Are you interested in dating a Korean? In 2024, you don’t have to hop on a plane to Seoul or travel to Southern California to meet someone with a Korean heritage or background. Take your search for Korean singles online using our favorite Korean dating apps! Find matches in your local area or overseas using the distance search settings. Finding love or romance with Korean singles has never been so easy!
Dating a Korean, be it meaningful or short-term, can soon become a reality with the best Korean dating apps. These are seven solid platforms to use in 2024, three of which can only be used if you live in South Korea. The three mainstream dating app offerings cover such a broad base of users that many are Korean!
eHarmony
KoreanCupid
Amanda
Tinder Korea
Zoosk
NoonDate
OkCupid
Our team has independently researched all products and services that we have listed on this page. If you sign up or purchase through our links, we may receive a commission. See how it works.
Register as a free member at any of our best Korean dating apps. With most of these platforms, you can create a complimentary profile, set your search terms, and browse profile suggestions based on the parameters you use. The free memberships are an excellent way to decide which site will best fit your Korean dating needs!
Why Trust Our Recommendations
What makes us an authority on Korean dating apps? We are a trusted voice in recommending matchmaking platforms and dating apps for Korean singles for several reasons. Let’s tell you more about them, and you can begin dating a Korean in complete confidence that you’re using one of the best services out there!
Honest, Unbiased Review Process
We look at all the pros and cons of the dating app to assign an accurate rating. We’re completely transparent when it comes to the downsides of these platforms. Our reviews will never highlight only the good aspects and ignore the less favorable ones.
Feedback from Real People
We consult the public’s opinion of these dating apps by looking at reviews from real people with some skin in the game, those who’ve used these sites firsthand. This helps us to find potential downsides and sources of negative experiences that give our reviews some realism and depth.
Writing from Firsthand Experience
Our writers are required to sign up for free membership plans before writing their reviews. This ensures that our content is as accurate as possible and written from a place of experience. Our writers can see how the search filters work, how to set up a profile, and what kind of singles you can find.
A Closer Look at the 7 Best Korean Dating Apps
Now let’s show you what makes these the best dating apps for dating a Korean or finding meaningful, long-lasting relationships with Korean singles! Each of these has its unique purpose and brings something interesting to the table in the realm of online Korean dating.
#1: eHarmony
Membership Features
- Get daily match suggestions (without performing a search)
- Compatibility scores on all matches
- Detailed reports explaining why you matched with each member
- No-limits messaging
- See who’s viewed or liked your profile
- Go on Video Dates
If you’re looking for your soulmate, a marriage partner, or someone you’d love to spend the rest of your life with, eHarmony is the best option for meaningful Korean dating that leads to long-term relationships.
New members take the compatibility testing during registration, and eHarmony generates quality match suggestions that tick all the boxes regarding appearance, age, ethnicity, religious beliefs, education, and location. eHarmony is your best go-to to find a Korean partner interested in building something long-lasting and profound!
What Makes eHarmony Good for Serious Korean Dating?
- The 32 Dimensions of Compatibility Questionnaire ensures Korean singles are paired with singles who fit their dating preferences and parameters.
- People who state they aren’t interested in finding a serious, meaningful relationship are barred from using eHarmony.
- eHarmony offers an option to search by ethnic background, making it easy to find Korean singles.
- eHarmony members can compare their matches using the compatibility scores of each profile.
- All matches have a compatibility report stating why they’re a good fit for each member.
- eHarmony has a conservative focus on relationships, focusing on marital satisfaction, commitment, and long-lasting quality.
#2: KoreanCupid
Membership Features
- Unlimited communication with your matches
- Instant message translation
- Priority messages
- Use privacy controls to hide photos or profile info
- Profile highlights
- Join a higher membership tier to appear more frequently in the searches
KoreanCupid specifically focuses on Korean dating experiences and can be used in the United States, South Korea, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. This might be our favorite Korean dating app, but we placed it second because of its smaller dating pool of 50,000 active members. Compare that to eHarmony’s 16+ million members.
Still, KoreanCupid has a concentrated focus on Korean dating, which gives it an advantage over many other dating platforms; another notable feature of KoreanCupid is the robust member profiles that help you learn a lot about your matches, even if they’re on the other end of the world!
Why Is KoreanCupid Ideal for International Korean Dating?
- Advanced search filters let members find matches based on search terms like appearance, age, ethnicity, interest, lifestyle choice, religious practices, wanting to have kids, etc.
- The instant message translation service for premium members allows seamless communication between members who might speak different languages.
- Use live chat to maintain a face-to-face relationship or instant messaging for quick communications.
#3: Amanda
Amanda comes only as a downloadable mobile app from Google Play or the App Store and can only be used by residents of South Korea. And Amanda has gained an exciting reputation due to their unique onboarding process: 20 existing members must rate new members on a scale of 1 to 5, with those scoring 3 or over being allowed to join Amanda’s ranks.
All of this is to ensure a quality dating pool for current members! It caused quite a stir!
Does Amanda Provide Good Options for Korean Singles?
- The odd vetting process ensures that existing members have a quality dating pool.
- Amanda’s method for accepting new members reduces the number of fake accounts and scam profiles.
- New applicants can adjust their profile information or post better profile photos to pass through the acceptance process.
#4: Tinder Korea
Membership Features
- Swipe-style profiles with unlimited likes
- Rewind your swipes to fix mistakes
- 1 Free Boost per month
- 5 Super Likes per week
- Unlimited messaging
- Meet or match with anyone across the globe using Tinder Passport
Regarding casual dates, hookups, or flings, there’s no better option for Korean singles than Tinder! But we’re not referring to regular Tinder. No, this is Tinder Korea, the branch of Tinder designed explicitly for South Koreans living in the Seoul area or anywhere else on the peninsula. The site looks and operates the same way it would anywhere else, but it caters to the largest South Korean dating market on the planet!
Why Is Tinder Ideal for Casual Korean Dating?
- The swipe-style design allows you to cycle through a bunch of profiles quickly.
- Korean singles can send messages to matches without waiting for a mutual like to enable the chat function.
- Tinder Passport allows singles from South Korea to date internationally and, thus, expand their dating options.
#5: Zoosk
Membership Features
- Unlimited communications
- Swipe-style profiles
- SmartPicks generated on your swiping patterns
- Video catting
Zoosk is available in over 80 countries worldwide, including South Korea. Over 40 million members have a Zoosk account, and over 3 million messages are sent daily on the platform. This is a dating app with a ton of foot traffic and one of the better options for finding a large dating pool of Korean singles. Zoosk offers advanced search settings so members can look for matches based on ethnicity.
And Zoosk’s attractive, easy-to-view profiles on the Carousel make meeting Korean singles a lot of fun. Based on your swiping preferences, Zoosk refines its match suggestions to ensure you meet Korean men or women who click with you on every level: age, appearance, distance, educational background, occupation, and many more.
What Makes Zoosk One of the Best Korean Dating Apps?
- Most members are in their 20s looking for casual romance, flings, or short-term relationships.
- Zoosk is available in South Korea and 79 other countries. You can find Korean singles in various places across the world.
- Video chat (Great Dates) and Zoosk Livestreams let you meet matches face to face for a more intimate connection.
- You can meet singles who want to talk and get to know you (over 3 million messages are sent daily).
Read Discover Korean Dating with Zoosk for additional info on why Zoosk is one of the best Korean dating apps out there!
#6: NoonDate
Have you ever heard of FOMO (fear of missing out)? This is a feeling that online singles can get when using dating apps. Some places have so many options that it can cause you to feel overwhelmed and hesitant to settle on anyone.
But NoonDate’s approach to matching helps to alleviate the FOMO feelings!
NoonDate is only available for singles residing in South Korea, most notably the Seoul area, and they use a unique strategy for matchmaking. This involves members getting two matches at noon and two more at 8 pm. Matching is done based on the profile information you post, including: your age, location, interests, values/beliefs, education, occupation, and other factors.
What Makes eHarmony Good for Serious Korean Dating?
- Four matches per day limit the number of options and force you to settle on a profile.
- Because new members are brought on with the approval of existing customers, the matches are much better quality and lead to singles at NoonDate being generally more satisfied with the experience.
#7: OkCupid
Membership Features
- Priority messaging
- Daily auto boosts
- Read message notifications
- Unlimited messaging and likes
- Get 3 Superlikes per day
- Used advanced search filters to find matches
- OkCupid Passport is for international dating opportunities
It’s one thing to find Korean singles who want to fall in love or go on dates, but it’s another to find a compatible match with someone who shares your interests or believes in similar causes. Enter OkCupid! They’re all about compatible matches, and you know this right away after a few minutes of looking over one of their profiles. They come with a compatibility score, a ton of self-authored profile sections, and more detailed bio information than many other dating apps.
OkCupid has a Passport search option for Korean dating that allows members to find matches in other countries. We looked through many of these profiles, and many of the suggestions come from multiple Asian countries, including the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and South Korea.
Why Choose Korean Dating Apps?
Discover why it’s best to use these Korean dating apps and websites to find love, romance, or dates with Korean singles. There are two significant reasons why these seven apps are a cut above the rest.
Good Search Filters
Most of these Korean dating apps focus on Korean singles specifically. Still, the other sites have great search filters that allow customers to inform their search using factors like appearance, ethnicity, location, religious beliefs, and more. And once you’ve found Korean matches, you can use other terms to find your ideal candidate, like educational level, occupation, lifestyle choices, etc.
A Wide Range of Relationships
Each platform covers a unique corner of the Korean dating market:
- eHarmony: Best for Meaningful Dating and Finding Marriage Partners
- KoreanCupid: Best Overall for Dating a Korean
- Amanda: Best Dating Pool of Korean Singles by Quality
- Tinder Korea: Best for Flings, Casual Romance, and Dating
- Zoosk: Best Dating Pool of Korean Singles by Volume
- NoonDate: Best for a Simplified Korean Dating Experience
- OkCupid: Best for Dating a Korean Who Shares Your Interests and Values
Registering a New Account
Most all Korean dating apps in this review come as a downloadable mobile app for iOS and Android as well as a website version of the app., but there are some exceptions to this rule. Learn how to access our favorite Korean dating apps on your mobile device or desktop computer.
| Dating App | Internet Browser | Google Play | Apple Store |
|---|---|---|---|
eHarmony | Yes | Yes | Yes |
KoreanCupid | Yes | Yes | No |
Amanda | No | Yes | Yes |
Tinder Korea | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Zoosk | Yes | Yes | Yes |
NoonDate | No | Yes | Yes |
OkCupid | Yes | Yes | Yes |
- Amanda and NoonDate are the only two that come exclusively as a downloadable app.
- KoreanCupid is the only dating app that’s available only on Google Play. There’s no mobile app available at the App Store.
- Most of the registration times to join these Korean dating apps are between 10-15 minutes, except eHarmony, which takes 30-45 minutes.
Are There Free Korean Dating Apps?
There are ways to use our favorite Korean dating apps for free, but it might not be in the way that you think! Free trials are much different than they were over ten years ago. Learn about the “freemium” model and how it can help you find the right Korean dating app.
Freemium Models
Korean dating apps offer prospective customers free memberships, but these don’t come with every feature and perk that premium paying customers can access. These free memberships are based on the “freemium” model. More on this below!
Old Free Membership Setups
Free trials for dating apps used to be structured where you could gain unlimited access to the platform and all its features if you entered payment information. You wouldn’t be charged for a membership plan, but if you didn’t cancel your free membership by the end date of the trial plan, the site would charge you the membership cost with the payment information they had on file.
Current Free Memberships
Register a new account with a Korean dating site and gain a few free privileges for your trouble. You can create a free profile, enter search terms, and browse other members’ profiles. Sometimes, you can send free “likes” to show interest in certain members. But for any other perks or benefits, you must become a paying customer!
Feature Limitations
Dating app free trials usually allow customers to enjoy the following for free:
- Creating a complementary profile
- Entering search settings to find matches
- Browsing profiles and photos
- Sending “likes”
- Adding members to a Favorites List
- Limited messaging with paying members as a free member
As you can see, the free membership is quite limited. To partake in better features like messaging and communications, you must upgrade your free membership to a premium subscription plan.
Paid Upgrades
Here are a few examples of the paid features that premium members have access to once they financially commit to a real membership plan:
| Dating App | Paid Upgrades |
|---|---|
eHarmony |
|
KoreanCupid |
|
Tinder |
|
Zoosk |
|
OkCupid |
|
Tips for Dating Korean Singles
If you’re unfamiliar with some of the customs that come with the Korean dating experience, check out some of our best tips and helpful hints to use when dating a Korean.
- South Korean Singles Might See You as a Player – Many women living in South Korea view foreigners, typically Western men, as playboys, so don’t be surprised if it takes a while for them to warm up to you. Some time might need to pass before that trust is built, so use every opportunity you can to show them that you’re a man of integrity and commitment, not a womanizer or looking to play the field.
- Men Are Expected to Pay for the First Few Dates – It’s still customary for men to pay for the dinner, the movie, or the drinks on the first few dates. As you get to know one another better, this is subject to change, but it can make a great first impression and falls in line with traditional Korean dating customs. It shows that you’re not afraid to treat, can provide, and have a generous way about you.
- Communicate Soon After the First Date – In Korean culture, contacting your match the day after the first date is important. If you don’t, it can be taken as a sign that you’re not interested in pursuing the relationship. Korean singles enjoy frequent contact with their dates, primarily via texting, so an excellent way to show interest after the first date is to text the next morning to follow up.
- Keep PDA to a Minimum – Although Korean singles generally love a lot of physical contact in public, like holding hands or putting arms around one another’s backs, public displays of affection like making out, inappropriate touching, and the like are considered over the line and best reserved for moments of privacy.
- Don’t Forget Couples Holidays on the 14th – In the US, Valentine’s Day falls on February 14th every year. Long ago, South Korea applied this concept to every month of the year. Some of these include Kiss Day in June and Wine Day in October. Remember to do something special for these occasions, especially if your partner is into the tradition of celebrating them.
Avoiding Scams and Frauds
Running into a scammer and fraudulent account can be a big problem for anyone. Still, there’s a lot more risk involved for someone in an international dating scenario or a long-distance relationship. There’s a difference between Korean dating, where both people live in Seoul or LA, and Korean dating, where one partner is from the US and the other is from South Korea. For a relationship of that kind of commitment, you want to know that those you’ve met online are the real deal!
Follow some of the best practices and strategies to avoid getting taken by a scammer on our favorite Korean dating apps.
- The Profile Photo is Telling – A good rule of thumb when it comes to profile photos; avoid singles with a stock image posted, no picture of themselves whatsoever, or images where they’re trying to conceal something about their appearance. They might not show any of themselves below the neck or try not to reveal part of their face. These are all signs that this person is trying to be deceptive or hiding something. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, it could be that they’re shy or lack confidence, but our best advice is to move on to other options.
- Make Sure the Profile Is Verified – Several Korean dating apps give their members the option to verify their accounts by submitting an official ID like a passport or driver’s license. In return, members who verify their profiles get a badge showing that their identity was officially confirmed. Look for these badges to know which singles are definitely legit members.
- Use Video Chats to Your Advantage – If you’re unsure that your match is who they say they are, ask them to get onto the video chat so you can see them. Most Korean dating apps come with this feature. If they’re hesitant to get on, there’s a good chance that they’re keeping something from you. In that case, it’s best to move on to other match suggestions.
- Check Out Social Media – It’s super easy to find match suggestions on other social media platforms, especially if you have their name, location, where they went to school, or where they are employed. Take to Facebook or Instagram to confirm that your match’s identity is correct and checks out!
FAQ
Check out some of the most common questions we’ve gotten over the years about Korean singles dating online. These are real questions that come from our customers and readers.
What Is the Best Korean Dating App?
Overall, we have to go with KoreanCupid due to its niche focus on Korean dating and its decent membership pool of 50,000 active members. Unlike the mainstream apps we suggest, like Zoosk or OkCupid, you don’t have to filter search for singles of Korean heritage or background. Most people using KoreanCupid are Korean!
Is It Hard to Find Korean Singles?
If you live outside of South Korea, it can be, but it depends on where you live. For example, if you’re in the United States, you can meet single Koreans in NYC or the LA area of Southern California. Typically, the less rural your location is, the greater the chance of meeting a Korean. Dating apps make it much easier to find Korean singles due to location and ethnicity filters, no matter where you live.
Are There Free Korean Dating Apps?
Any sites we suggest in this review come with free memberships, but they’re limited to creating a profile, setting up search filters, and finding members based on search terms. Some dating apps offer limited messaging with premium members as a part of the free membership, but this doesn’t apply to all.
Do I Need to Be Korean to Use Korean Dating Apps?
The only requirement to join most of these platforms is to be 18 or older. There are no restrictions based on your ethnic background. However, a few of these sites, like NoonDate or Amanda, require members to reside in South Korea. But having these sites open to non-Korean singles opens the door for all kinds of unique relational setups, most notably Korean dating with Westerners.
What Are the Best Countries for Dating a Korean?
You have the best luck finding love or romance with Korean singles in these places outside of South Korea: Japan, China, Australia, Canada, and the United States. In particular, the US has over two million Korean residents, and most reside on the West Coast (San Francisco, San Jose, and LA) or the Northeast (New York, Philly, and Washington D.C.).
Where’s the Best Place to Find Dates and Short-Term Relationships with Koreans?
We recommend using Tinder Korea or Zoosk to find fun dates, flings, or hookups. These dating apps have casual dating and romance as their mainstay priority, but they’ve been known to connect singles who later become married or stay in long-term relationships. For something more meaningful, we recommend you check out eHarmony or KoreanCupid.