So Valentine’s Day has you thinking about a relationship?

Maybe it’s because your plans include cuddling up with your best friends, Ben & Jerry. Or maybe you were unceremoniously dumped by your good-for-nothing ex right before Valentine’s Day.

Now is the time to explore and search for that serious relationship you deserve. But where to start? Do you troll bars in an attempt to find your bae, only to be hit on by creepers? Do you scour the web for a lover and a friend only to be absolutely horrified?

Of course not. You go to Tinder and find the best of both worlds with only some of the negatives. Really.

How do I know the hookup app is a great way to find happily-ever-afters in addition to one-night Prince Charmings? Because I met my girlfriend of more than a year on Tinder.

After I stumbled on her profile, I took a look at her Facebook page. We noticed that we listened to the same music, had similar political leanings and even liked the same stupid pages, including “Let Cookie Monster host SNL,” which we both liked circa eighth grade. I decided to message her. A year later, and here we are.

In a way, apps like Tinder and Grindr have added a new dimension to online dating that we’ve never had before: a true randomness to meeting. Websites like Match.com use algorithms and data to calculate how well you match with someone, but something about that just seems too clinical, too forced, too desperate. On Tinder, the only factors are age and location, and the rest is up to you.

Searching for love virtually used to feel like the opposite of chatting up that regulation hottie by the bar. But Tinder changes that. By limiting the area in which you can find potential soulmates and presenting photos of them at their best, Tinder does give users the feeling of meeting someone random by fate at the bar.

Yet by also giving us little bits of information about people and making sure both parties want to interact, it takes away the sting of rejection and some of the awkwardness of talking for the first time.

Tinder has brought natural dating into the 21st century. It’s not entirely organic, and people still risk being cat-fished. But at least in my experience, Tinder has brought actual chance back into the search for a significant other, and it puts a spark into online dating.

I can’t guarantee you’ll meet your special someone over Tinder – but you never know. Your S.O. could be a swipe away.