When finding a partner online, you’re often going to have to make a choice between the types of dating provider that you want to use. Both of them are of course legitimate and effective ways of meeting new people. The true question is just what method do you think is the most effective for you? Thankfully, we were able to lay out all of the facts about online dating agencies and flirt and chat sites to help you decide!

Online dating platforms coming in many different shapes and sizes, and nowadays even different formats. A lot of traditional websites have now moved over into app form, as well as optimised themselves for mobile devices (tablets, smartphones, etc.) but still hold true to the desktop variety. However, we are not talking about the actual infrastructure of the dating provider but rather the way they can help you get a partner.

Below is an explanation of the two different types:

• Flirt and chat sites are pretty much what you would consider a regular “dating site” – singles go on, set up a profile and then they have a profile which gives the public information about themselves. There are of course numerous variations of this, such as flirt and chat sites for specific types of people (goths, divorcees, the LGBT community etc.). With dating personals, you can also search for people based a variety of different factors (age, height, location, distance, likes etc.).
• Online dating agencies are wildly different. Although singles also set up profiles on them, the whole manner of finding people is very, very different. When you sign up, you have to do a psychological evaluation. Questions are asked and then your answers are sorted by an algorithm. You will then receive what are known as "partner suggestions" or "contact proposals".

You probably think that choosing your future partner cannot be that difficult and flirt and chat portals might at a first glance seem more attractive - especially since most of them are cheaper than dating agencies. However, the advantages become a little more obvious when you take a closer look.

Online dating agencies? Why bother?

Online dating agencies do sound very Logan’s Run, but you may be surprised at just how effective such matchmaking algorithms can actually be. Of course, there are providers who tend to mix the two together… allowing singles to both search for their “matches” or simply have such matches suggested to them. In our experience, the more specialised the site, the higher the level of quality.

Furthermore, matchmaking sites are good a number of reasons…

Your anonymity is maintained!

• Your profile can only be seen by other members to whom it was matched by the algorithm. If you run an online personals ad (which should always have a picture of you lest you be a fake!), you can be seen by pretty much everyone.

More and better information!

• When you’re looking for a partner with a matchmaking site, you’ll receive more information than even your match intended to share (at least consciously). This is because of a lot of the psychological evaluations tend to be quite accurate in a lot of cases!

High prices and serious results.

• Since a lot of flirt and chat sites are free or quite cheap to join, many singles on them tend to not have the same level of dedication when it comes to finding a partner. Those who choose dating agencies will tend to pay a lot more… and therefore will not be messing around. So, in this sense, those looking for a serious relationship may indeed want to see what the matchmaking algorithm has for them!

There’s less of a chance that you’ll be overlooked!

• Since both personal and psychological criteria are taken into account with dating agencies, your possible matches are determined by experts. This means that you’re going to come a lot closer to someone who matches with you perfectly… and this is a huge advantage because there is a high chance that you could have otherwise overlooked this person!

Everyone gets their share!

• Consider the following situation: You go to a party with a lot of cool people. However, the hottest girl there is surrounded by men with her enchanting smile. She’s practically glowing, but the shy Sue Miller is also there and sitting in the corner being almost ignored. The same can be said for the Tom Cruise of the party, as well as the seemingly nerdier guy who is the same position as Sue. You see, this party is pretty much the same as a regular dating site: people are shown to you on a platter and it is up to you to choose them. In a lot of cases, singles tend to choose on looks and who has the most impressive profile. However, perhaps Sue and the nerd have some enticing characteristics of their own. Thanks to an online dating agency, you can find it out!

So what about flirt and chat sites?

While matchmaking algorithms have their merit, there are also huge benefits to flirt and chat sites. This is primarily due to the high level of flexibility that they offer. In most cases they tend to sit between online dating agencies and sex dating sites… Basically everyone who sets up an online personals ad is looking to meet someone else. For what? Well that can simply be decided by the two singles!

It’s not as serious!

• Not everyone who does online dating wants to find “the One” or a partner for life… some singles are just interested in meeting others, having fun and getting to know new people. The great thing about flirt and chat sites is that you can have both.

A greater search radius.

• For those who travel a lot, flirt and chat sites can be a God send. You can search for other singles in the town, city or country that you are travelling or moving to. It is simply a great way to get socialising and ensure that you find someone to hang out with if you’re going to be somewhere for a few days.

You can say what you want.

• Online dating agencies tend to give you a rather thorough investigation when it comes to your personality. This means that there are odd quirks that will be examined to help match you up with any other potential singles. While this is good for those looking for someone serious, singles who want to just date for fun might not want to reveal everything about themselves. This means that with an online dating personals site you can simply put up whatever information you feel comfortable leaving… and leave the rest blank.

Flirt and Chat Sites or Online Dating Agences? - Our Conclusion!

Good dating agencies provide you with a reasonable chance to find a suitable life partner. You clearly need less time for the search since dating agencies are taking quite some work off your shoulders. The higher price is therefore justified.

The trouble with comparing online dating agencies and flirt and chat sites is that both of them can provide very different things... Agencies or matchmaking sites can provide you the opportunity to find a suitable life and romantic partner. There is also a lot less time involved with a much more specialised test involved. For this reason, the higher price of such agencies is quite justified!

» Take a look at our test results for « the best online dating agencies »

» Or read independent user reviews ondatingwebsite-reviews.co.uk

Flirt and chat sites, on the other hand, have distinct advantages because you can meet all sorts of other singles. Those who just want to date in a more relaxed manner can use these as well. These types of dating sites tend to have a much more flexible purpose: online flirting, short term dating and even finding new friends!

» Take a look at our test for « flirt and chat sites »

» If you want to save some time, you can see here the top performers in the UK in online dating.