What Is The Difference Between A Dating Site And A Hookup Sites

Payment options have become increasingly varied in the online dating world, and it’s pretty common to see dating sites that accept prepaid cards, credit cards, and PayPal. But, worry not, you don’t have to provide payment information right away.

Signing up to an online dating site or app is completely free with no strings attached. A single person can create a dating profile, swipe for potential matches, and stay a free member permanently. Singles can always upgrade their account to gain access to premium features. That’s when payment information will be needed, and a prepaid debit card can come in handy at this point.

Here is a comprehensive list of the top-rated dating sites and apps that don’t demand instant payment but will accept prepaid debit cards and credit cards in the event of an upgrade.

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1. Match.com

Include Hookup Websites Legal? Yes, hookup web sites and online dating apps were appropriate for folks over the age of 18. Ita€™s an adults-only variety of world. Many top hookup sites are more a€?adulta€? Than others, however you constantly should be 18 or more mature to make use of them legitimately. Aug 28, 2020 Dating can be costly, so it makes sense to use 100 percent free dating sites to save yourself some cash to use on your first date. Free dating sites can help local singles explore the dating scene one swipe at a time, and it can build their confidence to receive likes and messages on a regular basis.

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Friends, Dates, and Relationships

Match System:Browse by zip, age, appearance, more

Our Experts Say:“Match has facilitated the most dates and relationships of any dating site, and its large audience and high success rate make it our top review...” Full Review»

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Since its launch in 1995, Match has seen record success in the online dating industry. This dating service pioneered technology that prioritizes personal compatibility and has successfully matched millions of people as a result. The Match network currently reaches 50 countries, including the U.S. and Canada.

Match.com offers some valuable free features, so users may not even need a credit card or prepaid card to make a meaningful connection here. The dating site and app provide free communication tools to members who are in each other’s Top Picks list, meaning they have a high compatibility score.

Free members cannot choose which profiles are their Top Picks, so it may be worth upgrading to a paid membership to message anyone and everyone you like.

2. EliteSingles

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Serious Relationships

Match System:Search, Receive Partner Suggestions

Our Experts Say:“EliteSingles is a leading dating site just for busy, single professionals. More than 80% of members have earned a college degree, and most are looking for a serious commitment...” Full Review»

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EliteSingles is an online dating site where business leaders, tech experts, medical professionals, and entrepreneurs can come together. The platform has premium matchmaking services available for a monthly fee, but all members start with a free subscription that includes unlimited browsing.

Creating an EliteSingles profile requires some personal information — age, location, occupation, education, etc. — but it does not require a Visa debit card or credit card. The only reason to provide a card account number is if you want to view photos and exchange messages on the dating platform.

3. eharmony

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Casual Dates, Deep Relationships

Match System:Personality test suggests matches

Our Experts Say:“Accounting for 2% of U.S. marriages, eharmony's compatibility-based system and commitment-minded user base are ideal for those seeking a serious relationship...” Full Review»

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You may not realize it, but the inspiration for eharmony came from psychology. In 2000, a team of psychologists worked on an algorithm that could predict personal compatibility and increase the likelihood of a relationship working in the long term.

The eharmony founders made a bold and ambitious plan that powered one of the most successful online dating sites in the world.

The eharmony site and app provide valuable matchmaking tools, but not every feature is available for free. Free members can take the compatibility quiz, complete their profile, and send some greetings to like-minded singles, but they cannot send unlimited messages or make a video call unless they subscribe to a paid membership.

4. SilverSingles

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Friendship, Casual Dates, Serious Relationships

Match System:Search by age, location, height, education, ethnicity, and religion

Our Experts Say:“SilverSingles is a fast-growing, easy-to-use niche dating site exclusively for active daters over the age of 50...” Full Review»

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SilverSingles provides meaningful support to senior men and women who are hoping to find love in their golden years. This senior dating site caters to the over-50 crowd with user-friendly features and instant connection tools.

The initial registration for SilverSingles does not ask for a person’s debit card or credit card information. That part only comes into play if the SilverSingles user wants to send a private message. SilverSingles accepts a variety of electronic payment, including a direct deposit from a prepaid card. The monthly membership plans vary in length from one month to six months.

5. Zoosk

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Fun Dates, Serious Relationships

Match System:Search and get match recommendations

Our Experts Say:“Zoosk is integrated with social media sites, like Facebook and Google+, so it's very popular with singles on the go...” Full Review»

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Since its launch in 2007, Zoosk has blossomed into a social networking and dating hub. The online dating site has over 40 million users in 80 countries ranging from the U.S. to Europe to Australia.

Singles should have no issue with using prepaid cards to pay for a Zoosk subscription. Simply fill in the card account details and make sure you have enough funds to pay for the membership. Online users should note that Zoosk does not require monthly payment installments — it asks for a lump sum instead. That means the price tag for a one-year subscription can be over $150.

6. ChristianMingle

What Is The Difference Between A Dating Site And A Hookup Sites Meaning

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Dates and Serious Relationships

Match System:Search by gender, age, education, more

Our Experts Say:“ChristianMingle is among the largest dating sites in the industry that only caters to single Christian men and women, and the site has some of the best search filters and safety features...” Full Review»

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ChristianMingle is on a mission to unite Christian singles in loving and values-driven relationships. This wholesome dating site and app have embraced faith as a core aspect of online dating and given true believers a place where they can follow their hearts and meet a good Christian match.

ChristianMingle members will find plenty of free dating opportunities in this Christian network. The platform has over 15 million profiles that feature photos, personal details, and favorite Bible verses. Many singles have put their faith in ChristianMingle and formed a lifelong relationship as a result.

7. OurTime.com

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Dates and Relationships

Match System:Search by profiles by zip and more

Our Experts Say:“OurTime is well-known in the over-50 dating crowd, particularly because it has a ton of helpful search features and an easy layout...” Full Review»

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OurTime endeavors to bring greater experience and maturity to the online dating scene. This senior dating site (and its companion app) can help older singles build steady relationships based on similar values and experiences. The majority of OurTime users are in their 50s and 60s, but it’s also possible to up the targeted age range and meet single people who are 70+ years old.

It’s free to set up an OurTime account and browse the database for likely matches. So you may not need your prepaid card at all. However, OurTime limits communication between free users for safety reasons. That means a conversation window may lead you to a paywall. OurTime costs less than $1 a day, so it could be well worth it to spark a senior connection online.

8. BlackPeopleMeet

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Deep Relationships or Just Casual Dates

Match System:Search by location, age, more

Our Experts Say:“BlackPeopleMeet.com is the one of the largest and most popular dating sites for black and biracial singles, and the site is used by more than 5 million people a month...” Full Review»

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BlackPeopleMeet is a niche dating site that serves single people in the Black community. Since 2002, BPM has been a major supporter of Black love as well as interracial relationships. The dating site welcomes non-Black members who want to diversify their date prospects.

Singles do not need a credit card to join BPM. The free membership never expires and provides a lot of valuable features, including ethnicity search filters and in-depth dating profiles. A single person can explore the BPM site and app at no cost; however, only paid members have private chat options available. When you’re ready to chat with a special person, whip out your prepaid debit card and get a BPM subscription to make it happen.

9. Adult Friend Finder

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Hookups Only

Match System:Search by location, interest, more

Our Experts Say:“Make no mistake: this site isn't about making friends, it's about short-term 'hookups' and affairs only. Note that a basic account costs $14.95/month, but it's well worth it if casual sex is your goal...”

What Is The Difference Between A Dating Site And A Hookup Sites Reviews

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During the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Adult Friend Finder became a much-needed sexual outlet for singles and couples across the globe. The AFF community surpassed 105 million users in 2020, and it continues to set records as the most popular sex site of all time.

Joining AFF is 100% free, but the free features will only get you so far. AFF members have to purchase a Gold Membership to access live chat and video features. The site’s payment options are flexible enough to accomodate people with a prepaid debit card, Visa gift card, or any type of credit card. As long as the account has funds, it should work in the express checkout process.

10. BeNaughty

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Hookups, Chats

Match System:Search by encounter, location, and more

Our Experts Say:“BeNaughty is a premier hookup app where you can feel comfortable expressing your desires. Plus, it's free to join, browse, and flirt...” Full Review»

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BeNaughty is among the top adult dating sites for singles who are looking for a casual fling or hookup. It doesn’t cost anything to join the fun and see what’s out there. A free BeNaughty account includes some communication options and unlimited access to local dating profiles.

Browsing the BeNaughty site can give single people a quick and cheap thrill. The photo gallery, swipe list, and search filters can help anonymous sex seekers navigate the local dating scene without leaving home. Pro tip: Look for a green dot on the profile picture to find potential dates who are currently online.

11. Ashley Madison

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Hookups, Casual Dates, Affairs

Match System:Search by age, location, appearance, and more

Our Experts Say:“With its massive user base and advanced privacy features, Ashley Madison is the #1 site for discreet hookups, dates, or relationships...” Full Review»

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Ashley Madison is an affair dating site that accepts prepaid cards as well as PayPal and any type of Visa card. A purchase is not necessary to join the dating platform, but it can offer more streamlined matchmaking and communication options.

Most Ashley Madison members are interested in keeping their identities secret and their online dating activity private. That’s why Ashley Madison has an anonymous payment method that ensures key phrases like “online dating” or “affair service” won’t appear on their bank’s card balance statements.

12. FriendFinder-X

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Hookups Only

Match System:Search by location, interest, more

Our Experts Say:“A hookup site specializing in casual encounters, secret affairs, live chats, and member videos, FriendFinder-X skips the awkward 'dating' stage of a relationship and fast-forwards straight to the sex...”

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FriendFinder-X has what it takes to satisfy horny singles and couples from all walks of life. The global sex site has chat rooms, search filters, livestreaming broadcasts, video chat options, and all kinds of kinky diversions available — including a photo gallery of nudes. A lot of X-rated content is available for free, but FriendFinder-X members must purchase a subscription to unlock private chat windows.

Whether you want to pay with a Visa debit card or a PayPal account, FriendFinder-X is nothing if not flexible to the user’s every need. The payment options allow members to use a prepaid card seamlessly and spice up their love lives by making a quick transaction online.

13. Flirt.com

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Hookups, Casual Dating, Chats

Match System:Search by age, location, gender, orientation, and other factors

Our Experts Say:“Flirt.com frees singles to chat with attractive locals and pick up dates on the spot. This hookup site is always open to horny and sexy people seeking one-night stands, casual dating, threesomes, and other sexual encounters...”

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As you can undoubtedly tell from its name, Flirt.com was designed to facilitate flirtatious interactions and sexually charge experiences online. The platform has over 1 million active users, and it is open 24/7 to singles of all ages, background, and orientations.

Flirt.com is a no-strings hookup site because it doesn’t require credit card details for a basic membership. In fact, all female users can chat for free, so they don’t need to pay for the pleasure of a sexting conversation. Single men have some free communication options on Flirt.com, but the dating website caps the number of messages they can send as a free member.

14. MenNation

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Daters & Hookups

Match System:Search by age, zip code, more

Our Experts Say:“MenNation is a well-established gay dating and hookup brand, having been founded in 1996. It's totally free to join, view profiles, receive matches, and flirt...”

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MenNation offers a gay hookup site where guys can let loose and have fun without judgment. The platform has all the tools of the trade to help gay, bisexual, and queer men get laid. Its free features include unlimited browsing and group chat rooms, and guys can upgrade to watch live model shows, send private messages, and explore local dating options.

Some gay men worry about the consequences of connecting a checking account to a gay dating service. That’s not a problem on MenNation. The hookup site allows private payment options through a PayPal account or a prepaid card.

15. LesbianPersonals.com

Our expert ratings are based on factors such as popularity, usability, value, and success rate of each site.

Relationships:Hookups Only

Match System:Search by location, interest, more

Our Experts Say:“LesbianPersonals provides a fun, quick, and easy experience for gay and bisexual women looking for sex online. Join for free, and you'll be able to search and communicate immediately...”

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LesbianPersonals offers a female-friendly space where people can arrange lesbian hookups, threesomes, and orgies on the down low. The anonymous signup process doesn’t ask for much personal information, and it doesn’t even require a profile photo to get started. The only catch is LesbianPersonals only allows communication between paid users. Free members can look but not chat.

LesbianPersonals is not picky when it comes to payment. It’ll take your Netspend card or Visa debit card with no muss and no fuss. Just make sure the card account number is correct and click the Checkout button to complete your subscription purchase.

16. OkCupid

OkCupid is a totally free dating site where singles can put their purses and wallets away. It is free to join, free to browse, and free to chat. The vast majority of OkCupid users pay absolutely nothing and still come away with an inbox full of messages and a calendar full of first dates.

Every year, OkCupid creates approximately 90 million matches and sparks 2.6 million dates.

OkCupid draws from an in-depth questionnaire to calculate relationship compatibility.

The OkCupid premium membership offers some decent paid features, including read receipts for messages and the ability to see who has liked you. These perks can be helpful to singles who are having difficulty making a connection on their own — but upgrading is not a requirement for online dating success.

17. Tinder

Tinder caused an absolute sensation in the online dating market in 2012 by inventing swipe-based matching. The online dating app was the first to give singles the final say over who could send them a message and pursue a relationship. A chat window only appears after both Tinder users have liked (by swiping right) each other’s dating profile.

To date, Tinder has made over 60 billion matches in 190 countries. The app has been translated into 40 languages.

The Tinder app has defined the dating experience for a generation of young singles.

Swiping and chatting is free on Tinder — with some limits. Free members have a cap on how many likes and super likes they can send in a single day.

The Tinder Plus and Tinder Gold subscriptions offer more swiping freedom for less than $10 a month. The paid perks include a Tinder Passport, which empowers a user to swipe in different cities and countries.

18. Plenty of Fish

Plenty of Fish launched in 2003 on a mission to make online dating not just better, but freer. The dating platform rejected the pay-to-chat subscription model that was standard at that time and became one of the first totally free dating sites to gain worldwide recognition.

The POF community now has over 150 million members in 20 countries. Its members engage in about 17 million chats every day, and they don’t have to pay a penny to read and respond to those messages.

Plenty of Fish generates match suggestions based on common interests and backgrounds.

Communication is free on Plenty of Fish, but some premium features cost money. The premium membership can give an online dating profile a boost in the search results and guide the user to the perfect match.

Plenty of Fish lists PayPal and Visa credit cards under its accepted payment options on its website. Members can also purchase tokens and use those as currency on the site and app.

19. Grindr

Grindr is a gay dating app that uses real-time GPS location data to spark instant connections. The Grindr swiping list is basically a summary of the hottest LGBTQ+ guys in town, and those that are closest in proximity to you will appear at the top.

Since its launch in 2009, Grindr has been downloaded over 27 million times. It currently sees nearly 4 million users per day.

Grindr has become the go-to dating app for gay, bisexual, trans, and queer men.

It’s completely free to download Grindr and chat up your mutual matches. The only limitation is on how many swipes you can make per day and how far outside your city radius you can look for a date. Grindr Xtra users have more swiping and search filters at their fingertips. So it may be worth whipping out your credit card or prepaid card to get a little extra help in the gay dating world.

20. Badoo

Badoo has over 500 million registered users — and counting — so it is easily one of the most popular dating sites and apps on the market. The Badoo app is free to download and includes social networking tools designed to stimulate romantic interests.

Badoo started in Moscow in 2003 and has grown into an international network.

The Badoo profile features photos, videos, and blurbs that showcase a person’s individuality. And you don’t need a paid subscription to enjoy interacting on the dating platform.

If you’re ranking dating sites by popularity, it’s hard to top Badoo. The platform sees about 30 million active users in 190 countries. It hosts many chatty singles who exchange about 350 million messages a day on average.

21. Happn

What Is The Difference Between A Dating Site And A Hookup Sites Definition

Happn has taken the idea of romantic serendipity and turned it into an online dating app. The app’s matchmaking formula looks for common ground and identifies where its users have crossed paths as they go about their day.

Over the last decade, Happn has helped over 50 million users create romantic connections within the same neighborhood, block, or county. And, best of all, no payment is required to join Happn and start matching.

Happn is one of the top dating apps for busy professionals in big cities.

Maybe two Happn users go to the same gym or frequent the same coffee shop but have never met. Happn lets potential matches know where they could’ve met in real life by providing a map reference with highlighted points of interest.

Safety note: Happn will never disclose a user’s real-time location, and online daters can turn off their smartphone’s location or adjust their privacy settings to stop the app from mining that information.

22. Bumble

The Bumble founding story began when Whitney Wolfe Herd left an executive position at Tinder and started researching ways to improve online dating for women. Whitney objected to the hookup culture and pickup culture on swiping apps, so she partnered with industry experts to create an online dating app that would support women.

In 2014, Bumble launched a free mobile dating service that gave single women the ability to block the creeps and focus on dating for keeps. By 2020, Bumble had surpassed 100 million users.

Over 85% of Bumble users say they’re looking for a serious relationship.

Bumble empowers single women to send the first message when matched with a man. No man can message a woman on Bumble unless she has messaged him first. This match system upends the traditional power dynamic between men and women — and that’s why Bumble has become the official dating app for feminists everywhere.

23. Hinge

Last but not least, Hinge is a quality-driven dating app that has put its own unique twist on swiping. The Hinge dating profile includes six photos and three personal prompts, and a user must like or comment on a prompt or photo to initiate a match. All communication between mutual matches is free.

Hinge’s matchmaking system is in place to ensure users are not blindly swiping on each other. Instead, they are asking questions, making jokes, and inviting conversations about personal interests and opinions.

Hinge offers a free membership that includes chatting abilities.

The Hinge team designed the app with the motto “designed to be deleted” as a reminder that their goal isn’t to trap singles in an endless swiping carousel. Hinge endeavors to spark real relationships that satisfies a person’s dating needs for life.

What is a Prepaid Card?

A prepaid card is similar to a debit card in how it works, but the difference is a debit card is linked to a bank account whereas a prepaid card is not. A prepaid card only has access to the preloaded funds a person puts into it. Think of it like a gift card that can be used for virtually any store or service. Prepaid cards can be helpful budgeting tools that automatically restrict spending and keep finances on track.

How Do Prepaid Cards on Dating Sites Work?

Paying for an online dating subscription with a prepaid card is about the same as paying with a debit card or credit card. You go through the checkout process and input the card number and payment details where required. If you don’t see a checkbox for a prepaid Visa, go ahead and click the debit card option.

Once you’ve filled out the drop-down sections, complete your payment. As long as you have enough funds in your prepaid card, there should not be an issue. However, you should know that some dating sites will save the payment information and automatically charge it for a subscription renewal. You can usually go into your settings to turn off the auto-renewal option or cancel before payment is taken.

Are Paid Dating Sites Better Than Free Dating Sites?

The benefit of free dating sites is obvious. They don’t cost any money! You can mix and mingle on the platform for free and save your hard-earned cash for splurges on a Walmart moneycard or iTunes gift card. The downside of using a free service is it doesn’t typically have all the bells and whistles of a paid dating site, so it may take longer or require more effort to meet a compatible date.

Paid dating sites can offer matchmaking technology, video chat features, the ability to see your profile likes, and other premium features to make online dating easier and more engaging. Some paid memberships include a Passport feature, which means users can swipe outside their city or region.

Paid dating sites can offer a higher quality user base and greater online security.

Generally speaking, paid dating sites tend to attract more serious and mature singles who are willing to invest in online dating and do whatever it takes to pursue potential love interests. That kind of commitment can speak to a person’s character, and it’s a big step up from the crowd of casual and flaky singles swiping and chatting for free.

How Do Dating Sites & Apps Protect Personal Information?

Dating sites and apps tap into a private corner of a single person’s life, and a lot of behind-the-scenes work goes into making the experience the best it can be. Robust encryption keeps the user’s payment information from falling into the wrong hands. Plus, a legit dating website will have a comprehensive profile verification system based on technology trends and cybersecurity expertise.

Some dating sites verify profiles through Facebook or Apple ID. Some have two-factor or three-factor authentication systems. Look through the terms of service webpage to see what kind of security measures you can expect.

Of course, singles should take it upon themselves to put their privacy first when creating a dating profile. That means keeping certain personal details to themselves. Singles should use their best judgment when creating a profile or chatting with an online match. For example, it’s never a good idea to share a home address or a Social Security number with strangers on the web, but disclosing a first and last name is fairly harmless. It is also often necessary to provide some form of contact information (as in, a phone number, email address, or social media handle) to build a real relationship online.

Is Online Dating Safe?

Meeting a stranger online is about as safe as meeting a stranger in person. But, when you’re online, you have the benefit of a computer or smartphone screen to keep you physically safe. Online daters have the opportunity to vet a potential date through text and video chat features, so it can actually be safer than randomly hooking up with a stranger at a bar or nightclub.

Singles should be aware of the warning signs of an online dating scam. A dating profile without a photo or much personal information can indicate that person may not be legit. It’s easy for an individual to lie about themselves in a dating profile, but online dating sites are getting better at catching falsehoods regarding name, age, and some background details.

Still, it never hurts for online daters to exercise caution and treat each new love interest with a healthy amount of skepticism until trust has been earned.

Safety should always come first in online dating situations.

Never ever give money to a person you have only met online. Do not wire funds. Do not write a check. Do not send an egift card or cash. If a person asks you for money for any reason, it should raise alarm bells. Romance scammers will often start with a small ask — perhaps needing a loan for a family emergency or to pay for a dating site membership renewal — just to see if the potential mark will buy in.

It is never appropriate to give money to a person you’re trying to date. You are a potential love interest, not a bank or an ATM, so do not hesitate to block and report any person who crosses that line and tries to take advantage of you.

How Do I Choose the Best Dating Site?

The problem with dating site reviews is the online dating experience is going to vary widely based on a person’s age, occupation, gender identity, sexual orientation, confidence levels, and a host of other factors. Singles in big cities often complain of getting overwhelmed by too many matches on swiping apps like Tinder, but singles in more rural parts of the country may find only a handful of date options available.

Single professionals may not mind tapping their credit card for a premium dating service like EliteSingles or The League, but singles who are retired or in school often prefer to use a free dating site that won’t ask for their hard-earned cash.

Our experts have actually ranked dating sites by interest to help different types of single people find their niche space and get into the digital dating groove.

Can I Buy a Gift Card for a Dating Site or App?

Probably not. Most dating sites and apps do not have gift card options. Some do, but it’s pretty rare — and for good reason. A dating site gift card can pose a security risk because it presents an opportunity for a scammer to take advantage of the dating network. By using a gift card funded by a mark, a romance scammer can avoid the identity verification process that naturally comes with providing payment details.

Asking for money is one of the biggest red flags in the online dating world, and dating platforms have largely done away with tokens, virtual gifts, and gift card payments to deter any unsavory and potentially harmful behavior.

Most dating sites and apps do not offer an egift card option as a payment method.

It’s much safer to use Venmo or Paypal to fund a friend or family member’s online dating account. Under no circumstances should you give money to a stranger you met on a dating site or app. Even if the person says his or her membership is about to expire. Exchange contact information to keep the conversation going, or ask yourself why the person can’t afford a subscription and needs to rely on a perfect stranger for help.

You Don’t Need Perfect Credit to Enjoy Online Dating

Singles who are privacy-conscious or budget-conscious may want to consider using dating sites that accept prepaid cards. It’s an easy way to purchase online services without having the details of every transaction appear on a bank account statement.

A prepaid credit card can be useful for making a direct deposit to an online dating website. It’s a one-time, pre-loaded payment method that is both simple and secure. The prepaid card isn’t connected to anything except the funds it holds, so it can be used to make an anonymous purchase and cancel an automated reenrollment.

Remember, you’re under no obligation to provide a credit card number to an online dating service, and you can start with a free membership to see if it’s worth upgrading. Don’t rush into anything!

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Moving to a new city or working at a new job where you don't know anybody can seriously be depressing, especially if you're already introverted as it is. What are you supposed to do? Go sit at the bar by yourself? And talk to strangers?

Then comes the lightbulb idea: You can make friends online! If online dating is so popular and successful, there's no way that there aren't a few legit sites where you can make adult friends in your area with similar interests. Hmm, AdultFriendFinder.com sounds like the right ballpark.

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Made quite obvious by the words blatantly plastered across the main page pictured above, AdultFriendFinder is where you can go to 'join the world's largest sex and swinger community.' (That photo is actually a video of a woman talking, so you may want to mute your computer or put on headphones before you click.)

AdultFriendFinder is one of the most well-known sites for finding quick sexual encounters, regular hookups, and literally anything else even remotely related to sex. The rowdy feed of matches, jumble of explicit photos, and stimulating calls-to-action offering all types of sex makes is heaven for anyone looking for a good time with no filter — and hell for someone who wouldn't be caught dead clicking on a 'There are hot singles in your area' ad.

Even if you're not using it for real sex, it's always nice to have spank bank material in your back pocket. Social distancing rules due to the coronavirus made this quite obvious. Sexting, nudes, and Pornhub searches all saw a spike since people started social distancing at home. If you don't want to risk quarantine sex or aren't finding people on your level of horniness on Tinder, you're pretty much guaranteed to find someone who's just as down as you are on AdultFriendFinder. You can find someone to sext via messaging or video (and maybe even plan to get it on IRL when it's safe), watch live streams, or join niche group chats. Is it worth $20-something per month? Depends on how much fishy content you're willing to overlook for a juicy sexting session.

We reached out to Kalyn Sanders, a business development executive at Friend Finder Networks, for updated AFF demographics. Right up there with Tinder's monthly flock, AdultFriendFinder snags the attention of over 55 million visits around the world per month, on average. (To whet your appetite upon signup, the main landing page flashes a statistic like '103,001,735 active members,' but we're not exactly sure what that means.) The majority of traffic originates from the United States, followed by visitors from the United Kingdom and Canada. SimilarWeb ranks the site in the top 160 of all sites in the U.S.

Specifics on the demographic that most people care about — the gender ratio — can be hard to track down. Sanders told us that 'there's a 2 to 1 ratio of single men vs. categories like single women, couples, and groups.' The split between men and women is an expected one for a lot of hookup-centric sites. At the end of the day, it's a paradise for straight men, hit-or-miss for straight women and queer men, and likely an actual hellscape for queer women.

This site is all about sex, clearly

If you're 100% over being grilled with relationship questions and the slow-and-steady pace on traditional dating sites like eharmony or Match, AdultFriendFinder is your golden ticket to instant communication. Registering takes literally 30 seconds — they require nothing from you aside from an email address, a username, a password, and an introduction. Your notifications will start pouring in even without adding any juicy info (because people see nothing wrong with hitting up a profile with a gray silhouette as a profile photo, apparently), but it's probably best to add a few photos and a detailed description — both to up your chances of flirtation or finding someone who shares a super-specific fantasy, but also to signal to other users that you're not a bot.

After registering, there are a ton of ways to personalize your account (way more than you'd expect for a hookup site, honestly). The more you fill out, the more attractive your profile will be to new viewers. There are the basic physical appearance questions about eye and hair color, and since I identified as a woman, cup size was an option. (If you identify as a man, I'm sure you can guess what question they ask.)

Many self-proclaimed hookup seekers can probably admit that they'd still like to hook up with someone whom they'd also like to grab a beer with, especially if they plan on seeing that person multiple times. Those people will appreciate that AFF gives a compatibility score with each user you come across: a metric that rates how well you might mesh with someone in the bedroom based on how you answered questions about what turns you on, whether you're dominant or submissive, and so on.

One of the funniest forms was the 'Purity Test,' featuring 100 comically-awkward questions about how far you're willing to go sexually. It felt like the sexy 20 questions game that you'd play with your middle school crush when neither of you knew how to flirt. Note that this is just helpful information for you personally — there's no real matching strategy other than the basic info on physical appearances.

Finding a match

Like a traditional dating site, AdultFriendFinder gives you a collage of potential matches and will let you know who's online or close distance-wise. These will be random right after you sign up, but you can opt to update your preferences to refine your results: Choose your preferred gender(s), age range, location and mile radius, race, sexual orientation, body type, and marital status.

You barely have to scroll before noticing that there's no shortage of nudity. Depending on whether you set your preferences to men, women, or both, you'll see all of that stuff up close, personal, swinging around, in action. You name it, it'll pop up.

AdultFriendFinder is basically like a PornHub that you can interact with. We probably don't have to say this, but AdultFriendFinder is NSFW and not safe to be on while kids are in the room. Some videos will be blurred out and read 'Naughty video' until you upgrade to a Gold Membership, but trust me — you'll get to see a lot, even with the free version.

The message section is set up similarly to a Gmail account, and you can mark things as read or important just as you would on a real email. You'll receive some crude messages instantly (creeps on Tinder do the same thing), but some will be genuinely friendly.

It's not all bad

Once you get past the in-your-face sexplosion of naked profile pictures, horny AIM-era profile names, and explicit videos, there are actually an impressive number of resources to help make your experience as satisfying as possible. Some will cost money even outside of the paid subscription, which is kinda dumb.

Aside from the NSFW content, the website is relatively straightforward (albeit ugly). Every feature is advertised in big letters, notifications are displayed clearly with labels, and you don't really have to click around to find anything. This makes it super accessible for users of all ages, even those who aren't tech-savvy and can't even figure out Facebook. Buttons are all over the place, but you figure it out after messing around for a few minutes.

Activities range from direct messaging, sending virtual gifts, watching live videos of people in your feed, joining adult chat rooms that can get very niche, or entering photo contests.

What Is The Difference Between A Dating Site And A Hookup Sites For Women

Think of AdultFriendFinder as the dating site version of New York City — it never sleeps. You'll find people who work the regular 9-5, people who work the night shift, and people in other time zones, so it's nearly impossible to log on and not have a ton of people to talk to. You know, like that booty call who's always awake when you text them.

Or at least that used to be the case... 10 years ago. What was once a hot site that a few Reddit users were quick to hype up is now one of the dating sites that Reddit users can't help but diss — in the few instances that AFF is even being discussed at all. The Reddit community is diverse and open-minded, and if a dating site exists, someone on Reddit has used it and has an opinion on it. It's notable that, on a site where online dating is such a mammoth topic of discussion, that AdultFriendFinder has rarely been mentioned since the early 2010s. When an innocent soul does ask if it's legit, AFF usually gets dragged for sketchy pricing and being ridden with bots.

Paid memberships are where things get... interesting

You can do a decent amount of exploring without paying a cent: Limited messaging and emailing, visit and like most profiles, and enter some chat rooms. But just a few clicks on AdultFriendFinder can send you deep down the rabbit hole, and a lot of that juicier hidden content can only be unlocked with a paid membership (called the Gold membership) or by earning points.

Points are AdultFriendFinder's non-monetary currency. If you're a free member, you'll have to earn points through on-site activity to unlock stuff that's exclusive to paying members. It's kind of like a game, with points acting like dollar bills at the strip club.

If you're a guy looking for girls, a Gold membership is pretty much the standard. While researching on Reddit, we found a few women who said they won't meet a guy unless he's a Gold member. A Gold membership puts a little bit more credibility behind someone's profile and makes the whole encounter feel a bit safer. It's easier to believe that someone's a real person if they're a paying, active member of the site, and it's nice to know that they're taking it slightly seriously. Plus, if you see a picture or profile that looks like it's 10 years old, it really might be — there are a ton of non-active, non-paying profiles from old members and escorts still lingering.

If you find yourself spending more quality time on the site than you expected, becoming a paid member is definitely something to consider. Once you're paying, you basically become royalty on the site: Your profile will appear way higher in searches, you can use the most advanced searches, unlock profiles with private photo albums, check out video profiles, and message to your heart's content. A general rule is that increased involvement and payment on your end generally equals more success on the website, as your constant activity and heightened search-ability makes it way easier for others to find you.

Prices for a Gold membership fluctuate but generally get cheaper the longer your subscription is: Get one month for $39.95, three months for $26.95 per month, or 12 months for $19.95 per month.

Good for: Very open-minded people looking to blow off steam

Stating the obvious, AdultFriendFinder a space for people who want to bang with no strings attached, people who are in a sexual rut, people who are tired of porn, and people who find sites like eharmony to be boring. Getting to know someone for weeks before meeting up can be exhausting, and sometimes, you just wanna skip the small talk and do the dirty with a random. It's gonna get kinky out there, and that's great for those who are dying to blow off steam and want someone who will respond well to a brusque, sexy message.

People are so active on this site that it's impossible not to feel worshipped. Just seeing the notifications of users wanting to talk to you will make your heart flutter, and once you come across your first legit suitor, you'll start to loosen up. Even if you're left on read a few times, you'll learn which opening lines and flirty comments work and which don't. But since the site is aimed toward casual encounters and not serious relationships, the whole rejection thing isn't nearly as prevalent.

As with all dating sites, catfishing is a big buzzkill. Your chances of being pursued are way higher if you have a lot of pictures of the same person (AKA you), videos, and a genuine profile that lets people know they're not dealing with something sketchy. Even if you've had bad luck with online dating in the past, AdultFriendFinder is the place to be honest.

Bad for: People looking for a real relationship and the entire woke community

You know those warnings that thrill rides at amusement parks are required to put up that tell people who get dizzy easily or have heart problems to not get on the ride? AdultFriendFinder could use something like that. This site is not for the faint of heart — if you're a cynic, conservative by any means, get sketched out easily, or simply aren't a fan of dick pics, you're probably going to hate it. Similarly, if you appreciate a well-crafted, aesthetically-pleasing website that feels safe — no matter how badly you want to have sex — one glance of the landing page likely signaled that it's not for you.

AFF lets you identify as and search for a man, woman, a couple, or 'TS/TV/TG.' We can only assume that those abbreviations are referring to highly-offensive, tone-deaf terms for the trans community — terms that any reputable dating site should know not to use. Unless AFF is fine with alienating all LGBTQ users and people who care about that community, it should learn what the hell pronouns are.

AdultFriendFinder is not the place to be if you're trying to make friends, unless 'with benefits' is tacked onto the end. Every inch of the site screams 'this website is used to have sex,' and you should really listen to that.

As illustrated by the recent flood of artsy activism guides on Instagram, it's clear what content appeals to young people on the internet: Something aesthetically-pleasing, sharable, and digestible. The 'sharable' part doesn't totally apply to online dating, but apps like Hinge and OkCupid closely follow this design trend by limiting the number of words (and ads) in each tab, steering clear of endless scrolling, and ensuring that important info isn't cluttered with flashing clickbait.

For instance, Pure is a modern, no-strings-attached hookup app that appeals to your horny side with a single, witty statement about sex rather than bombarding you with boobs and 'Have sex in NYC now!' claims. Anyone older than a millennial may be totally used to this pop-up ridden layout, which seemed to be popular in the early 2000s — but for younger folks, AFF's chaotic approach is way too reminiscent of Omegle.

AFF could do so much more to make people take it seriously

The entire website looks like an ad about hot MILFs that pops up when you're illegally streaming a movie. Seriously, it's bad. Even though the website is technically legit, the pictures, word choice, and exclamation points everywhere scream 'scam.' No, AdultFriendFinder, '98,897,765 Hot Photos' is not the way to make potential new users trust you.

We're not knocking a quick hookup or no-strings-attached relations. This isn't about morals. Genitals are quite literally in your face from the moment you make an account, and that's just not cute. There are chiller ways to go about insinuating that this is a hookup website without feeling like you're trapped in a sex dungeon with strangers.

I could not get past the fact that the entire site looks like it's about to invite five viruses to your computer. We're talking terrible graphics that look like they were made on Microsoft Paint and pictures of women who look like they're from Pornhub in 2007. (That's when AdultFriendFinder was officially sold and rebranded from its original parent company.) Reddit user Snoo53279 summed it up in a comment from July 2020: 'The people on AFF are definitely real, but there is a huge smattering of bots that also get in the way so it can be a bit of a PITA to use.' If they're not bots, they could be men posing as a couple to seem less threatening.

The parade of women on the landing page is questionable for two reasons. This shouldn't even need to be clarified, but not everyone is looking for a woman. At the least, the advertising just isn't inclusive — but this crosses into fetishization territory. The cherry on top is that the women in the photos (unsurprisingly) probably aren't even members on the site, according to a disclaimer at the bottom of the landing page.

AdultFriendFinder's overall outdated vibe goes past an aesthetic annoyance — it's downright problematic at times. The 'TS/TV/TGs' part of sign-up is nearly unforgivable, and we'd be scared to see some of the related rhetoric that AFF users feel comfortable spewing. Without even a dash of social awareness, it's hard to see how anyone who's not an out-of-touch straight cis man would feel comfortable on this site.

Attempting to navigate the shoddy design might just be enough to smother your horniness. Three main issues can make the site borderline unusable: It looks shady as hell, an alarming portion of the user base is made up of bots and spam accounts, and the user interface itself is outdated and rife with bugs.

Other Reddit users mention that the desktop web version won't even load for them at random times — an especially frustrating roadblock for people who want to end their membership and stop monthly charges. A solution to the laggy web version might be to clear your cache or use the smartphone app instead, but your experience probably won't get better there. AFF's mobile page doesn't even mention an Android app, and the link to the iPhone app brings up a 'not available' pop-up in the App Store. For a site that claims to have over 50 million visitors each month, the lack of accessibility to a smartphone app is just plain odd — especially in 2021.

Adding to the sketchiness, a network hack in 2016 exposed around 412 million accounts, including 'deleted' accounts that weren't actually deleted from the database. If this is enough reason for you to fall back on Tinder for finding a friend with benefits, we don't blame you. Signing up with a burner email and avoiding using your real name as a username are wise moves (just pick a naughty word and add 69 to the end, IDK), though keeping your personal information private is hard when credit cards are involved.

In 2007, AFF was involved in a lawsuit with the FTC over allegations that the site used malware to send explicit pop-up ads to computers owned by people who hadn't signed up for the service. Though we haven't seen reports like this recently, so we're hoping those ridiculous ads you see are at least confined to people who actually use the site.

The alternatives

Surprisingly, AdultFriendFinder feels much more legit than competitors. While other hookup sites have names like FreeSnapMilfs.com, Fuckswipe.com, and Instabang.com, AdultFriendFinder will be the one you'd hate showing up in your Google search history the least. Most have the same general idea, which is to find sexual partners, have cybersex, etc, but with names like those, the authenticity is way too questionable. AdultFriendFinder boasts a much larger audience and has built credibility in a Tinder-saturated market where these blunt, friskier competitors may have trouble gaining trust.

No matter how in the mood you are, your hungry eyes may not be able to look past AFF's heinous interface. We mentioned Pure earlier. The aesthetically-pleasing, hella-millennial UX design is simply more palatable than AFF and the blueprint of what a modern hookup app should be. Kind of like a Snapchat for sex, your uploaded selfies, personal info, and conversations will self destruct every 60 minutes. The app will send the hookup version of an Uber request to anyone else who's close and ready to rumble, and you can choose what information to disclose from there.

Remember when we said AdultFriendFinder would be a nightmare for queer women? If you want an alternative, Feeld is an inclusive, very 2021 app dedicated to singles and couples looking for threesomes, foursomes, or however many people you want — minus the unicorn hunting and rampant fetishization that many non-hetero, non-monogamous people face on traditional hookup sites and apps.

The final verdict

AdultFriendFinder is a low-pressure way to find a friends-with-benefits situation without insulting anyone. Everyone is pretty much there for the same reason — and though it'll feel pretty unorthodox if you've only ever used to Tinder to scope this type of thing out, AFF's blunt advertising at least means you won't have to explain that you're not looking for a relationship. It's niche-friendly, well-populated, and has a ton of interactive outlets to indulge your primal urges.

But that freedom comes with a price — the price being feeling like one of those people who falls for the ads that pop up before a free Pornhub video. It's not that a site dedicated to sex and sexting is inherently scammy — it's that AdultFriendFinder drowns you with explicit photos on profiles who might not even be real people while asking you to pay for a subscription with every click. Unfortunately, no matter how in the mood you are, some people aren't cut out for the nothing-left-to-the-imagination approach with grammar mistakes all over the place. It wants to be sex-positive so badly, but the way sign-up talks about the trans community is the furthest thing from that.

The functionality and safety of the site and the mobile app aren't where they need to be in 2021. If security measures were tightened, graphics and photos were cleaned up to feel more relevant, and decision-makers behind the scenes were given a lesson in inclusivity and pronouns/identities, AdultFriendFinder could be a handy tool to find attachment-free hookups and connect with a community that's down for anything.

If you're feeling brave, you can register for AdultFriendFinder here. Just don't try this at work.

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