Top 10 Teen Dating Apps for 2025

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Nowadays, nearly every teen has a profile on a dating app. Although most apps’ age limit is set to 16 years, underage teens fake their age to get access to them. Some use it to find a romantic partner, while others look to connect with new people. Irrespective of the reasons, these teen dating apps are a risk to young people.

Your teens might interact with older adults and get exposed to inappropriate content, cyberbullying, and harassment. It can affect their mental health. Also, the pressure to find matches and the potential for rejection can lead to anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem.

Read through the comprehensive guide, which lists and reviews the most popular teen dating apps, to understand the risks and protect your children.

Part 1. Top 10 Teen Dating Apps

Dating isn’t the same anymore, as many teen dating sites let users go online and meet anyone at any time they please. Although finding friends and soulmates is now simpler, these apps pose certain risks. Predation, cyberbullying, and catfishing are just a few. Here are the ten dating apps that parents must be aware of.

1Skout

Skout is a popular dating application that enables users to connect with people nearby or from around the world. Launched in 2007, the age limit was set between 13 and 17, and it gained a reputation almost immediately due to its unique features, including chatting, streaming, and the ability to search for friends nearby.

After 2012, it limited access to users above the age of 18+, and its moderation policies focus on restricting spam, harmful content, and disruptive behavior. If a user finds anything inappropriate or disruptive, they can report it to the moderation team for necessary action. However, it still lacks a formal age verification system, allowing any teenager to pose as an adult and access the site.

2Bumble

Bumble is another popular teen dating app that can be suitable for older teens. This app puts women in control as they can only start conversations after a mutual match. This aligns with the app’s motive to encourage meaningful and respectful interactions.

The age limit is set to 18+, which teens can bypass to gain access. However, there are plenty of safety features that most apps lack. For example, its photo verification helps people confirm their identity, which limits the creation of fake accounts. Its in-app video chat feature allows users to meet virtually before they meet in person. There’s also a private mode and an option to block and report a person if they make the user feel unsafe or uncomfortable.

3Happn

Happn, launched in 2014, gained quick popularity due to its unique matching algorithm. Here, rather than an app showing random people from your location, it shows users you’ve crossed paths with in real time. It also displays an entire timeline, that is, the number of times and the radius within which you’ve crossed paths. If both users like each other, they can start a conversation.

This teen dating app requires users to be at least 18 years old. However, it unfortunately lacks proper age verification as well. Therefore, parents must closely monitor their teens’ phone usage. Nevertheless, there’s an invisible mode that keeps your profile hidden from other users for up to eight hours. Also, your specific location doesn’t appear on the map. It only displays places where they crossed paths.

4Zoosk

Zoosk is regarded as a unique teen dating website and app that allows users to know one another in an easy, private, fun, safe, and genuine way. It’s one of the few apps that welcomes adults of all ages (18+), ethnicities, genders, religions, sexual orientations, and backgrounds. Also, its matching system is rather unique. As you sign up, it asks you some questions to determine your behavioral pattern and searches its database to find a person with similar traits.

Regarding safety, there’s an option to report unusual behavior, and users can seek to hide their profiles if needed. However, as with most dating apps, there isn’t any proper age verification system.

5Hinge

Hinge is a location-based teen dating app that focuses on meaningful conversations and connections. The user profile here is rather detailed. One can also use prompts to showcase their personality and interests. The more detailed these prompts are, the easier it is for the potential matches to find common ground and engage in meaningful conversations.

Hinge also instills a one-of-a-kind matchmaking feature. Unlike swiping profiles left and right, here you can like a person from their profile. This makes it more suitable for adults looking for serious relationships.

However, kids might overshare their details on Hinge, and attackers can impersonate them online and offline. They also might send repeated unwanted messages and bully them, which affects them mentally.

6Wink - Friends & Dating App

Wink is a great platform for teens to meet interesting people, go on dates, and form meaningful relationships. The interface is simple, and you must create a profile with a bio, pictures, and interests. Based on these, it connects people with shared interests, mutual connections, and a common location. You can send an interest or send them a wink.

There are several risks associated with using Wink that parents should be aware of. One, the app uses geo-location, which encourages users to chat with strangers in the area. Online predators can use the information to track teens and put them at risk of harassment, bullying, etc. It also allows users to share someone’s information without their knowledge. This makes it challenging to stay private on the app.

7Teen Chat

Teen Chat is a unique online teen dating website designed for teenagers (13-19) to connect with people worldwide. Users browse through the profiles and like or swipe to indicate interest. If both show a mutual interest, they can match and begin chatting via text, voice, or video.

The platform has established specific guidelines to ensure user safety. For example, users can get banned if they disrupt others in any way. There’s an option to keep personal information private and report anyone who breaks the law or violates the terms of service.

8MeetMe

MeetMe is a social networking and dating app that teenagers use to meet new people and make friends. Like typical dating apps, it matches users based on their geographical location. This can be a risk, as the users already know that you’re in their vicinity and will be eager to learn more.

Once matched, individuals can ask each other anonymous questions. One can easily pass on rude and inappropriate content as more appropriate and harass or bully your younger ones. Parents are, therefore, required to keep a check that their kids aren’t accessing this type of content.

9Chispa

Chispa is a one-of-a-kind teen dating app specifically designed for Spanish-speaking individuals in the United States. Exclusively available on Android and iOS, this app allows Latino single men and women to find genuine connections. The interface is simple, and it uses the user's location to find people nearby who can be a good match. From the listed potential matches, users swipe left and right to express interest and pass.

The platform, although it requires users to be 18+, verifies users only via Facebook or SMS. So, teens can easily fake their ages and gain access.

10Grindr

Grindr is one of the few dating apps that allows LGBTQ+ users to find their ideal companion. Similar to most apps, it uses your location to recommend potential matches in your area.

What’s interesting is Grindr’s unique take on security and privacy. Rather than uploading, the “Taken on Grindr” feature allows users to take and share photos taken directly from the app. These pictures have a unique badge and timestamp, which allows the other person to verify and thereby increase trust. Besides, users can link and verify their Instagram accounts to increase credibility.

However, these are optional, and anyone can choose to avoid them to portray themselves as a different person. Therefore, parents must exercise caution and ensure their kids don’t use it until the child is 18 years of age or older.

Part 2. Will Kids Date On Other Social Media?

Yes, although the platform isn’t designed for dating, kids can use it for the same purpose. According to a Pew Research Center Survey, nearly half of most teens who use social media say that they’re online constantly. Roughly six in ten teens report using TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, with 55% using all three. The younger ones can often use platforms like Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and even gaming platforms to connect with others, share interests, and build relationships. This can easily go beyond friendship and evolve into romantic connections.

That’s why parents need to engage in open conversations with their kids about safe social media practices. This includes the information they share online, privacy settings, and exercising caution when interacting with strangers.

Part 3. How to Protect A Child When They Use Dating Apps

Teen dating websites may expose your child to inappropriate content, predators, harassment, bullying, and other internet hazards. These risks are detailed as follows:

• Affects Mental Health: These dating apps are designed to sell the concept that you’ll find the perfect match for you. But if a user doesn’t find any match, it leads to anxiety and depression and affects their self-esteem.
• Cyberbullying: Strangers and other users might use unsafe language or send inappropriate content to harass teens.
• Lack of Confidence: These dating apps can hit your teen’s confidence hard. These apps often prioritize appearance, leading users to focus on personality over values. Additionally, seemingly flawless online profiles can fuel insecurities and body dissatisfaction.
• Attract Scammers: The lack of a proper verification system on these teen dating apps can attract scammers. These might lure your teens into sending money, clicking a scam link, or other things.

Parents are responsible for managing these situations with teens. To start, you can sit with them, help them understand the dangers of such apps, and encourage them to make safe and healthy decisions. You can also assure them that they can trust you in case they need any help.

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In addition to these, parental control tools like KidsGuard Pro can be a practical way to keep your teens safe from the dangers associated with these teen dating apps. You can use it to monitor their online activities, filter their content, set time limits, and even block the apps if needed. KidsGuard Pro offers a set of handy features to obtain detailed information about your kids’ online activities:

FAQs about Teen Dating Apps

Is there a dating app for under 18?

Yes, only a few apps, such as Teen Chat, allow users between the ages of 13 and 19. Most apps, such as Bumble, Happn, and MeetMe, among others, require users to be at least 18 years of age.

Is there a dating app for 11-12-year-olds?

No, there aren’t any legitimate dating sites for 11-12-year-olds, as most require users to be at least 18 years old. Although there aren’t any age restrictions on social media apps, kids can use them to date someone.

Is dating at 12 OK?

No, dating isn’t bad at 12, but there must be some adult supervision involved. At that age, children aren’t very mature and may end up making some poor decisions.

Are dating apps for minors illegal?

Yes, there aren’t many legal dating apps available for minors. That said, no laws in the US obligate minors from joining a dating app, and parents must keep a keen eye on their kids’ online activities.

Is there a dating app for middle schoolers?

No, there isn’t a dating app for middle schoolers, but some apps like Teen Chat are marketed for users between 13 and 19 years old. However, these apps can pose risks, such as exposure to catfishing, inappropriate content, and predatory behavior.

Conclusion

Teen dating apps offer your teens the opportunity to connect with people beyond their social circles and even find a partner who shares their interests. It also helps them develop social and communication skills, which can potentially boost their confidence and self-esteem. However, there are many risks of using such apps, and parents worry about their teens’ online safety. If you’re also concerned, have open communication with your teens and help them understand the dangers. Using a parental monitoring app like KidsGuard Pro is a nice choice.

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