Dating has never been as accessible before as it is now. It’s almost a shame to stay single with the number of apps and opportunities that exist in the modern world. How well you do with all these options depends entirely on your choices. Going for the cheapest apps is not the ideal way to start dating.
Even though people find love on free dating sites, it happens rarely. What is more important than choosing a decent dating app with quality matches, is finding an app where you find members who share similar beliefs with you. Religion happens to be a major dealbreaker, with 44% of U.S. residents stating that beliefs are nearly as important as having an adequate income.
Does this mean that traditional dating apps like Tinder won’t work?
No, they do work for dating as a catholic single thanks to their personalized experience brought by filters. However, the percentage of Catholic singles in these apps is lower compared to the dedicated apps.
What are these dating apps and what do they offer? They offer a large pool of catholic singles for you to match with, go on dates, and maybe build your life with.
Currently, these dating apps are only a few and we’ve brought 8 of the best of them, including highly efficient general dating apps. The advanced filters and the large user base turn them into perfect spaces to find your future life partner.
BEST Catholic Dating Sites & Apps
1. Catholic Match
Catholic Match is hailed as one of the largest sites populated with Catholic singles. The matches you'll find on the platform are devout believers, and religious owners run the company. What is worth bringing to attention is also the fact it's widely endorsed by Catholic leaders.
Catholic faith is the core of this catholic site. It was founded by two faithful believers, Jason LaFosse and Brian Barcaro. Revolving around the values of Catholicism, it has acquired its best alternative, Catholic Singles, pioneering the dating scene for Catholic dating apps. This translates to a combined set of functionalities and obviously more potential matches for you.
Getting more matches is obviously the point of all our efforts. Its founders saw how hard it was to get matches during church picnics and conventional dating, so they crafted Catholic Match with a reliable algorithm. This system helps members establish relationships based on the Catholic Sacrament of Marriage.
New members go through a questionnaire, namely the Match Portrait, which was developed with the help of a professional relationship counselor. These questions touch on many sides of one’s personality, including traits, life vision, and personal viewpoints. Then, profiles are compared to one another based on the Likert scale, which mathematically matches members by calculating their compatibility based on given details.
Pros
- The vast pool of 1.5 million members globally.
- Offers forums where members can share their stories.
- Around 60% of members are females.
- Well-established and reputable site (since 1999).
- Women can enjoy the premium features for free.
- Comes with mobile apps for both iOS and Android.
Cons
- Unable to respond to messages with a free account
- Limited accounts in rural areas.
2. Catholic Chemistry
Catholic Chemistry is fairly new to the dating scene. It was launched in 2018, with the purpose of not only bringing catholic singles together but actually finding a match that sparked chemistry. The user base spans from millennials to Gen X, and baby boomers, creating a space for everyone.
Users can sign up and build their profile based on their perspective on Catholic Church teachings, as well as core aspects of being a Catholic, such as premarital sex, divine love, the sanctity of marriage, and papal infallibility. The site offers many useful features like video and voice chatting and it’s run by catholic believers.
Most importantly, it has received support from well-known Catholic leaders like Fr. Vincent Serpa, and Patrick Coffin. Close attention is dedicated to one’s faith which explains why upon signing up you have to complete a maximum of 600 words description of your faith, the practices and saints you follow, and the Catholic institutions you’re involved in.
Matchmaking is based on common traits found between members, and the matching is made even more precise thanks to fantastic options to show your personality. For instance, you can turn a statement into a question using the feature “Respond to This” to spark a conversation with potential members. Other filters also help you find matches such as the options to filter based on liturgy preferences, location, or answers to certain questions.
Pros
- Supports video chatting.
- Easy-to-navigate interface.
- Inexpensive premium memberships (starting at $19.99).
Cons
- Unable to chat with the freemium version.
- Presence of fake profiles.
3. eHarmony
Surprising as it may sound, this recommendation isn’t a dedicated site for Catholic dating but it has many beneficial features for Catholic singles. Firstly, it’s worth mentioning that its founder, Neil Clark Warren is a Catholic theologian who has infused his Catholic-based views on the eHarmony app and its functionalities.
The most prominent feature of eHarmony is the Relationship Questionnaire, which focuses on unveiling 29 dimensions of compatibility. (among other great features you can explore in our full review.) This questionnaire feeds their powerful matchmaking algorithm with data to lead to better matches.
Chances of finding a Catholic single to date are high due to the large user base of over 20 million users found on the site. Even those who are not devout Catholics have joined the site with a long-term relationship in mind. However, you can easily filter only Catholic members through its filters, and other paid functionalities.
Features like the ability to browse privately, and send smiles or icebreakers make starting conversations easy and pleasant. Even though the truth is that when you finish completing their quiz, you’ve done most of the work to find the ideal match, and maybe enlist your story on their success stories page.
Pros
- Run by a Catholic founder.
- A large pool of potential matches.
- Detailed matchmaking system.
- Supports video-dating.
- Focused on long-term relationships.
Cons
- Not specifically for Catholic members.
- Might accidentally charge you for canceling memberships early.
4. Ava Maria Singles
The site has become home to many success stories of Catholic singles who have found their spouses within less than a year after joining the platform. And when it comes to reputation and status the platform has been available since 1998, even sooner than Catholic Match, which makes it a worthwhile competitor in the scene of dating sites for Catholic singles.
The site emphasizes the importance of face-to-face meetings with matches you meet on the platform. Also, it comes with a few cool features like allowing you to Drop Your Hanky (used by ladies to show that they’d like a man to take the first step). Pictures are important for succeeding on any dating site, but unless you purchase the premium membership you’ll be allowed to add only up to two pictures.
Users of other online dating sites have often complained about their memberships getting renewed automatically and Ava Maria Singles has taken care so this doesn’t happen on their site. In their success stories, you can see that the site has led to over 30 marriages and serious relationships between Catholic members. Only its potentially small pool of users makes us skeptical.
Obviously, Ava Maria Singles is marriage-focused according to Catholic beliefs and rules, which means that you can join only if you want to marry under the Catholic church and are single. Unless you attest to being single, you can’t join. As per chatting, it remains entirely anonymous to protect the privacy of its users. All these functionalities are packed into three memberships: the basic which is free, the 6-month trial which costs $80, and the unlimited lifetime membership priced at $97.
Pros
- Helpful informative forum with articles.
- Marriage-focused site.
- Specifically for Catholic members.
Cons
- No mobile app is available.
- No free trial.
- The considerably small user base.
5. Christian Mingle
Christian Mingle is not dedicated to Catholic dating but it offers a wide number of denominations including Catholic, that you can use to filter other Catholic singles. Furthermore, it displays clear numbers when it comes to its user base, counting over 16 million registered members and over 3.5 million active members who browse the site and chat with one another.
The site offers the option to describe all your convictions and religious preferences including the desired traits and denomination of your ideal partner and church-going habits. Portraying your God-centered beliefs through its descriptions is important if you want to foster honest relationships on Christian Mingle.
After signing up you can search matches that are classified based on its matchmaking algorithm in the Matches or LookBook sections. Moderators are constantly monitoring members and removing inactive profiles to leave only active ones. 90% of these members say they seek a Christian partner, and around 70% are devout believers who attend church weekly.
And even if you don’t have much time to browse through profiles, Christian Mingle offers another way to find Catholic singles. They regularly will send seven matches on a daily basis for you to pick from. The best part is that this and other features like being able to reply to messages from premium members are entirely free.
Pros
- Vast user base with members from seven countries.
- Filters to find members based on your ideal match characteristics.
- Allows seeing when members lastly logged in to filter inactive profiles.
- Mobile apps for Android and iOS.
Cons
- Not dedicated to Catholic singles.
- A percentage of fake profiles.
Here's the complete list of Best Christian Dating Sites.
6. CatholicLuv
You’ve probably heard the cliche quality over quantity. That’s what you get with the newest dating site for Catholic singles named CatholicLuv. The site is not yet crowded since it’s in its early stages which means that the number of inactive profiles and scammers is significantly low. Joining at this stage gives you the early-bird advantage of benefiting from low competition.
Moreover, signing up is STILL free of cost. Since the site has recently entered the market, messaging and other features are free which makes it ideal for single Catholics who don’t want to pay for expensive dating apps. And as the name suggests, it’s entirely focused on matching Catholic singles together. Run by two Catholics, Philip, and Ken, the site is growing quietly.
Their website is live but most of the updates can be found on the subreddit r/CatholicDating and their subreddit. The small user base is made of true Catholics and monitored effectively by owners for fraudulent actions. It’s the ideal space for someone who doesn’t want to go after the buzz but rather prefers to find quality matches worth chatting with.
There isn’t much information about how their algorithm works but at least you don’t have to pay for sending or replying to messages. The community is optimistic about its growth, and recently they have launched a premium membership to fund its expansion. No worries. Their free membership still allows you to send free messages but only a certain number per day.
Pros
- High-quality matches.
- Founded and run by true Catholics.
- Core functionalities are available for free.
Cons
- Small user base.
- Not available in mobile apps.
7. Match.com
One of the best features of Match.com is its free browsing functionality which allows you to explore the available profiles on the platform without having to pay for a subscription. Only if you’re convinced that it’s worth the shot, you can fill out a profile and start messaging them.
Match has dominated the dating scene in multiple countries since its foundation in 1995. It’s one of the oldest online dating sites and it has gathered international userbase following different faiths including Catholics. It’s not specifically built for Catholic dating but it provides filters to find members of this denomination and more.
The large member base of over 20 million users facilitates finding your soulmate and initiating a serious relationship. The site is owned by Match Group, the umbrella of many prominent dating companies including Tinder, so they surely know how to offer the best service.
Match.com hosts a wide audience pool which makes verification for all members challenging and sometimes scammers slip through the moderators’ checks. But the site offers many excellent features for Catholic features such as Vibe Check, Reverse Matches, video-chatting, and Boost.
Pros
- Over 8 million active paid subscribers (20 million members).
- Focused on long-term relationships, matchings Catholic values.
- Enriched with filters and boosting options.
Cons
- Not available in a mobile app.
- Service auto-renews if not careful.
8. Hinge
With a similar interface to Tinder which allows you to swipe through matches, Hinge has a powerful matchmaking algorithm that suggests Catholic profiles with the option to seamlessly message without having to pay for a subscription. Its prompts option makes it special from other apps.
When writing your dating profile on Hinge, instead of putting a long bio you’re asked to answer three prompts and put them on your profile. That’s your option to reveal your Catholic values and match with other singles who share the same values. Three answers, nothing too exhausting.
Hinge provides fantastic features even for free. If it happens that you match with a Catholic single you can video call immediately without having to purchase a subscription. Also, you can see who liked you without paying.
In the likes of Hinge, you can find other dating apps like Bumble and Tinder which are also nonreligious apps and have a wide category of members. It even comes with a premium version that offers the option to like more people as well as access to features like We Met, and advanced preferences.
Pros
- Easy-to-navigate interface.
- Sending and receiving messages is free.
- Video chatting support.
- Excellent customer support.
- Over 20 million members.
Cons
- Not tailored to Catholics.
- Not available on the web (only on mobile apps).
Faqs:
What Are The Best Catholic Dating Sites For Young Adults?
Catholic Matchand and eHarmony have young catholic adults in their late 20s and early 30s. However, on Catholic match. you'll find the best catholic environment and match compatibility based on shared catholic faith and lifestyle.
What Are The Best Catholic Dating Sites For Seniors?
Catholic Chemistry and Catholic Match are two great options for senior catholic singles. Also, Match.com is a better option if you're skeptical about other niche-based services.