Online dating is a great way to meet people and to get to know a bit about them before you invest time and emotional energy in a relationship. Here are four good reasons to give it a try.

1. It’s easy. It’s much easier to connect to people on an online dating service than, say, to go to a bar and try to talk to new people. Or to go on a blind date that a well-meaning friend arranged for you. Or a lot of other more “traditional” ways of meeting people.

With internet dating, everybody posts his or her profile, and you can check each other out in privacy, without distractions and without pressure. You have less risk of rejection, because you usually email or message each other before talking about actual dating. It’s a lot easier to approach someone online than in person, and you can move forward at your own pace from there.

2. It’s less random. When you go to a social gathering and meet someone new, you don’t have any idea what interests him or her, what he does, what kinds of things she likes, or anything else. Even when someone hooks you up, you don’t usually know an awful lot about your date.

When you use an online dating service, you have reviewed the other person’s profile before you even contact him or her. Most people are pretty truthful on their profiles (while putting their best feet forward, of course), so you have at least some basic information before you ever make contact with the person.

For instance, if you serve in the military, and someone’s profile says they are anti-military; that’s a pretty good indicator that the relationship would have some problems. With online dating, you get to do some screening before dating someone.

3. It’s safe. Despite concerns about predators on the internet, it is quite safe as long as you take the necessary precautions. There are common sense safe internet practices that you should take, like not divulging your address to anyone you don’t know. Even though there are creeps and perverts on the internet, it is still at least as safe as traditional dating – probably safer. There are creeps and perverts in the real world, too.

Most online dating services have safety protocols built in so that nobody can access your personal information without your permission. As discussed above, internet dating services allow you to screen potential dates. As you review profiles, your instincts will help you choose people you want to get in touch with.

Online dating gives you the opportunity to find out a bit about people before you meet them, which doesn’t always happen in the “real” world.

4. There’s a big gene pool. In traditional dating, you are limited to the people who are present in your geographical area, or who know your friends or relatives. With internet dating, those limits disappear. The pool of people you can meet with an online dating service extends all over the world. That’s a lot more people than you will meet anywhere in your home town.

Online dating has many benefits, and is the way many people prefer to meet new people. Only you can decide if the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.