Side by side, checked 14 October 2026
Compare UK Dating Sites: Find the One That Fits You
Plenty of Fish, Tinder and Badoo are all-purpose apps where you sort through everyone yourself. Encounters.uk suits UK adults who would rather start in a section built around what they want.
Match the site to the mood you’re in
Each one has its own idea of how people should meet, from the swipe to the personal ad. What sets them apart is who you’ll find there, and how you find them.
- Encounters.uk
- For UK adults who like to know what someone wants before saying hello. There are four sections, each with its own members: Casual Encounters for fun with no strings, Single Encounters for a relationship, Mature Encounters for over-40s, and Milf Encounters for confident older women and the younger men who admire them. It all runs in your browser.
- Plenty of Fish
- For anyone after a long-running, general dating app. It began in Canada in 2003, Match Group bought it in 2015, and its own site still says dating, chatting and matching come with the basic membership.
- Tinder
- For people who love the swipe and are open to anything from a drink to a relationship. It launched in 2012, sits in the Match Group family too, and offers Double Date for meeting up with a friend in tow.
- Badoo
- For people who want dates and new friends in the same app. Going since 2006 and now part of Bumble Inc., it lets you chat before you match and has video chat built in.
- Doublelist
- For adults who miss the old Craigslist personals and would rather post an ad than build a profile. It started in 2018, is run from San Francisco and has boards for UK cities.
- Encounters Dating
- A separate site with a similar name, run by a different company. It works with The Times and The Sunday Times and is aimed at singles who are serious about finding love.
Six sites, one quick look
All six are for adults aged 18 and over, so the table compares how each one works once you’re in. Each service’s details come from its own website, its app store listing or reputable reporting.
| Messaging | Made for | Ways to meet | Where you use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Encounters.uk | |||
| Classic members: a set number a day, and replies to VIP members | UK adults, by section: casual, love, over 40s, Milf | Daily matches, swipes and browsing | Any browser |
| Plenty of Fish | |||
| Included in the basic membership, says its own site | All kinds of singles in one pool | Meet Me swipes and search | Website and apps |
| Tinder | |||
| In the basic app, once you match | Any intention, from a drink to a partner | Swipes, prompts and Double Date | Apps and the web |
| Badoo | |||
| In the basic app, even before you match | Dates, friends and chat | Swipes, People Nearby and video chat | Website and apps |
| Doublelist | |||
| Private messages, with paid extras on top | Personal ads, by city | Post or answer ads | Website and apps |
| Encounters Dating | |||
| One-line notes on the basic membership; full messages need a subscription | Serious dating, linked with The Times | Two-way matching | Website and its own app |
Go head to head, one rival at a time
Each comparison sets Encounters.uk beside one service on messaging and upgrades, who you’ll meet, matching, privacy and getting started, and says plainly when the other one may suit you better.
- Encounters vs Plenty of Fish
A general dating app since 2003, beside a UK site that sorts people by what they want.
- Encounters vs Tinder
The swipe app with Double Date and three paid tiers, beside daily matches shaped by what you’re after.
- Encounters vs Badoo
Dates and friends with video chat, and why Badoo’s own Encounters feature has nothing to do with us.
- Encounters vs Doublelist
Personal ads in the Craigslist tradition, beside Casual Encounters, our adult section for fun with no strings.
- Encounters.uk vs Encounters Dating
Two separate sites with similar names: how to tell them apart and reach the one you meant.
Start where everyone wants the same thing
Encounters.uk, online since 2014, settles the “what are you looking for?” question before the first message. You join the section that fits, and everyone around you joined it for the same reason. The site has over 1,200 members, three in four of them aged between 25 and 54, with the most in Greater London, then the West Midlands, Hampshire and West Yorkshire.
Matching does the rest. Each day you get suggestions based on age, gender, distance, how recently people were active, what they want (casual, long-term or friendship), lifestyle choices such as drinking and smoking, interests and religion. Prefer to trust your gut? Swipe right for yes and left for no. You can post status updates and photos, comment on what other members share and join the polls and quizzes, which gives you something to talk about besides the weather.
Privacy comes as standard. Members see a username and a nearest town or city, and that’s all: no real name, no email, no address, no live location. You can block anyone so they can’t contact you again, and report a profile or message from inside the site. Every member starts on Classic membership, which covers your profile, photos, browsing, daily matches and a limited number of messages a day, and you can read and reply to whatever a VIP member sends you. Our features page lists every extra, and the pricing page has each plan.
Straight facts, straight from the source
Everything these pages say about another service comes from its own website, its app store listing or reputable reporting, checked on 14 October 2026. Each rival’s paid options are named, so you know what you’d be buying. App prices move with the plan, the platform and the offer of the week, so the app itself is the place to see today’s figure. Where a rival suits someone better, the page says so.
Know the answer before you sign up
Want to know who is behind Encounters.uk and how long it has been around? Is Encounters.uk legit? gives a straight answer. Missing the old Craigslist personals? Is there a casual encounters site in the UK? covers where that kind of fun lives now. For first dates, profiles and meeting people nearby, browse our dating guides or see who’s close to you on our location pages.
Comparing dating sites: your questions
Which dating site is best in the UK?
It depends on what you’re after. Plenty of Fish suits anyone who wants a long-running, general app with every kind of single in one pool. Tinder suits keen swipers who are open to anything from a drink to something long-term, while Badoo suits people who want new friends as well as dates. Doublelist is for adults who would rather post a personal ad than keep a profile, and Encounters Dating, a separate site with no link to ours, is for singles who are serious about finding love. Encounters.uk suits UK adults who want to know what someone is looking for before saying hello, with a section each for casual fun, relationships, over-40s and Milf dating.
Is Encounters.uk the same as Encounters Dating?
No. Encounters Dating is a separate UK site, run by a different company and connected with The Times and The Sunday Times. Encounters.uk has no link with it. Our page on Encounters.uk vs Encounters Dating shows how to tell them apart.
What replaced Craigslist casual encounters in the UK?
Craigslist took its US personals offline in March 2018, and its London pages have no personals section today. Doublelist offers personal ads in the same style. If you would rather have a profile and daily matches with UK adults, Casual Encounters is our 18+ section for fun with no strings.
Do I need to download an app to use Encounters.uk?
No. Encounters.uk works in the browser on your phone, tablet or computer, and you can add it to your phone’s home screen so it opens like an app.
Seen enough? Pick your section
Say hello to UK adults who want what you want.