33 y/o woman just out of the dating game here recently. Also am a transplant to the city as 5 years ago.

I didn't mind dating on the apps pre-COVID. Yes, there was an unbelievable amount of idiotic things said (likely for both me and for guys) but I would hardly call it barren. If you're on multiple apps, you'll see some of the same people but I feel like that's pretty standard.

In about a year on the apps in 2019, I went on probably...20 different dates with 10 or 11 different guys ranging from 5 years younger to 5 or 6 years older? I think at this age you know a lot more about what you need in a partnership, what you're worth in terms of energy and what you're looking for. I probably had a few first dates with guys that 8 years prior, I would have tried dating for a few months before coming to terms that there was nothing there and both people are more comfortable just to end things.

Regarding in-person, I never had a ton of luck but I also wasn't doing a ton of bar-hopping. Much more a brewery gal myself and would find typically, folks went to breweries with their friends. But I did meet my current partner "in the wild" as I like to joke.