For previous generations, divorce was a scandal or tragedy beyond the pale. In today’s society, being divorced isn’t seen as the end of the world. The reality is that 40% to 50% of marriages in the US end in divorce. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. Women today have more financial independence, so they’re not trapped in an unhappy marriage — they have options!
Many single moms in the dating scene are looking to continue their lives and thrive as divorcées. But single parenting is already hard enough, and the idea of dating again can be daunting, especially with children at home.
Being a single mom doesn’t have to be a dealbreaker for your love life, but you must be careful to choose the right dating site or app. Navigating the dating world may not be as simple as it used to be when you have little ones to consider, but it’s possible to find a partner who understands and embraces your parenting life. That’s why we researched the top dating sites for single moms and have identified the best options.
1. Match
Match has become a trusted name in the online dating industry by catering to quality singles looking for love and romance. Since 1995, the dating site has developed a time-tested matching system to facilitate deep connections between men and women who share similar goals in life.
- In-depth matching appeals to women with high standards
- Video chat tools help online daters establish a rapport
- An established singles network in 50 countries worldwide
- Browse Match profiles 100% free »
Launched in 1995, Match stands as a seasoned dating platform with over 30 million members and more than 13.5 million visitors a month. Its reputation in online dating speaks volumes. Our dating experts consider Match to be the best free dating site for single moms.
Over 75% of Match users are in their 30s, and most of them are looking for serious relationships, not casual hookups. This demographic base suits single moms who are starting to date again because they need a romantic partner who understands their need to balance personal happiness and their child’s well-being.
Once you join Match, the algorithm identifies profiles that have high compatibility and good potential for a lasting relationship. The best part is that the free membership offers many valuable features, including adding photos, searching for and receiving matches, and messaging your Top Picks.
Elite Singles prioritizes quality over quantity, and its highly selective match system satisfies discerning single women looking for a true partnership. A majority of Elite Singles users have graduated from college, excelled in their careers, and want to find someone special to share in their success.
- Helping over 2,500 singles find love every month
- An intelligent match algorithm uses profile information to reccommend dates
- Caters to relationship-minded men and women
- Browse Elite Singles profiles 100% free »
Elite Singles might not be the biggest online dating platform out there, but it’s geared toward well-educated singles. The vast majority of EliteSingles users are professionals with bachelor’s, master’s, and/or doctorate degrees who are looking for serious life partners. For single moms who put education at the top of their dating preferences, Elite Singles can provide valuable prospects.
Elite Singles allows you to set up a dating profile without inputting your credit card information. Then you can start viewing profiles, flirting, and receiving expert advice to help you find local dates and get the best results. Many educated singles benefit from this approach. According to the dating platform’s metrics, approximately 381,000 new members join Elite Singles, and 2,500 of them find love on the platform each month.
3. eharmony
It may take some time to fill out eharmony’s personality test, but the results are well worth it. This dating site goes the extra mile to get to know its members and deliver quality matches to their inboxes. Every profile has a compatibility rating to let you know your essential similarities and differences. Plus eharmony has inspired more than 2 million love connections since 2000.
- Designed to satisfy marriage-minded single women
- In-depth compatibility quiz generates high-quality matches
- Personalized Match Preferences on gender, age, income, religion, education, and more
- Browse eharmony profiles 100% free »
Single moms understand how important compatibility is in a long-term relationship, and eharmony is a popular dating platform where compatibility comes first. We rank eharmony so highly because of its comprehensive relationship questionnaire. Since its development by psychologists in 2000, eharmony’s algorithm has helped countless singles find the right partner.
Over the years, eharmony has connected an estimated 2 million couples, and the dating platform makes 15 million matches every day. This is not an empty claim from eharmony, and the team continuously updates the success stories on its website. Single moms who want long-term partners can find inspiring stories and support on eharmony.
SilverSingles is a premium dating site where mature men and women can feel safe having a conversation and getting acquainted. The site only allows singles over 50 to join, and it uses advanced profile verification techniques to ensure everyone is who they say they are. Anyone looking for love and romance can rely on SilverSingles to make them a great match.
- Women receive several match recommendations a day
- Intelligent matchmaking grounded in personal compatibility
- The site maintains strict privacy and safety guidelines
- Browse SilverSingles profiles 100% free »
Since its launch in 2002, SilverSingles has been a champion for older singles, and its popularity in the senior dating world is undeniable. SilverSingles has a clean and beginner-friendly interface that is ideal for users over 50.
When you get your dating profile up and running, SilverSingles recommends up to seven compatible matches every day. If you find any profile interesting , you can send smiles or messages to initiate a deeper conversation online.
SilverSingles is not what we’d consider a free dating site. Free members can’t view photos or send messages; they must upgrade to a paid membership for these privileges. We actually view this paywall as a good thing for single moms because it ensures that their photo galleries won’t be public fodder, and it increases the quality of the membership.
Christian Mingle boasts having a higher percentage of Christian members than any other dating website, and it has inspired this loyal following by pairing online daters with Christian values. This niche dating site serves a diverse community of Christian men and women who are in search of a lasting love. Its advanced search features, safety measures, and mutual matching system can provide the structure singles need to get in a God-centered relationship.
- Quick and easy registration for Christian women
- Discovery Preferences help users make a strong connection
- A values-driven network full of respectful and genuine men
- Browse Christian Mingle profiles 100% free »
Christian Mingle is by far the most popular dating site that serves the Christian community. Launched in early 2001, Christian Mingle sees 2.4 million visitors every month. One study of online dating matches found that Christian Mingle was responsible for about 29% of the Christian marriages that originated online. Christian Mingle members seem to love this app so much that 80% of users say they would recommend it to a friend.
Single moms searching for partners who share their religious beliefs can start their journey for free on Christian Mingle. Free members can browse through the platform’s database, filtering potential matches by new members, who’s online, distance, and match percentage. They can even reply to every message they get in Christian Mingle without paying anything. But when single moms find someone else interesting, they need to upgrade to a paid membership to initiate conversation.
6. Stir
Created by Match Group in 2022, Stir is a new player in the online dating world. The online dating app caters to single parents of all sexual orientations. The network has grown rapidly since its launch, and many users have praised its robust safety and security guidelines.
On the downside, Stir’s subscription price is more expensive compared to other dating sites, which may turn off single moms on limited budgets. Most of the app’s features, such as browsing in both public and private mode, messaging, video chat, Likes or SuperLikes, and matchPhone, require you to be a paid member.
7. OkCupid
OkCupid was launched in 2004 by a team of self-proclaimed Harvard math nerds who wanted to quantify human relationships. They came up with a formula for romantic love by asking a range of personal, funny, and unusual questions. Over the years, OkCupid has gathered single people’s answers to the questions and crunched numbers to improve online relationships. The team even calculated the best words to use in the first message. All of that insight and guidance can help single moms in their online dating journeys.
Beyond the questionnaire, the best thing about OkCupid is its pledge to remain a free dating service forever. So single moms can match and message on the dating platform without paying for a subscription.
OkCupid makes more than 91 million love connections every year, and it has a relatively high average rating of 4.3 on iTunes and 4.1 on Google Play.
FAQs: What’s the Best Single Mom Dating App for Casual Hookups?
Jumping from one committed relationship to another can be daunting for single women, especially when young children are involved. Sometimes, you’re not ready to get into a serious relationship, and that’s OK. Starting by dating casually without expecting too much from the relationship can be a good solution. Plenty of casual dating sites and hookup apps are ready to help. If you’re a single mom looking for casual hookups, Ashley Madison should be on your radar.
Most Ashley Madison users are married and looking for an escape. That could come in the form of harmless online flirting, or it could mean pursuing an affair with someone special. The dating site and app aren’t here to judge anyone for what they want. At the end of the day, Ashley Madison is all about following your heart — wherever it may lead.
- Proactive privacy and security measures
- Ability to hide your face in profile pictures
- Quick Reply to matches to show you’re interested
- Browse Ashley Madison profiles 100% free »
Ashley Madison is a judgment-free dating platform designed for facilitating no-strings dates and affairs. Since its launch in 2002, more than 80 million people have joined the Ashley Madison platform.
The discreet dating site’s popularity doesn’t seem like it will fade any time soon. The best part is that Ashley Madison gives free access to all female users. It is best suited for single moms who want to have fun without breaking the bank.
Is It Safe to Date as a Single Mother?
Safety is always important when it comes to online dating. Single mothers, in particular, may be concerned about their or their child’s safety in the online world, but women can take action to protect themselves and their families.
First, a single mother needs to set boundaries and take precautions that can make her feel comfortable getting to know a new person. Some common precautions include:
- Meeting in a public place
- Vetting a new date prospect on social media
- Providing your own transportation to and from the date
- Alerting a friend or family member about when and where your date will take place
- Never rushing into a new relationship just because a person seems nice
As a single mom, being cautious extends into your online presence. It’s important to avoid oversharing personal information — refrain from location tagging and keep photos of your children off your dating profile. If a new person asks for a picture of your family, politely decline and say you’re not comfortable taking that step just yet.
It’s crucial to establish a firm boundary between your dating life and your home life in the beginning of a new relationship because you won’t know who is trustworthy in those early stages.
Online dating sites and apps have many safety tools to help single parents navigate these tricky waters without compromising their safety. Report any profile that violates the platform’s community guidelines, and don’t hesitate to use the block button to remove creeps from your swipe list.
What’s the Best Online Dating App for Meeting Single Dads?
If you’re a single mom who wants to connect with a single dad, the Stir dating app launched by Match Group is worth a try. Stir is a new dating app that came onto the scene in 2022 to cater to single parents — and those open to dating single parents.
This niche dating app aims to change the way single parents view dating by launching the “Break Every Single Rule” campaign. New beginnings are everyday occurrences on Stir. One of the main benefits of joining the Stir network as a single parent is that you won’t have to defend your choices or dance around the subject of your family. As Stir’s Vice President of Brand Jennifer Spector said, “Having kids isn’t a dealbreaker. It’s a conversation starter.”
Busy Single Parents Deserve Love and Romance, Too!
It’s normal for a single parent to feel nervous about dating again. But with technology on your side, getting back to the dating world can be easy and stress-free. Online dating can open the door to romance and new happiness for you and your children. And if you can find a long-term partner to help raise your child, that is an added bonus!
Your journey to find love could begin with setting up an online dating profile and browsing the swipe list for matches. Mainstream dating apps and single parent dating apps can both help single adults get out there to meet new people.
At the end of the day, if you don’t put in the effort, you’ll never start a new chapter of your love life. So, choose your dating app and find local dates today!