Apps have undoubtedly transformed our lives for the better in so many ways: from the ease of ordering an Uber or takeaway food to the ease of finding the day’s news and latest trends. However, does this really mean that we should be attempting to find love the same way as we order a taxi? Can apps really help you find your “true” love?

In many ways apps, such as Tinder, can help millions of users match up with partners, with 5% of married Americans saying they met their partners online. The online platforms rapidly increase the volume of people you can meet, naturally increasing your chances of meeting someone who strikes that spark of excitement in you. However, with the dramatic increase in divorce rates, are modern relationships, forged online, really relationships we want to be having?

Online dating apps are also risk recuing people’s real-life confidence as users can hide behind the safety of a screen. With one third of users reporting they have never actually gone on a date with someone they met online, are these apps really being very helpful at actively encouraging everyone to meet people? Instead, it is possible that many users are placing their last hopes on these often expensive apps, foregoing opportunities in real life with people they meet normally as they are no longer equipped with the social skills to trigger a romantic interaction.

Despite this, many users may argue that dating apps force them into situations they may never have been able to trigger themselves in a traditional scenario. People who are generally shy can start relationships online where they are more comfortable with flirting and triggering that romantic spark in the other person.

Unfortunately, the superficial nature of dating apps has meant that many users report that looks are prioritized on these sites, despite most surveys showing that people value other parts of a person more highly. The fact that most dating apps show the profile picture as the first information available to users encourages people to only select best looking to their taste, excluding many potentially very good options based entirely off looks. Especially with millions using dating apps, the vast selection of photos means that users are likely to become extremely selective, further narrowing their chances of finding a suitable partner they realty do fall in love with.

Beyond these disadvantages also lies a cruel and deleterious part of using online dating: the vulnerable are made even more vulnerable. With the increase in people’s public exposure on these dating apps has come an increase in the abundance of stalkers and gold-diggers who manipulate their partners, often with extreme lifelong psychological or financial problems. 

While many will be the living proof that dating apps can help forge very successful relationships and marriages, it is inevitable that people’s dependency on these apps to find love carries its disadvantages and even risks. To ensure that you stay as safe as possible if you choose to use online dating apps, limit the amount of personal information you release publicly and ensure you have friends/family aware of your whereabouts and plans when meeting people met online in real life for the first time.

Good luck with finding your true love! But stay safe and don’t lose your will-power to seek love with people you don’t meet online!