There’s a lot of skepticism in the world of online dating. For every reason you can come up with to try it, you could probably come up with 10 to 20 reasons not to try it without thinking too hard. But there is one surefire reason that online dating does indeed work.

The reason online dating works is because of the large number of eligible singles trying many of these services today. Due to its vast increase in acceptance over the past several years, the number of users has been growing exponentially. People who have yet to find successful with offline dating are turning to online dating, while others have simply made themselves available to both mediums in hopes of finding Mr. or Ms. Right.

The next time you are trying offline dating — whether it be at a bar, a coffee shop, or a nightclub — take a look around at the number of attractive men or women surrounding you. Even disregarding the fact that not all of them are single, you will only be able to count a limited number. And relative to the number of available singles actively seeking the Web for others who are mutually interested in a relationship, the number of potential dates you can find offline is abysmally small.

Finding a site that shows positive results in terms of dates doesn’t take long at all. And when using a free online dating service, you don’t have to worry about monthly fees, meaning that you have as much time as necessary to figure out the pros and cons of the online dating scene and the particular service itself.

Because online dating allows a thousands or even millions of people the opportunity to reach out to you, the method by which one responds to flirtation and date requests is notably different from offline dating. Telling someone you’re not interested when face to face is always a disappointment, but it can also be considered rude or insulting depending on how it is perceived. Responding with a simple “no thank you” or “I’m not interested” is more acceptable in the online world, and it lacks the awkwardness and discomfort that would exist when turning someone down in person.

If you’re still trying to find the right person, or even if you’d just like to find some new friends living in your neighborhood, online dating services are waiting for you. They make it easy to get started, and some of them won’t even cost you a dime.