My Week With MeetMoi: Putting Location-Based Dating To The Test

This review is sponsored by MeetMoi. 

When it comes to dating, I like to keep it interesting. That is, I'm not married to just one method of looking for Mr. Right. From online dating to fix-ups and everything in-between… you name it, I'll try it. So, when my editor asked if I'd test out MeetMoi—the leading mobile social discovery service in the U.S.—for the first time, I was psyched. 

In case you're not familiar, MeetMoi is a location-based dating app that is decidedly "not an online dating service," as the company proudly promotes on its website. Instead, MeetMoi makes "real-life introductions," connecting interested singles based on proximity, promoting instant chat sessions and  encouraging offline meetings. Refreshing, right?

On my 25-minute bus ride home from work, I registered for MeetMoi's mobile app using my smart phone. Already, the fact that I could activate an account on-the-go set this service apart from the other location-based apps I've tried. After all, I'm a busy, professional gal with an active social life and not a lot of free time to spare. So, I need a dating program that adjusts to my schedule, not the other way around.

Right away, MeetMoi fit the bill. Within minutes, it recommended three eligible guys for me—all right in my New York City neighborhood. New potential suitors all before getting home from work? Now that's convenience! I was already pretty impressed.

I also appreciated MeetMoi's subtle style. The app's design is remarkably streamlined and discreet. There are no bright red hearts anywhere to be found, so I felt completely comfortable using the app in public. I didn't have to worry about the busybody behind me peering over my shoulder. She would have no way of knowing what I was up to.

Clicking around the site was fun—kind of like shopping! I could browse through boys, politely rejecting the ones I didn't like while messaging or "winking" at the ones I did. Of the three bachelors MeetMoi recommended to me off the bat, I winked at two and ditched the third. (His spiky, twice-gelled hair was a turnoff to me, as I'm looking for a low-maintenance kind of man.)

Every day for a week, I signed into MeetMoi after work. Each time, my matches were increasingly up my alley. The more I used it, the better the app became at selecting men for me. And, when it didn't offer any freshly selected, hand-picked guys, I could use the "browse" feature to peruse profiles and sort them according to any number of criteria, including "best matches" and "nearest to me." Keep Reading...

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By day five, I was starting to fear I'd become stuck in the clicking-and-winking phase, having exchanged winks with several guys without having any follow through with a chat.

"I'm starting to think I might be single forever," I complained to a friend over after-work cocktails one day, when suddenly, my phone flashed with a notification from MeetMoi.

"Jeremy44 wants to chat with you!" it said. That screen name rang a bell, though I wasn't entirely sure why. I opened the app and saw his profile photo. Lo and behold, one of the guys whose profiles I liked had also liked mine. A surge of optimism rushed through my body. Maybe I won't be single forever, after all, I thought.

I reviewed his profile. He was 32 (just like me), tall, handsome, employed and everything else I look for in an online dating profile. We chatted casually over the course of about an hour, all while I sipped my drink at happy hour and gossiped with my girlfriend. This was exciting.

MeetMoi's chat feature allowed me the opportunity to get a feel for Jeremy44 without any obligation, but by the end of our allotted 60-minute session, I wanted more. "Should I give him my number?" I asked my friend nervously. "Go for it!" she urged, and I boldly obliged. "Here's hoping he'll call!" I said, and we clinked our cocktails.

Only time will tell what will happen between me and Jeremy44. All I know is that I can't wait to see what MeetMoi has in store for me next week!