Singapore Tests Government-Run Dating Service as Fertility Rate Hits Record Low

FirstDate is designed as an alternative to browsing a stream of profiles on conventional dating apps. Users fill out a questionnaire about their interests, habits, values and preferences rather than swiping through candidates. The service then sends each user one match per cycle, with a cycle defined as the time it takes for a match to be mutually accepted and presumably acted on. Each match comes with a compatibility score, a brief description of the other person and a personal note.

The matching relies on the Gale-Shapley algorithm, a well-known mathematical method that solves the stable matching problem by pairing two sets of participants according to their ranked preferences. Once a match is made, users have 72 hours to accept each other before their contact details are shared. Optional "Date Quests" and post-date surveys are intended to encourage in-person meetings and to assess how they go.

GovTech says accounts are verified through Singapore's Singpass digital identity system to reduce fake profiles, and that a user's profile is visible only to the matches assigned to that user. According to the agency, user data is protected under government security standards, is not sold to third parties and can be deleted upon request.

The pilot comes as Singapore's birth rate has reached a new low. The country's total fertility rate fell to 0.87 children per woman in 2025, down from 1.24 a decade earlier, The Straits Times reported. In April the government announced a new workgroup tasked with addressing falling birth rates; the newspaper reported that the group is expected to report its findings by early 2027.

The Mashable report describes the initiative as the government trying its hand at matchmaking again, though the current pilot is confined to public officers.