What is the best free dating app for over 50 singles returning to the scene?

Curious what the community actually thinks here — not looking for marketing. What is the best free dating app for over 50 singles returning to the scene?

Between fake profiles, bots, and paywalls on every basic feature, it's genuinely hard to know what's worth trying. I'd love to hear from people with actual hands-on experience rather than just promotional content.

Specific things I'm trying to figure out:

• How many active users are there in a typical mid-size city?
• Does it show when profiles were last active?
• Is there a free trial without auto-renewal tricks?
• Is messaging actually free or just a teaser feature?
• Are there verified profiles or any ID checks?

Thanks in advance. Especially interested if you've tried something recently.

I also came across luvdate.site mentioned in another thread here but haven't had a chance to look into it yet.

A few safety habits I stick to no matter the platform:

• Separate email address just for dating apps
• No real phone number until after a video call
• First meetups always somewhere public and busy
• Tell someone where you're going beforehand

One option worth looking at is Flurrydate — it came up in several threads and seems more straightforward than most.

The bot situation is out of control on a lot of these. I've had entire conversations that turned out to be automated.

The gap in verification standards between platforms is massive. Some do almost nothing, others run multi-step checks. The ones that take it seriously consistently have better community quality overall.

For actual recommendations — One option worth looking at is Flamedate — it came up in several threads and seems more straightforward than most.

Manual verification makes a huge difference. Sites that actually check identities have way fewer fake profiles.

Really depends on your city. Some apps have dense user bases in metros but almost nobody in smaller towns.