The Differences Between Dating Online and In Person

We live in a fast paced, technology supercharged world, and many of our dating practices reflect that. People, especially successful adults, don’t have time to hang around and mingle with dating pools in real life. We’re simply too focused for that anymore. So how do you find a love match that makes your heart soar these days? And where are all the single people at? That’s where the best online dating sites come in.

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Availability, Options, and Diversity

There are several differences between dating online and in person. For starters, your available singles dating pool is often much smaller in real life. There’s no competition with the amount of people available to mingle with in the online environment. You might also find a more diverse set of interests to find compatibility with online. Perhaps you like a certain sports team or you enjoy competition baking – there’s tons of potential love matches online to meet with these same interests, as opposed to in person dating, which may only yield one or two possible matches in your location.

Efficiency

Another big advantage of dating on the web is the ability to precisely pinpoint people you’re attracted to, and to bypass the rest. In real life, in-person dating, there’s no stopping that guy at the coffee shop or that annoying girl at school from continuing to try and make something happen. When you’re using an online matchmaker, you can just stop responding and let that fool pass you by. And if someone does get really pushy online, they can be reported to the site management with a quick click of a button.

Security

Along the same lines as the last point, a big difference between real life and online dating is the overall security. With in-person dating, once someone gets your phone number  and/or full name they have access to quite a bit of information about you. They can easily get your home address, your facebook profile, and many other personal details about you that you may not be ready to share yet. It’s amazing what the internet can provide to a creepy date with a simple search of your name and phone number.

When you use an online matchmaker, all communication is conducted securely within your account. You create a username, or just use your first name, so a possible weirdo doesn’t get your full name. Your phone number is also not revealed (unless you give it out to them, so always be careful when you share). All flirting and communicating is privately conducted through your membership account.

Read: Safest Dating Apps of the Year

The Bottom Line

Meeting people on- and offline really boils down to the same basic elements – finding someone you really like and then interacting with them to learn more about both of your preferred desires; and seeing if that true love chemistry exists between you. This part of dating won’t change no matter how much technology you choose to use. So while online dating may be intimidating at first, it does offer several advantages to help keep you safe and support you in the most fun journey to love possible.

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Author: Healthy Framework Team

The Healthy Framework team has a combined 50+ years of experience in the online dating industry. Collectively, the team has reviewed over 300 dating apps and is known as one of the leaders in the relationship advice and information space. The team's work has been featured on Zoosk, Tinder, The Economist, People Magazine, Parade, Women's Health, Her Campus, Fox, and more.