Despite the fact that seniors are among the fastest-growing and largest demographics using online dating, many of these websites cater to younger singles, making it difficult for older adults to find matches in their age group.
Jul 07, 2021 The OurTime dating service can help senior singles sort through the local dating pool by providing personalized matches based on your dating preferences and browsing history. The more profiles you like and message on the website, the more the algorithm will learn about what type of person attracts you, and it will automatically recommend. Cost: $29.96/month - $107.76 for 6 months depending on package. OurTime is owned and operated by People Media, a company that runs 24 targeted dating sites. Unfortunately, like many of those other dating sites, OurTime has low customer satisfaction ratings and seems to leave most users frustrated and without what they were looking for. The OurTime.com Magazine is an online magazine with several articles dating tips, safety tips, success stories and dating videos for senior dating. The OurTime.com Magazine offers senior dating advice tips such as: -Topics to Avoid on a First Date.Fun Date Ideas You've Never Considered.Must-Dos Before Heading out on a First Date.
Fortunately, we’ve seen a recent rise in dating sites designed for older adults. SilverSingles and OurTime are two of my favorites. Both of them are geared towards people 55 and up, and both of them offer free trials, allowing you some time to figure out which one can best suit your needs.
Let’s start with the basics.
On OurTime, you have the option to specify the exact sort of relationship you’re looking for, whether that be a casual relationship, a pen pal, or marriage. SilverSingles, however, is focused on long-term relationships of the romantic variety. Regardless of the type of relationship you’re looking for, neither site restricts you from seeking same-sex relationships.
FYI: Even though both sites are geared specifically toward seniors, they do not prevent younger people from signing up. Singles are eligible to join as long as they are over the age of 18.
Both OurTime and SilverSingles will send you profiles of people you may be compatible with on the basis of your personality assessment and preferences. You typically receive around seven to 10 matches every day.
With OurTime, you also have the added capability to conduct active searches for possible matches. You can filter your search according to a number of different criteria, find profiles that look interesting to you, and start communicating. On the other hand, SilverSingles is more of a matchmaking service. Therefore, it doesn’t allow you the option of searching for profiles on your own.
The capability to communicate with others that you have on either site depends on whether you choose a free membership or a paid membership. Communication options for free members are severely limited, which is nevertheless par for the course for online dating sites. As a free member, you can review profiles and send “flirts” to others to express interest, but communication beyond that requires a paid subscription.
Plans on both sites are priced according to the length of the subscription. The main difference between the two in this regard is that OurTime allows you to subscribe and pay on a month-to-month basis, while the shortest subscription length on SilverSingles is three months.
A six-month subscription on SilverSingles costs $34.95 per month, while on OurTime, it costs $17.96 per month. At baseline, SilverSingles is almost twice as expensive as OurTime. However, OurTime has its own virtual currency in the form of tokens that you can then put toward certain perks on the platform. For example, you could make your profile more visible or purchase a virtual gift for someone else. Tokens and the extras they can buy are optional, but it may be difficult for you to compete with those who choose to use them.
Both sites use personality assessments to try to match you with other singles. SilverSingles touts its personality test that was developed by psychologists and based on the Five-Factor Model of personalities. You must take this assessment before doing anything else on the site. The assessment is extremely detailed and can take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour to complete.
OurTime also uses a personality assessment, but you can save it for later if you’d prefer to start looking around right away. It seems to be less thorough than SilverSingles’ assessment, with less emphasis placed on it. Nevertheless, the public profile you’ll create is quite detailed, and you can fill it out at your own pace.
SilverSingles conducts active scans of users’ profiles to prevent the presence of scammers and fraud. This drastically decreases the risk of identity theft or other information being stolen over the platform.
Pro Tip: Safety Tip”]Be wary of anyone on these websites asking for personal information beyond what is in your profile. They could be scammers.
OurTime, on the other hand, leaves something to be desired in regard to security. It doesn’t have a system in place to verify identities. As such, it is a soft target for online scam artists trying to take advantage of vulnerable seniors. Fake profiles show up more often than many people may be comfortable with, not only those created by scammers but also those created for testing purposes by OurTime employees. This is not to say you cannot use OurTime safely, but you will need to take responsibility for your own safety.
If you’re interested in exploring different types of relationships and searching profiles on your own, OurTime may be the better option. If you decide not to purchase tokens, it is also more affordable. OurTime allows you to search profiles internationally, but you must exercise extra caution to maintain your own security and avoid scams.
On the other hand, if you’re specifically looking for a long-term, committed relationship and you don’t mind paying a little more for the extra level of security, SilverSingles may be the better option.