What Are The Real Chances Of Finding Love Online In Singapore?

Looking for love on the Internet is pretty common. But why – and how – are our dating habits evolving?

- Adora Wong

You’ve probably given online dating a go at least once. Even if you haven’t, you must know people who have. In this day and age where we can shop for groceries without leaving the house, it’s hardly strange we can also look for love without having to put on pants.

Not that it’s always been so easy – online dating has come a long way since the first internet dating service (match. com) was created in 1995. There was a stigma attached to it for many years, but as our dating patterns have evolved, it’s become a norm. So what has changed, and what sort of power has online dating given us?

Time to ditch the stigma Online dating platforms are now able to accommodate all sorts of specific requirements, so that even the fussiest singles have a shot at love. Whether you only want to be with someone who’s a strict vegetarian, or will only be happy with a nudist, there is already a place online to meet those preferences – no matter how bizarre.

Even if you’re not that picky, you may have some sort of basic criteria for the type of people you want to date. In Singapore, Muslim singles can connect with one another on platforms such as LoveHabibi, Muzmatch, and Mat & Minah, and Christian singles can use Christian Connection and Christian Café. If it’s salary and ambition you care about, which, let’s admit, is pretty reasonable, there are platforms like Ivory, a “members-only dating app for ambitious, outstanding singles”. This app, in particular, has drawn a fair bit of flak for promoting elitism, but surely there must have been demand for there to have been supply. And if it serves its purpose, who’s to say it’s “bad”?