When I asked this question in a Google search, I received 2,590,000 hits in less that one second! This does not mean that every dating site is a scam. It does hint that users need to exercise prudence and caution in using them. (Perhaps the term DUE DILIGENCE applies here, as well!)
As an example, at the time the federal government took JDI Dating to task for ripping off their customers, their company operated at least 18 different domains, including Cupid's Wand and Naughty Over 40. I found the following YouTube video helpful in understanding these issues. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LuguQFpGRI
Even the sites with integrity are for profit businesses. Match.com, for example, operates many brands, as shown in the following clip from their parent website - http://www.peoplemedia.com/ .....
Many of the "dating" sites are more interested in revenue than morality. They serve more as "Hook-up" sites than dating sites as shown by this banner on the log-in page for the popular "Plenty of Fish" site.
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some a little more subtle, and hosted by your friends at AARP! I already didn't like AARP, because they spend their members' resources to support socialist political programs, and now, porn sites, too? The above banner is located at on POF's website along with hot links to dozens of sites from Christian dating to "Easy Hook-Ups", "Cheating Housewives" and much more.
Apparently the list above is not a total listing. Match and others operate lesser promoted brands to cater to special groups, including same gender. Most allow free access to view possible matches, but zero mobility to even view their profiles without a paid subscription. Most subject you to tons of advertising, some of that directly links to pornographic sites. Often you will discover that by registering for free access to one site, you have been secretly enrolled in several other sites. Getting out of that spider's web is often very tricky. Many of the dating sites stuff their list with phony listings..."online cupids", or "VC" (meaning virtual cupid) whose profiles may not actually exist in the real world. But, they entice users to pay the "upgrade" to be able to learn more and contact these phonies. These situations are disclosed, buried in the "fine print" of the "Terms of Service" as being for "entertainment purposes".
They all have numerous streams of income from your personal subscription, even the seemingly "FREE" sites. You should look into how they are using and selling all the very personal information you freely volunteer to them, often including extremely private and personal photos.
Wouldn't it be awesome if the "people matching" sites were more interested the user than their wallet?
"There's a universal desire to discover love and it can be hard to find, but that's where we step in — we narrow down the world of possibilities to a personal A-list of meaningful introductions that get singles closer to finding the one." (eHarmony's "about" page)
One interesting article comes from the FBI, and can be read at https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/sandiego/news/press-releases/fbi-warns-of-online-dating-scams . A similar warning from Australia's scamwatchers is found at https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/types-of-scams/dating-romance
I encourage you to ask the same question, "Are 'Dating' websites all scams?" and do your OWN DUE DILIGENCE!
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