We’ve all heard of Tinder by now; an app that allows you to find love (as if!) or just find someone of the same interest to hang out and then find love (I guess…). If you haven’t though, it’s time to come out of that 300-year old cave. Unless of course, you prefer to ignore these dating platforms and prefer to find love or companionship the old-fashioned way by simply heading out and being sociable.

But what if you are too shy, too busy or just not outgoing enough and prefer to find companionship while you’re say, stuck in traffic, queueing up for a sundae, or even working from home? And are there other alternatives to Tinder (which you obviously can’t catch a break with because of the absence of a six-pack or perky chest)? Here’s a few other platforms for those who’ve been shit out of luck in the Malaysian dating scene.

 

Ok Cupid

Here’s one that’s gaining some traction in the Malaysian online-dating scene – claimed to be the Google of online dating by the Boston Globe, it is claimed that there are 3.5 million users at the moment. First time users can straightaway notice its distinction from Tinder upon registration that it caters to a huge demographic in that straight men/women are given the avenues to look for a heterosexual relationship and “beyond”.

Founded in Americaland, other features include member-created quizzes and multiple choice questions amongst users to generate matches. Another notable feature is that OKC, as it is more commonly known by most people, is that there are multiple modes of communication including instant messaging and emails – so never leave your PC unattended with the girlfriend around. Kidding! We do not in any way encourage cheating on spouses or bigamy.

 

Paktor

It means dating in Cantonese by the way. Originating from a least expected source, Singapore, you’d think that in a country so small that people can easily “find” each other but I guess the founders, saw a gap in the community that needed addressing. Upon expanding in Thailand for only a month, Paktor has seen itself spread like a medieval plague all over South East Asia in countries such as Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia and South Korea.

As this idea was founded after a heartbreak, this app seeks to eliminate the fear and prospects of rejection – most of it at least. Apparently there are already more than 100,000 matches through the app, ASSUMING it all took place in Singapore, Paktor then would’ve hooked up (amidst even temporary) at least 200,000 individuals – that’s about 5% of the nation? My maths can be pretty shitty guys, forgive me.

With the app only requiring a two-click registration process that syncs with a user’s Facebook account, it doesn’t require lengthy and shameless descriptions of yourself! With Thai, Korean, Malay and Chinese languages available among many others, you should expect Paktor to be a household name on this side of the world soon.

 

Shaadi

Claiming to be the World’s No.1 Matchmaking Service, it caters specifically to an Indian demographic; this according to an Indian friend’s mom, is for the modern parents to find suitors online for their children. That said, it may just be one individual’s opinion and does not represent the true purpose of the website.

A quick check on the site showed that there are over 30 million Indian matrimony profiles (as stated in the website) and you can choose your male or female preferences by filtering even the mother tongue. You even have the privilege of picking suitors of different ethnicity such as Punjabi, Malayalam, Gujarati and many more before you browse through profiles of extensive description.

 

Mat & Minah

Another product of our neighbouring Singapore, it’s easy to confuse it as one that was given birth in our native land of Malaysia – didn’t think a more civilised community would use such slangs but that’s just maybe cause I’m boring and don’t travel much, to Singapore, especially.

What separates this app from the others is that it’s serves as a marketplace of sorts; with an event calendar feature and serves as a platform for buying and selling items. With 2.3k users (as stated in the website) and 60:40 Mat to Minah ratio (hahaha!), the app makes you go through a two-step verification via SMS and Facebook login for security purposes so you can be assured that there aren’t any creepy “balak-balak” (reference for men or dudes in the Malay language) hounding you.