Isn’t the entire point of the profile and matching system to filter incompatible people out? Why can I match with 50 people and not a single one wants to get a coffee or something after exchanging a few pleasantries? Everybody hates these things and yet they refuse to do anything IRL to get off them. Is there some Manchurian candidate activation codeword that I’m missing? I feel like everyone treats this shit solely as an ego booster and actually gets pissed off that anyone tries to interact with them. How do you meet people in hellworld if you don’t drink?
Me after dozens of dead-end back-and-forths that lead to nowhere despite having shared interests and presumably being attracted to each other since we matched: 
Hmm, maybe it’s the extreme commodification of relationships and atomization under capitalism that prevents you from getting anywhere with this garbage 
Nope, must be because @SuperZutsuki@hexbear.net didn’t say my favorite “The Office” quote and send me a playlist with 50 of the greatest songs I’ve never heard that made me instantly fall in love with them. I have no idea what other people expect from these things but I’m not doing labor for someone that I don’t even know is real. Thanks for reading my rant, any advice is appreciated.
Bumble and Hinge were far and away my best experiences. I met my current S.O. who moved in this year through Bumble, but prior to that I matched and met with some cool people through Hinge. Its got a nice format. I also had an overall bad experience with Tinder but I entered the dating scene after I turned 30 and in hindsight I’m pretty sure that app is primarily for people who are 20 something college dummies looking to hook up with people nearby.
So there’s hope at least. But it’s true, these apps obviously have an incentive to keep you looking. You really have to beat the system somehow.
Its a total cliche but for real: radical honesty and being genuine are my best advice. Especially if you’re new to the dating scene there can be this urge that the app and online communities encourage to sort of min/max and gamify it. You always want to present yourself in the best way possible but there’s a fine line between that and being fake due to the nature of the format.