8 Best Dating Sites For Black Professionals
Dating isn’t easy, especially when you’re a busy professional.
While many are hoping to make a love connection at the office, gym, or grocery store, it’s not happening nearly as often as we’d like it to.
Where do you go when it seems you can’t find any compatible dates?
We take it to the internet.
There are tons of dating sites out there meant to help hopeful singles find a worthy match.
But let’s just say that all dating sites aren’t created equal.
If you’re looking for love in all the wrong places, here are nine options you can turn to.
eHarmony
Outside of Match.com, the other popular dating site that you’ve probably heard a lot of is eHarmony.
If you watch an eHarmony commercial, they have a very large claim that makes them a contender when weeding through potential dating sites.
On average, the site is said to create a new love connection every 14 minutes.
They also claim responsibility for over 2 million relationships in the United States.
Overall, when it comes to popularity, features, value, safety, and ease of use, eHarmony is a great option.
The website has over 10 million active users and helps members weed through those who might not match up with them personally.
Eharmony has a 32 Dimensions Personality Assessment.
And what exactly is it?
It’s an 80 question survey about your likes, dislikes, hobbies, and more.
Similar to the EliteSingles process, this questionnaire is going to help weed out those who aren’t serious about finding a deep connection.
After all, love takes time.
Available in 190+ countries, there are many pros to this site, but there are a few cons.
While many other sites give you free options and capabilities, eHarmony only offers a free trial for three days before charging you for their subscription.
Not to mention, their subscription is more expensive than many other dating sites out there.
Even so, the success of eHarmony relationships speaks for itself, so it’s definitely worth trying.
EliteSingles
If you’re serious about finding love online, and want a person with a specific set of parameters, it is worth giving EliteSingles a try.
While people of any age can sign up for this dating site, you’ll find that the age demographic mostly sits between 30 and 55.
There are a few other things that make this site worth your while.
For those who value higher education, 67% of the members on the site have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
You’ll even find a few more processes that set you up to find a great match.
The sign-up process comes with the standard personal information that includes your name, physical traits, education and more.
EliteSingles delves deeper by having a thirty question evaluation to help identify personality traits.
While this might seem tedious for some, it’s going to help weed out those who aren’t as serious while helping you connect with people who share similar traits as you.
In addition to this, the site also provides manual checks of profiles in the registration phase to remove any that might be fake.
A one month membership on this site can be pretty pricey at close to $60, but there is an option for a free basic membership if you’d like to try out the site for yourself.
BlackPeopleMeet
I’ll be honest.
Before I never took BlackPeopleMeet seriously because I thought the commercial was corny.
While their marketing might need some help, it’s important to know that the site is actually a great option for Black professionals.
The site has been around since 2002, and they have been able to become the largest Black dating site for singles in the U.S.
There are definitely pros that come to trying this particular platform.
Signing up and creating a profile is exceptionally easy.
All you need is an email address, username, and birthday.
Frankly, you don’t even need to upload a picture, but you definitely should.
Rule of thumb, I’d probably steer clear of profiles that don’t have a picture.
But if you’re worried about fake profiles, BlackPeopleMeet is another site that manually filters through profiles looking for fake ones.
Other benefits to using the sites is that it allows you to use their search filters for free and helps its users create detailed profiles through personality questions and basic information.
And if you’re someone who never knows how to start the conversation, they also offer prompts to help get you going.
While there are cons to this site like limited free communication, BlackPeopleMeet is worth trying to put yourself out there.
Match
When it comes to dating sites in the U.S., Match.com is the OG.
Launched in April 1995, it is actually the oldest dating site in the country.
One thing might have you ready to join the site, and it’s probably the fact that according to Dating Advice, Match.com has facilitated more first dates, relationships, and marriages than any other dating site in existence.
Match.com is great for a few reasons, but one of its downfalls is that you can’t get much out of it with a free membership.
If you decide to purchase a subscription, then you’ll reap many of the benefits of the site.
One, paid subscribers can not only see who’s viewed their profile, but they can read and send messages at their leisure.
Two, the site has an active user base in 25 countries around the world.
Based on your personal details and preferences, the site also sends daily match suggestions for people they think you might like.
Plus, Match is more than that “swipe left, swipe right” mentality.
You can wink, send a yes rating, like, or favorite member profiles.
And last but not least, there’s some getting used to things when it comes to online dating.
For those who are tired of dating on a screen, Match offers local Match Events where local singles can meet up with each other.
The League
I can be honest and admit that I’m picky.
I’m also busy and don’t like wasting time.
If you’re like me, then the League might be the site for you.
The signing up process might be a hassle because while you might sign up, there’s a waiting period and a waiting list.
If you’re signing up for a free membership, depending on the city you’re in, it could take months.
If you’re signing up for a paid membership, it normally takes 48 hours for a member to be verified and 24 hours for an owner to be verified.
There are certain perks that come with having a paid membership on The League.
With different tiers, members, owners, and investors receive five, six, and seven prospects daily.
Paying for a membership also comes with certain perks like ensuring the people you like see you immediately or seeing who likes you.
The site also comes with Sunday night “League Lives” where members can go on virtual dates through the app.
Members can also have video profiles.
One last thing about The League is that they have “Party Scout.”
This shows nearby users who might be available and interesting to meet for dinner or drinks.
The League can be a lot, but if you’re truly looking for Black professionals, this is where you’re going to find it.
Hinge
If you’re tired of swiping left and right, you might want to get started on Hinge.
While you can get started with a regular account, if you want to sign up with a social media account, your account needs to have at least 60 friends.
The site will then match you with mutual friends or others locals in the area.
The signup process is easy.
While a bit more extensive than other sites, you’ll have to answer three prompts to help get your profile started.
Be sure to answer these, because they definitely help break the ice when starting a new conversation.
And while these prompts are mandatory, you’ll definitely find your fair share of people who write “N/A” for their answers.
In any case, I usually steer clear of them.
When it comes to showing your interest, there is no swiping on this app.
Instead, they have “likes.”
While you can like someone’s picture, you can also like something they said in one of their prompts.
Likes can also come with comments, so people can share a few words.
Hinge definitely isn’t as high maintenance as other apps, but it works.
And it might work for you too.
OKCupid
When it comes to getting the biggest bang for no buck, OKCupid is one of the best options.
Like many other sites, the sign up process is easy, but the dating platform has other steps in place to help you make a connection.
The site compiles a list of deal-breakers for you where you can decide if something’s important to you or not.
If political parties matter to you, you might signify that finding someone with the same political ties as you is important.
Alternatively, if you don’t care much for zodiac signs, you can also signify that it is something you find unimportant.
OKCupid also helps you determine a few other things.
The site will ask if you’re looking for new friends, short-term dating, long-term dating, or hookups.
They’ll even ask if you’re open to non-monogamy.
There are also a few other free benefits to this site.
One, you can message for free, and when you like someone, you can also send them a message as well.
The site claims that they have over 91 million connections made every year.
Plus, another free benefit that this site offers is that if you accidentally swipe left on someone, you can undo it for free.
If you’re looking to make serious connections with professionals without being ready to spend dollars on pricey memberships, try OKCupid.
Bumble
Last, but not least, on our list, we have Bumble.
This is the site that became a game changer in online dating.
While Bumble has the same fast swipe capabilities like Tinder, it is definitely regarded as a more serious dating site.
What really revolutionized this site was that it gives women all the power.
Instead of giving men the opportunity to message women first, the women have to do it.
While this is great for women who are tired of men inundating their inbox with messages, I sometimes look at it as a con.
I normally prefer to have men message me first, and while Bumble forces you out of your comfort zone, I have let many a match go because I was interested enough in messaging first.
The site does help you find some great professionals, but if you’re truly busy, Bumble has a very glaring con.
With a free profile, you’re only given 24 hours to message those you match with.
Depending on when you match and how busy your schedule is, you might miss a connection before you have time to reach out to them.
In all cases, Bumble is still a great option if you’re looking to make a love connection online.
Top Dating Sites For Black Professionals Conclusion
Online dating is a great alternative if you’re having trouble in the dating field.
If you’re still looking to meet someone in person, there are still physical places to meet professional Black men.
And if you find that you don’t have the time, any one of these sites can help you find someone to connect with.
Online dating usually isn’t a one and done deal.
Like our favorite Black princess Tiana, you’ve got to kiss a couple frogs before you find the prince.