The dating game has drastically changed – and are you ready for it?!
Gen Z’s, Generation X-ers, Millennials, 80’s, 90’s or Noughties kids. No matter what age bracket you fall in – we are all pretty much in the same boat. Gone are the simple days of bumping into your future boyfriend/girlfriend at a bar or being introduced through a mutual friend. These days it is statistically proven that you are 45% more likely to meet your partner through some sort of dating app or online dating service, up from 19% in 2006 and 34% in 2016.
Surrey singletons – have you thought about checking out the current digital dating landscape? If so check out this indispensable guide to discovering the modern dating game in 2026 and the best apps and sites to be on right now.
RAYA
What was once the sole providing dating app for A List Celebrities – Raya is now considered the go-to-dating app for anyone with a celebrity connection. The app is popular with influencers, creatives and high-profile individuals due to its invite-only system, strict vetting process and focus on discretion. It used to have a notoriously long waiting list and low acceptance rate but according to a Surrey Rocks insider “this is not so much the case anymore”. When it famously came out in 2014 Raya was dubbed the “Soho House of dating apps” now a celebrity make-up artist assistant can make the celeb cut apparently. There is a small monthly registration fee of £20 unlike all the other apps that have free versions.
LIKE THE SOUND OF YOU
Taking registrations now this new app will be the game changer for those daters disillusioned with swiping and picture-based apps. The company has promised Like The Sound Of You (LTSOY) will be a better way to connect with users expressing their personality through the power of voice before being judged solely on looks. Finally, you can listen and connect with people you truly like the sound of. The founders go on to say “Don’t judge a book by its cover! Happy and lasting relationships all start from having a great conversation.” Join their app to form connections with real people that like the sound of you.
HINGE
Hinge is the dating app that is “designed to be deleted” according to the company’s mission statement. This does seem to be true as it does not encourage subscriptions like Bumble or Tinder that offer and actively target its users with “lifetime subscriptions!” How are you meant to find “the one” if you are tempted back on dating apps that you have already subscribed for forever?! Hinge has a very good point and are trailblazing becoming the most popular UK dating app in 2026. Hinge says it wants to inspire intimate, in-person connections and make lifelong matches.
MATCH.COM
Match.com is the most widely used dating site in the world and has nearly 2.6 million subscribers. It works in the most traditional way: Simply create a profile, check out your potential matches, send them a few messages and then arrange to meet for a date. The love-gods at Match also arrange singles events and provide online dating advice, so it’s easy to see what makes them one of our best online dating sites. Match.com continues to target users looking for committed relationships. The user base spans various ages and demographics, focusing on creating, as they phrase it, “meaningful connections”. In the UK, subscription prices start at approximately £9.99 per month.
EHARMONY
If you are serious about looking for that special thing called love, then this is the site for you. eHarmony take this match-making lark very seriously, making them one of the best online dating sites around. They’ve even patented the eHarmony Compatibility Matching System. That’s right. They’ve taken 40 years of research to come up with a Relationship Questionnaire and pride themselves on matching users with people who are compatible with them. There is a fee but users and successful daters say it is well worth it.
TINDER
Tinder is based predominantly on looks, with a brief biography feature shown below users pics. Therefore, users swipe with those that they instantly find attractive. There is a tendency for catfishing with digitally enhanced pictures being shown regularly although new photo authenticity software introduced by the app is expecting to reduce these ‘catfish’ numbers significantly. Also been plagued by the reputation of being just a “hook up app” this is the most famous of dating apps that has been serialised by TV shows like the “Tinder Swindler” on Netflix where fake people dupe unsuspecting love victims.
BUMBLE
Dubbed “the woman friendly dating app” – it works in much the same way as Tinder yet women make the first move to message the guys once they “match” so they are not inundated with unwanted messages. It was the considered the number one dating app during lockdown but Bumble’s share price has fallen 50% in the last 6 months with the rise of Hinge and other more dedicated matchmaking services that don’t rely on swiping.
PLENTY OF FISH
Plenty of Fish works by asking users to take a special POF Relationship Chemistry Predictor test, which measures self-confidence, family-orientation, self-control, social dependency and easygoingness. You’re then matched to those most compatible to you. A bit more relaxed than Tinder and Bumble but not as serious as eHarmony and Match.com. It was very popular in the early days of online dating (2010-2014) but user numbers have slipped of late.
CLUB GORGEOUS
The UK’s first Hybrid introductions service. An affordable matching service designed to sit in between dating apps and expensive matchmaking services. Offering clients some of the more personal aspects they might expect from a matchmaking service and at the same time eradicating the uncertainty and disappointment that often comes with using some dating apps.
SELECT CONNECTIONS
The 50+ Surrey based dating and matchmaking service ‘Select-Connections’ targets people either living in Surrey or who are open to dating within the Surrey area. This unique and affordable service aims to empower singles in mid to later life who might find the dating sector the second or third time around somewhat daunting. Their network is extensive and they run mixer evenings as well as larger more glamorous days or nights out.
YOUR MATCHMAKER
One of the busiest Matchmaking agencies in the South of the UK. The agency covers a vast area including Surrey, Suffolk and Hampshire. YM clients are aged typically from early 30’s up to 50’s, busy professionals seeking long term relationships. Members complete a unique personality test to help identify potential partners that have compatible personality traits. The success rate has been phenomenal.
THE DATING DIRECTORY
An independent, free – and what can best be described as a “dating comparison site” to help singles navigate their way around the dating sector. The website lists all the best and latest dating apps, matchmaking services and dating events all around the UK. It is regularly updated with news and information and gives singles of all ages a canvass to explore and discover the best possible route possible for them to follow.
ADVICE FROM THE EXPERTS
We got to chat to long-term matchmaker Lorraine Adams, who is owner of the Gorgeous Networks group on her top tips on online dating and navigating the digital dating scene. It’s a minefield so we hope these tips help you in your V day search.
DON’T JUDGE PEOPLE TOO QUICKLY BECAUSE YOUR COMMUNICATION STYLE DIFFERS
This happens so often and means a potentially great romance opportunity falls at the first hurdle. Everyone has a different communication style – this is not usually set in stone, they may be following advice or may be adapting their communication style because of recent interactions. Give them some slack on this. As you get to know each other you can always discuss and relay your irritation about their communication style and they would probably be very open on adapting.
DON’T EXPECT INSTANT ROMANTIC CHEMISTRY
Instant romantic chemistry is more likely to fade as quickly as it started – we call it fake chemistry. If you are fortunate enough to catch a slow burner and experience the more longer lasting chemistry – it will take you much further into a more meaningful relationship than the instant chemistry of a quick fling.
INVEST TIME TO HAVE A CALL AT THE VERY LEAST, A VIDEO CALL OR AN IRL MEETING
If you are fortunate enough to get a romance opportunity – treat it like gold dust, because a quality authenticated date is exactly that! Having a 15 minute phone or video chat at the very least, with the view to a follow up date, like a short coffee date/glass of wine is the ideal route to take. Investing this time even if the profile or prospect of a date soes not jump out at you will bring you such huge rewards. Most of the successful couplings up happen this way – with little enthusiasm initially, but upon meeting – bingo!
DON’T RUSH THINGS – BE REALISTIC ABOUT THE FLEDGLING RELATIONSHIP TIMELINE
A rushed fledgling relationship, where one person tries to fast forward everything in an attempt to jump into cosy coupledom is doomed for failure. If you take your time, you will actually end up getting to where you want to be much more rapidly. If you keep rushing fledgling relationships to make the timelines happen too quickly the other person is likely to run a mile – so you will just end up continuously enduring short-term failed relationships. Take your time to let the early relationship breath and bubble along at a good pace. It is crucial you get to know each other over time. If you feel you are becoming too all consuming too early – date other people too, so that you do not jump in too quickly.
KEEP MULTIPLE PLATES SPINNING EARLY ON INTO FLEDGLING RELATIONSHIP
Don’t be too quick to put all your eggs into one basket. Take your time and keep those romance opportunity plates spinning – until the right one starts to stand head and shoulders above the rest!
SET BOUNDARIES WHEN YOU GET TO THE RIGHT STAGE IN YOUR CONNECTION
Be clear about your boundaries, try not to be too rigid – but be true to yourself. Seek advice from matchmakers and date coaches about the difference between red flags and knee jerk over thinking!
CREATE CURIOSITY AND MYSTIQUE AROUND YOURSELF
Leave them wanting more after each interaction – don’t haemorrhage your inner most feelings too early on. Drip feed things about yourself to keep the curiosity and mystic levels high.
COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE, COMMUNICATE
Keep communication, do not go cold on someone or ghost them. If you have any concerns try and be communicative about them in a soft laid-back way. Don’t be too demanding too early on.
AND FINALLY……
The only way you can really be sure that you are going to find someone attractive is if you actually spend some time with them. It feels like an effort to meet people that do not initially jump out at you, but in the long run it will save you so much time and energy, because you will realise how quickly a budding romance can develop, for all the right reasons.
When you do actually fall for someone who is so far off what you expected, even if that romance does not work, it is like a light bulb moment that will actually change the course of your search.
Ask anyone who has been in a long-term relationship if the person they have been in love with all these years, actually measured up to their initial expectations, the answer will definitely be no. Instead, they will tell you of all the extra unexpected things they discovered about their partner, some good and some bad.
