SilverSingles Review: Best Dating Site For Singles Over 50?

Considering SilverSingles to help you meet someone new? You’re probably wondering how much it costs, and if it’s the best way to connect with singles over 50. 

This SilverSingles review has all the answers you need, from what you can do for free and what features require a paid membership to user reviews and more!

Jump to whatever you’re most curious about, or start at the top!

Is SilverSingles Legit? Our Verdict.

SilverSingles is a legit dating site. It’s part of the Spark Networks family of dating sites, which also includes Christian Mingle, JDate, EliteSingles and Zoosk.

That being said, SilverSingles is not the most popular dating app by a long shot, especially in the US. If you only want to use one dating site, you’re likely better off with Match.com. 

Match has far more users overall, and one of its fastest growing demographics is singles over 50.

But if using more than one paid dating site is in your budget (more on that coming up!) and you’re in a large city with a lot of other users, then SilverSingles might be worth a try.

Let’s take a look at who’s using it.

Who’s Using SilverSingles

SilverSingles is available in the US, Germany, France, Canada, Australia and the UK.

Users come from a variety of backgrounds and lifestyles, but all have one thing in common: they’re all 50 years of age or older. SilverSingles is strictly for senior dating.

Some sources estimate a 41% male to 59% female ratio, while other SilverSingles reviews claim members are 55% male and 44% female. 

SimilarWeb estimates the audience to be 57% male and 42% female. The exact percentage is likely to vary by location, and fluctuate over time. 

SilverSingles also accommodates same-sex matches, if that’s what you’re looking for.

SilverSingles Pros & Cons

This senior dating site has been around for quite awhile, although it’s had several different names over the years. 

It originally launched as PrimeSingles.net back in 2002, then changed to Single Seniors Meet seven years later. The SilverSingles rebrand happened in 2011.

With dating apps coming and going seemingly every week, a dating site with staying power is a good sign. But is it right for you? 

Taking a look at some of the SilverSingles pros and cons will help you decide if it’s worth signing up. 

SilverSingles Pros

• It specifically caters to senior singles.
• You need a paid membership to exchange messages, which can cut down on the number of scammers and non-responsive users.
• The matchmaking algorithm prioritizes members who are active and engaged with the site. According to SilverSingles, active members are “rewarded with the best matches.”

SilverSingles Cons

• You can’t freely search for potential matches like you can on Match.com. Instead, every day you’ll receive a handful of matches to check out.
• Many experts feel dating site algorithms can’t accurately quantify some personality traits, and are therefore unable to predict long-term compatibility. That’s definitely something to consider, since you can’t search for users on your own.
• Because it’s a niche dating site like Grazer or Veggly for vegans. or Fairytrail for digital nomads, it may take a lot longer to find successful matches simply because the user pool is much smaller.
• If you don’t login regularly, you may be matched with other users who aren’t very invested in the process. That doesn’t bode well for your chance of making a quality connection. You may want to consider a matchmaking service instead, so that dates with compatible singles can be arranged for you.

As with any niche dating site, if you do decide to use SilverSingles you’ll likely see better results if you add in a more mainstream, popular dating site or app as well. 

When you’re dating over 50, Match.com and Plenty Of Fish are better options with more users.

Silver Singles Cost & Premium Features

Setting up an account is free, but what you can do as a free member is quite limited. 

Free members can:

• Sign-up & create a profile
• Take the personality test & view your results
• Receive recommended profiles from SilverSingles
• Send “smiles” and “likes” to other users

The purpose of the free membership is to give you a chance to check out the site and see if you like it. To have unlimited communication with other members and unlock all the profile information, you’ll need to upgrade.

Premium members can:

• Access all free member benefits
• Get unlimited access to all profiles & photos
• Have unrestricted communication with other premium members
• Get ‘read receipts’ for sent messages
• Create a more detailed profile than free members
• View more profiles & use their search feature

A Premium membership to SilverSingles starts at $44.95/month for 3 months.

Is SilverSingles worth paying for? Checking out some user reviews will help you answer that question.

What Seniors Are Saying In Their SilverSingles Reviews

Dating site and app reviews on platforms like Trustpilot are useful to get a general idea of the experience you may expect to have. But keep in mind that dating site users are generally more likely to post a negative review than take the time out of their day to post a positive one.

So with that caveat out of the way, some of the more common complaints about SilverSingles include:

• Being matched with fake profiles

• Suggested matches who are outside of the matching criteria

• Problems with the auto-renewal not canceling correctly

SilverSingles has a 3.3/5 rating on Consumer Reports and a 2.3 star rating on Trustpilot. 

On Google Play, the SilverSingles app has 2.8 stars, with many 1-star reviews complaining about glitches and a lackluster experience with the app. 

For instance, this user said the website and the app don’t reflect the same information:

The App Store rating was slightly higher, at 3.3 stars. One of the more recent reviews mentioned successfully moving things to an in-person date:

But many reviewers wrote that they were matched with profiles they perceived to be scammers.

SilverSingles & Online Dating Safety

Scammers are not unique to SilverSingles. Unfortunately, romance scams are on the rise. According to the FTC, victims of romance scams sustained a total loss of $1.3 billion, and that’s only the people who came forward.

Seniors are one of the most-targeted demographics, so it pays to be safety conscious on any dating site or app you use.

The best way to avoid becoming a victim is to never, under any circumstances, send money to someone you’ve never met in person. No matter how convincing, urgent and compelling the reason for needing it.

Because scammers always have an urgent reason that will tug at your heartstrings, or offer a once in a lifetime investment opportunity. They’ve had years and lots of practice developing their “hook”. 

Not sure how to spot a scammer? Check out these 5 romance scammer red flags.

If you do decide to try SilverSingles, here’s what you can expect during the sign up process!

Getting Started With SilverSingles

You can create an account via the SilverSingles website, or by downloading the companion dating app from the App Store or Google Play. 

As a first step, you’ll select your gender and the gender of the singles you’d like to match with. Next, enter your email and create a password.

Next you’ll agree to their terms and conditions and be redirected to a page where you’ll enter your personal information, like name, date of birth, and upload a few photos. 

Choose a range of photos that illustrates your lifestyle and personality. For your primary photo, it’s generally best to select a headshot where you’re making eye contact with the camera.

Not sure which photos to use for your dating profile? Check out our photo tips!

The SilverSingles Personality Test

Every new member is prompted to take the SilverSingles Personality test, which according to their website is the ‘crux of their matchmaking’ process. 

It’s based on the Five-Factor Model theory, which rates your personality across five dimensions: Extraversion, Agreeableness, Emotional Stability (sometimes called Neuroticism in the “Big 5” list), Conscientiousness and Openness To Experience (sometimes referred to as Intellect.)

Be prepared to spend some time on the test, which the dating site advises might take you 25+ minutes to complete. You’ll be answering questions regarding your views on relationships, communication style, and personality traits. 

Once you’re done, you’ll have access to the results in the ‘Personality tab’ on your profile. The results are divided into sections, each of which describe a personality trait that the test revealed. 

The algorithm suggests matches based on your personality profile and the matching criteria you specify.

However, some users shared in SilverSingles reviews that the suggested matches were not at all within their specifications. Matches exceeding the distance parameters is a fairly common SilverSingles complaint.

Once you’ve created a profile, you can check out your daily suggested matches. You’ll receive anywhere from 3 to 7 each day. As a free member, you can only send ‘likes’ or ‘smiles’ as a way to indicate interest.

Because of the way the SilverSingles algorithm works, you’ll want to log in to this dating site frequently. Not only does the algorithm pair users with similar activity patterns, it always rewards the most active users with what the site describes as “better” matches.

Dating Over 50 Doesn’t Have To Be Hard…

If logging in frequently to get the best matches sounds like a lot of work, you’re not wrong. Online dating requires a time investment if you want to successfully meet someone special!

If you’re new to online dating or simply don’t have the time to manage your profiles, VIDA Select’s team of dating experts can help! VIDA’s modern matchmaking service handles everything from creating and optimizing your profile to handling all your back and forth messages.

We’ll represent you in a genuine and authentic way online, and arrange dates with compatible singles you can’t wait to meet. 

With VIDA, you won’t have to worry about feeling overwhelmed or frustrated by modern dating. We do it all for you!

Find out how the service works by clicking here.