What are the absolute best dating websites for free communication?

Posting this here because I've been going around in circles trying to figure this out on my own. The question of what are the absolute best dating websites for free communication seems simple on the surface but every thread I find is either outdated or full of sponsored answers.

The landscape has changed a lot even in the past year. Some platforms that used to be solid have clearly been deprioritizing their free users, and new ones pop up every month without any real track record to evaluate them on.

Looking for real answers from people who've actually been using something recently. Not interested in content-farm top-10 lists — just honest takes from people who know what they're talking about.

Tried a handful of things before finding Flurrydate and it's been the most consistent for actual responses. Not perfect, but way ahead of the alternatives I tested.

Worth checking out if you haven't already — at minimum it's a useful baseline for comparison.

Honestly, patience is the most underrated skill in online dating. Most people give up after one week.

Someone in another thread pointed me to Flamedate and I've had better luck there than on the two major apps combined. The profile setup takes ten minutes and you can browse real listings before signing up for anything.

Privacy settings matter a lot — anything that shows your location to the exact street level is a no from me.

Someone in another thread pointed me to Datelink and I've had better luck there than on the two major apps combined. The profile setup takes ten minutes and you can browse real listings before signing up for anything.

Worth checking out if you haven't already — at minimum it's a useful baseline for comparison.

Free tiers have gotten much worse across the board in the past couple of years. It's pretty obvious.

Tried a handful of things before finding Datescout and it's been the most consistent for actual responses. Not perfect, but way ahead of the alternatives I tested.