Sydney doesn't really have singles bars. It has bars where single people go, which is a different thing: nobody is wearing a badge, half the room is on a date already, and the other half came with four friends and isn't leaving them. So the honest version of this list isn't "bars full of singles". It's bars where the layout, the noise level and the night of the week give you a real chance of talking to a stranger.
Every bar here is real and linked to its own site. Check the hours before you go, and read the last section before you pin your hopes on any of them.
What makes a bar good for meeting people
- A bar you can sit at. Stools along the bar put strangers next to each other. Booths and tables keep groups in groups.
- Somewhere you can hear. If you have to shout, you get one line in and then give up. Garden bars and terraces are quieter than rooms with a DJ.
- A reason to stand around. A beer garden, a trivia night, a live band: anything that gives people a reason to loiter near each other with a drink and nowhere to be.
- Weeknights, not Saturdays. Thursday after work is the single best night in Sydney for talking to someone new: the groups are looser, people are relaxed, and nobody is in a cab to the next thing. Friday is louder, Saturday is dates and birthdays.
Surry Hills and the inner city
The Winery
A leafy outdoor terrace by day and a fairy-lit bar by night, with a long list of wine by the glass. The terrace is the bit that works: people stand, it's not too loud, and a glass of something is an easy opener. thewinerysurryhills.com.au
Dolphin Hotel
Three floors with a public bar, a dining room and an open-air terrace, open from midday until late with walk-ins welcome. The public bar and the terrace are the social bits; the dining room is for dates. dolphinhotel.com.au
Forrester's
A century-old community pub with a proper public bar, a leafy room called Phylli's and an upstairs event space. Trivia nights are an underrated way to meet people, because the teams talk to each other. It's also where Oh Hi runs its Surry Hills speed dating evening. forresters.com.au
The Rocks and the harbour
The Glenmore Hotel
A pub whose rooftop looks over the Opera House and the harbour, which means everyone up there is in a good mood and standing near each other for the view. Weekend DJs make it louder; a weekday sunset is the better bet. theglenmore.com.au
Opera Bar
The big harbourside bar under the Opera House, with live music every day and a crowd that's half locals after work and half visitors. It's busy and open-air, so it's better for a drink with a friend where you might talk to the next table than for a lone mission. operabar.com.au
Newtown and the inner west
Bank Hotel
Three spaces in one: a garden bar downstairs, a public bar with a terrace on King Street, and the Waywards ballroom upstairs for gigs. The garden bar on a weeknight is the easiest room in Newtown to talk to someone in. bankhotel.com.au
Newtown Hotel
A heritage pub with free entertainment most nights, which gives everyone a reason to be there and something to talk about. It's also where Oh Hi's Newtown evenings run, in the Supper Club. newtownhotel.com.au
North Shore and Bondi
The Oaks Hotel
The beer garden around the tree is one of the North Shore's great loitering spaces: lots of standing room, lots of groups drifting into each other. Oh Hi's Neutral Bay evening is in the Parlour Bar. oakshotel.com.au
The Chatswood Hotel
A long-standing local by the station with a shaded beer garden and a sports bar, busy with office workers after five. The beer garden on a Thursday is the pick. It hosts Oh Hi's Chatswood evening. chatswoodhotel.com.au
Hotel Ravesis
A Bondi Beach landmark with a classic public bar downstairs and terraces with ocean views. The public bar at sunset is where the locals are; the club upstairs is a different, louder proposition. hotelravesis.com
The honest bit: a bar is a cold room
Here's what actually happens when you go to any of these to "meet someone". You get a drink. You look around. Everyone's in a group, or on a date, or on their phone. You pick the one person who looks approachable, rehearse something, and then their friend comes back from the bar. You have another drink. You go home. That's not a failure of nerve; it's the format. Nobody in a bar has agreed to meet anyone, so every approach starts from zero and most never start.
A hosted night fixes the only thing that's broken. At an Oh Hi speed dating evening the room is twelve women and twelve men in one age bracket, everyone single, everyone there to meet someone, in a reserved area of one of the pubs above. A host does the introductions, each conversation is six minutes, and the next morning only mutual matches hear anything. Same bar, same drink in your hand, but every person you talk to has already said yes to talking to you.
So use the list: these are good bars and a Thursday drink in any of them is a fine night out. Just don't make meeting someone depend on it. See the upcoming evenings, pick your bracket, and let the bar do what it's good at, which is the drink afterwards.
Quick answers
What are the best singles bars in Sydney?
Sydney has no true singles bars, but bars with standing room, a beer garden or a terrace and a quiet enough corner give you a real chance: The Winery and the Dolphin in Surry Hills, the Bank Hotel in Newtown, the Glenmore's rooftop in The Rocks, the Oaks' beer garden in Neutral Bay. Go on a Thursday.
What night is best for meeting people at a bar in Sydney?
Thursday, after work. Groups are looser, people are relaxed, and nobody is rushing to the next thing. Friday is louder and Saturday is mostly dates and birthdays.
Is it weird to go to a bar alone in Sydney?
No. Sit at the bar rather than at a table, order something, and talk to the bartender. People are far more likely to start a conversation with someone on their own than with a group.
Is speed dating better than a singles bar?
For meeting someone, yes. In a bar nobody has agreed to meet anyone, so every approach starts from zero. At a hosted speed dating night everyone is single, in your age bracket, and there to meet people, and a host makes the introductions. Oh Hi runs them on weeknights around Sydney: see the upcoming evenings.
- Surry Hills, ages 28–38, Thursday 5 November 2026 at 7pm
- Newtown, ages 22–30, Tuesday 17 November 2026 at 7pm
- Neutral Bay, ages 45–60, Thursday 19 November 2026 at 6:30pm
- Bondi, ages 28–38, Tuesday 24 November 2026 at 7pm
- Chatswood, ages 55+, Thursday 26 November 2026 at 6:30pm