% free »
Even many Canadians don’t know that Plenty of Fish launched in Canada in 2003. The free dating site created by British Columbia Institute of Technology alum Markus Frind has an international profile, with over 150 million users around the world. The dating platform also has the prestige of several high-profile name drops, including in music videos by Lady Gaga, Jason Derulo, and Britney Spears.
A major aspect that sets Plenty of Fish apart from the competition is the fact that all of the basic functions on the site are free. You can sign up, take the personality test, browse matches, and communicate with each new person you meet without paying a single loonie for the privilege. And because these features are all free, Plenty of Fish operates as much like a social media platform as it does a dating site, making it a great place to make friends as well as meet other relationship seekers.
6. The League
For discerning Canadian singles looking for more than just a casual dating experience, The League takes things to the next level. Instead of just a personality profile and a one-paragraph blurb, The League’s team vets every member, diving deep into the credentials and background of each user on the waiting list. It takes some time to sign up and get started, but once you’re on the exclusive dating app, you’ll find a bevy of highly qualified prospects.
You don’t just swipe and go on The League. The online dating app provides you with daily matches, curated based on your background and interests. From there, you have 14 days to make a move, before your conversations with the prospective match disappear entirely. And all the investigation The League provides means that you can be confident you’re not talking to a fake profile.
7. Facebook Dating
As part of its second major expansion, Facebook Dating launched in Canada in 2018. The free dating app (available from Google Play and the App Store) uses the systems and architecture that Facebook put into the premier social media network, all to help members find love and sex. Although Facebook Dating still doesn’t have the numbers of some other mainstream dating platforms, the app makes up for it by offering all core features for free.
Signing up is a simple process, using the information from your Facebook profile to build your dating profile. But don’t worry. Your dating life won’t show up on your friends’ news feeds. Instead, Facebook uses your network to help select potential matches from among your friends of friends.
8. Hinge
Of all the mobile dating apps available to Canada over the years, Hinge has had the most success at setting itself apart. When the dating app launched in Canada in 2015, singles flocked to it in droves, and that momentum hasn’t stopped.
Hinge sets itself apart from other free dating apps by focusing on quality rather than volume. Hinge users must start a conversation based on something they find on each other’s profiles, rather than just sending a bland “wyd” message out of the blue. But if you’re at a loss for words, Hinge can provide you with icebreakers to get things going.
FAQs: What Are the Best Dating Services in Canada?
If you want to find a date in the Great White North, there are several different dating service options to choose from. The real choice comes down to your preferred method of finding and meeting new dates.
If you prefer meeting people for the first time in person, speed dating can be a great way to encounter lots of potential matches at once. 25 Dates, based in Canada, hosts events all over the country. The dating platform is all about options.
A Canadian single can sign up for one of the speed dating events, where they can choose from 25 dates of three minutes in length each, or 15 dates, 5 minutes each. You can also attend one of 25 Dates’ more freeform singles events.
If you’d rather have your potential match vetted, a matchmaking service like Friend of a Friend Matchmaking can help you find love. The matchmakers at Friend of a Friend provide help not just by suggesting matches that the service has thoroughly interviewed, but also by providing support and coaching. Friend of a Friend mostly serves clients in the Toronto and Hamilton areas, but the firm’s footprint continues to grow outside of those areas.
Finally, if you’re just looking to up your online dating game, LookBetterOnline offers services to make your profile pictures more interesting, leading to more matches. LookBetterOnline boasts a 98% success rate, helping clients take and use pictures that will communicate who they are while also making them look polished and put together.
Which Dating Apps Have Free Messaging?
Paid dating sites and apps may put unlimited messaging behind a paywall, but several dating services still allow for singles to chat and message for free.
If you’re looking for a dating app that offers free chat options, both Tinder and Bumble offer free messages between mutual matches, no subscription or upgrade needed. On Bumble, the woman has to open up that line of communication with a man, but on Tinder, either of the two people in the match can get the conversation started, once both have swiped right. Tinder Plus offers some messaging perks for the paid subscription, and Tinder Platinum lets members message before matching.
OkCupid continues to hold the line on offering core services on the dating site for free. Match Group took over the dating service years back, but has stuck to the founding promise of remaining free forever. Messaging on OkCupid does have some limits these days though. Only mutual matches can exchange messages on the dating platform for free — you can only send one greeting to a person who has not yet liked your dating profile. So you’ll need a good icebreaker to make a date here.
Is Online Dating Safe in Canada?
Online dating is as safe as meeting someone in person, which means that you should still take some basic precautions. Even someone you meet on the best dating app in the world is still a stranger, after all.
The Edmonton Police suggests a few guidelines to maintain your personal safety when it comes to meeting local singles from a dating service, including making sure not to reveal too many details about yourself early on when you find a potential match on the platform, having your first meeting in a public space rather than going to someone’s home or inviting them to yours, and other ideas.
Where Can Older Singles or Single Parents Meet New People?
Older Canadian singles and single parents have several options when it comes to meeting new people. Whether you’re looking to make friends, find love, or somewhere in between, there’s a dating platform that caters to your goals.
Silver Singles maintains a dedicated Canadian platform for singles over-50 who want to meet people within their age range. The dating site and app that goes with it incorporate high-quality security and safety features to weed out fake profiles and romance scammers, and help steer you toward your potential match with the help of an in-depth personality test.
SilverSingles is serious about helping singles over 50 meet one another, and its network stretches across the U.S., Canada, and Europe. The secure signup process includes profile verification and fraud detection, so new members must portray themselves accurately to gain access to the platform. By fostering a safe environment, SilverSingles helps men and women meet mature dates in their area.
- An exclusively senior membership base
- Over 800,000 monthly users worldwide
- App available for free on Google Play
- Browse SilverSingles profiles 100% free »
Stir, which is part of the Match Group network of sites, is specifically for single parents to meet and find friends, fall in love, and otherwise feel a sense of community. The site launched in response to common issues that single parents face in the dating scene and offers singles with kids a welcoming environment with other people who understand the struggle.
Cougar Dates is a premier age gap dating website, aimed at older women (Cougars) seeking younger men (Cubs) and vice versa. The dating platform incorporates top security and privacy features, and Cougar Dates plays host to in-person events throughout Canada for those who prefer to meet face-to-face rather than through a screen.
Single and Sober is not necessarily for older singles, but the niche dating site does tend to attract a slightly older group of users. Single parents are also fairly common on the site, which is geared toward sober dating. If you’re working to maintain your sobriety, the mainstream dating scene can be full of potential pitfalls.
Dating in Canada Is Easier When You’re on a Popular App
Because Canada is a big country, with lots of rural areas, it can be hard for singles to find each other and connect. But with the right dating website, Canadian singles can make the process a lot easier, and meet new people from any province or city for love, friendship, or even a casual hookup.
Don’t let the Great White North defeat your dating dreams! Find the right partner on Canadian dating apps and sites.
