You’ve probably seen some of the more than 288 million monthly active users check out your profile, like some of your photos, and send you a few quick messages here and there. But have you met any of them in person? Maybe you have a few mutual friends, but are you friends on Facebook? Maybe you’ve never even heard of it.
Maybe you have a friend who keeps telling you that you need to sign up for Facebook… Or maybe you’re a mutual friend who has no idea what we’re talking about. Regardless of your familiarity level, you’ve probably heard about the social network known as Facebook.
It’s the second most popular website in the world, after the search engine Google. And if you’re reading this article, you already know that it’s being used by millions of people to stay up to date with old friends and make new ones.
We’re not talking about some obscure social network that a select few have access to. Facebook is one of the most popular online dating websites around. Curious to learn more about how it works and discover who’s using it? Keep reading to discover everything you need to know about Facebook dating.
What is Facebook Dating?
Facebook dating is a way to find other singles who are interested in you. For example, say the phrase “men looking for women” triggers your Facebook dating notification. You’ll be able to scroll through various profiles of single men who best match what you’re looking for (age, location, interests).
In order to use Facebook dating, all you need is a Facebook account. All you have to do is log-in and then choose between three options:
- Find Dates: You can find matches based on your personal criteria (age, location, interests).
- Search Friends Who May Be Interested: You’ll be able to search through your friend’s friends list in order to see if they might be interested in you as well.
- Find Friends of Friends: Similar to searching through friends’ friends lists, this option will allow you to search for mutual friends with other people who are also on Facebook.
Once you’ve found someone who looks interesting, all you have to do is like their profile and send them a message! If they respond and like you back, Facebook will tell both of you that the other person is also interested in setting up a date.
How Does Facebook Dating Work?
So, how does Facebook dating work? Well, it’s a lot like dating in real life. When you sign up for Facebook (or if you already have an account), you can specify your gender, age, and location. You also have the option of mentioning what type of person you are looking for and uploading some pictures to provide a better idea of who you are.
Facebook dating is just like any other kind of online dating. To be more specific, it’s like Tinder or OkCupid but with a twist! When someone likes your profile, they will send you a message through the Facebook app or on Messenger. You can chat with each other using text or video chat and then potentially meet up in person.
The most popular features of Facebook Dating are that it’s free, there’s no need to download another app to use it, and everything is private unless you want to share it publicly.
Who Uses Facebook Dating?
Not a lot of people would be surprised to learn that Facebook dating is popular among single, divorced, and widowed individuals. The truth is, the social network has become one of the most popular online dating websites in the world.
Additionally, this isn’t one of those “exclusive” social networks where only a select few are given access. It’s available to anyone who has an account on Facebook.
The Good and Bad of Facebook Dating
The good and the bad of Facebook dating are often the same. It’s free to join, it’s easy to use, and you can access it from anywhere. There are a few downsides, however.
- You have to be 18 or older: This is a major downside for anyone under 18 who may not have an established Facebook account already.
- You have to have an account: If you don’t have an account, then you’ll need to set one up before proceeding. We won’t go into all the reasons why this sucks in this article, but trust us – it’s not fun.
- Friend requests are public: If someone rejects your friend request on a social network that isn’t Facebook, then you’re out of luck. But with Facebook, everyone will know if someone rejects your request because they’ll see that they rejected it as well as who they rejected it from in their news feed.
- Your profile is public: This can be both good and bad depending on how much information you want people to see about yourself online. Your profile is public which means that even if only one person likes your profile, then all of their friends will know about it since their name will appear in the “Liked Page” section on your profile page for all their friends to see.
But there are many more positives than negatives when it comes to Facebook dating sites so go ahead and sign up! You never know what might happen…
Tips for Successful Facebook Dating
There are a lot of drawbacks to using Facebook for dating, but there are also a lot of benefits. We’ve all seen the horror stories and heard about how many people have been catfished. That being said, it can be a great way to meet new people and find some friends in your area as well as potential romantic partners.
If you want to make sure that you get the most out of this website, follow these tips for success:
- Don’t post too much personal information on your profile. Keep it professional and don’t put up anything that could come back to haunt you later.
- The best way to meet someone is via mutual friends or from an event page. This is because those two avenues will allow you to be active in groups or events while still meeting new people.
- Don’t be afraid to go out and talk to people in person! You’ll never know if they’re a good match unless you put yourself out there.
Facebook Dating Pros and Cons
The rise in popularity of Facebook dating is undeniable.
In fact, a recent study found that 3.3% of all Facebook users have used the social media site to find a date.
But as with any other dating site, there are pros and cons to using this medium, so let’s take a look at some of the most important ones.
Pros:
- Easy access for those who don’t traditionally use online dating sites
- Social media makes it easy to connect with new people in your area
- It’s free to sign up and use the site (unless you want to buy premium features)
- It has a wide variety of potential matches based on gender preference, age group, location preferences, and more
Cons:
- You can’t see who’s viewed your profile unless you pay for premium features
- The two people need to be friends for messaging purposes before sending messages (potential for spam)
- Facebook Dating is only accessible through your phone or computer
How Does Facebook Match People?
Facebook matches people with mutual friends and shared interests. Unlike other dating sites, Facebook doesn’t attempt to match people based on their personal preferences. When you sign up for a free profile and enter your first name, your gender, and whether you’re single or in a relationship, Facebook uses these details to find people that have similar interests as you.
It then assigns you a few people who are also looking for someone and messages them automatically.
If you want to see more potential matches, Facebook sends you about 20-30 potential matches every day, but it only does this if it thinks there’s a slim chance of the two of you finding each other attractive.
If there’s not much information available on the person you’ve been matched with or if he’s not really interested in what he signed up for, Facebook won’t send anyone your way.
Why is this? Well, they want to make sure that the people that get matched with each other are actually interested in getting to know one another.
Otherwise, the whole system falls apart because nobody would be talking to one another if they weren’t attracted to each other from the beginning of the process.
How Does Facebook Find Matches?
Let’s start by taking a look at how Facebook finds matches for you. If you’ve created a dating profile, the site will give you an opportunity to fill in some information about what you’re looking for. For example, you might select from one of their predetermined categories like “men seeking men.”
You can also input your own preferences like location and age range. From there, Facebook will show you profiles of other people who have similar interests. It also shows common friends shared between the two of you as well as mutual likes with those friends.
What’s great about Facebook is that it doesn’t just find matches based on what you say, but also by what they say!
So if someone has shared that they’re interested in sports or traveling or anything else that’s on your list of desired qualities, chances are there will be a match waiting for you on the platform.
How to Join Facebook Dating
The first step is to create a Facebook account. This is the same thing you would do for any other social media site, like Instagram or Twitter. You’ll need to add your basic information, such as your name and contact information, to the sign-up form.
Next, you’ll want to go through the process of creating facebook dating profile. Here are the steps you need to follow:
- Login facebook app on your mobile device
- Next, go to the top right corner of the facebook app and tap on the menu button
- Now, you will need to check and tap dating. Bear in mind that you may need to tap see more for more option in the invent where you don’t see dating.
- Once taken to the facebook dating platform, locate and tap get started
- Follow the instructions to set up your profile.
Facebook’s Growing Positivity in Online Dating
Facebook is the second most popular website on the planet, behind Google. It’s no secret that it has evolved into a social network for meeting new people. According to Pew Research, it’s even overtaken sites like Twitter for popularity as an online dating app.
You might not be surprised to hear that Facebook is one of the most popular social networks around. What you may not know is that Facebook is actually the second most popular dating site in America after Match.com.
It seems like there are more and more people who have been using Facebook as their go-to place to find love or at least some temporary distraction from romance-deficit disorder (RDD) via swiping left or right.
Many users are using Facebook for dating purposes and connecting with old friends. But why should you use it? Let’s answer your burning questions about this matchmaking phenomenon: