Alternative to Stir
Dating that makes room for your life.
Dating with a full life calls for a little help. Stir understands the single-parent chapter; Known can help with the introductions. Tell us about your life, what matters to you and who you'd like to meet. We'll get to know you and help plan a date when you're both interested. Make a little room for your own story, too.
Seriously this is the only app that doesn’t waste your time. Been on 2 dates so far and I just deleted hinge bc it doesn’t feel worth it anymore. Ty Known🩷
I really liked how the process felt personal from the very beginning. The phone call was relaxed, easy to talk through, and made it feel like they were genuinely trying to understand what I was looking for instead of just matching based on a profile. It definitely felt more thoughtful than using a typical dating app. I’m excited to see where it goes!
App wow right now get with the times.
How is Known different?
What will it feel like in person?
Skip the pen-pal phase
We believe chemistry is best discovered in person, not over a screen. Known skips the endless small talk and conversations that go nowhere, so you can see if there’s a spark in person. Once you both say yes to an introduction, Known finds a time that works and plans the date. Save the real getting-to-know-you part for when you meet.
Do you want to browse, or be introduced?
Dating that cares about your time
Known is searching for your match every day, so you don’t have to spend hours swiping or checking for someone new. When we find someone you want to meet, we plan the date and send you the details. You just have to show up.
Want a date that fits your life?
Your preferences matter.
Your match, preferences, and availability help shape the date. Known looks for a place that fits, not just somewhere to meet.
Ready for something beyond an inbox?
Meet people looking for what you are
Known is a community of intentional daters who are ready for a real relationship. Whether you’re newly single, divorced, have been dating for a while, or simply ready to find your person - our matchmaker gets to know you and what you’re looking for so we can find the same in the people we introduce you to.
Can someone else handle the planning?
We make the date happen
When you and your match are ready to meet, Known finds a time that works for both of you, picks a spot nearby, books the reservation, and sends you the details. We take care of everything so you don’t have to.
More than a questionnaire?
Meet someone chosen for you
There’s a lot about you that could never fit into a dating profile. At Known, we get to know all the little things that make you, you - your quirks, values, aspirations, and what you’re looking for in a relationship. We do the same with your potential matches, so we can introduce you to someone we believe you’ll have real compatibility with.
Known vs Stir
The starting point
Stir focuses on single parents and the realities of dating while raising children.
Known starts with a conversation about your values, preferences and relationship goals.
Getting to know someone
Its profiles and matching questions explore personality and values.
When both people want to meet, Known helps plan the date and its practical details.
Your phone
Stir has listings on both the US App Store and Google Play.
Known is available on iOS and Android, so you can choose the same matchmaking service on either phone.
Different than other apps and it really feels more personal
Love this app, super impressed
I met my love, her name was Judith, On Known, where something real felt right. Not swipes, not likes, not small talk fading, Just one conversation changed my life. Built on knowing us first, not rushing, It led to something real and true. No game, no gamble, just real life, And somehow Known led me to you.
How Known Works
A little more personal.
Swipeless dating.
You don't browse people. You're introduced to them.
Known starts by getting to know you. Not just your profile, but how you think, what you value, and who you're drawn to.
From there, we introduce you to one person at a time. Someone chosen with intention. Someone worth meeting.
No endless options. No small talk.
If there's mutual interest, we set the date. Time, place, everything handled. All you have to do is show up.
It gets better over time.
After each date, Known learns. What felt right. What didn't. What surprised you.
So every introduction becomes more accurate. More natural. More you.
Less searching. More knowing.
Some of our favorite places
Where Known dates take place
Jackson Square / San Francisco
Cassava San Francisco
Cassava is now a daytime Japanese-Californian café in Jackson Square, tucked into the courtyard at One Jackson Place. Meet for matcha beneath the palms, then stay for a bento or a sando if neither of you is in a hurry.
Go on a date here with Known
Lower Pacific Heights / San Francisco
Sweet Maple
Sweet Maple is for the date who takes breakfast seriously. The Lower Pacific Heights restaurant serves American brunch with Asian influences, including its thick-cut, sweet-and-spicy Millionaire’s Bacon.
Go on a date here with Known
Lower Haight / San Francisco
Cafe Réveille
Réveille’s Steiner Street café puts specialty coffee and an all-day selection of salads and sandwiches within reach of Duboce Park. The minimalist corner space makes a useful meeting point for a daytime date: begin with coffee, then choose between something to eat and a walk.
Go on a date here with KnownA few possibilities from our venue library. Your date’s location depends on your match, preferences, and availability.
Your pocket matchmaker
Less searching.
More knowing.
A conversation. An introduction. A date worth getting ready for.
Download Known
Tap to InstallA little more to know