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OK Cupid is a popular dating site in the US that is free to use, and offers some paid options.
It is well known for the matching questions it uses that are created by its staff and submitted by the members. While not scientific, the questions are fun. One of the most impressive things about OK Cupid is that unlike other dating sites, the older it gets the more popular and active it is getting. Some of that may be from former Plenty of Fish users coming over after PoF starting charging for some features. You can find OKCupid.com reviews on Reddit and Quora. Most of them are positive but some are negative.
First Impressions
One first glance OK Cupid is fun and easy to use. It definitely has a 20 something feel to it with cartoony colors, but the interface is spare and it is quick loading. You can’t search until you at least fill out the bare minimum of a profile – a user name. Getting an account only requires an active email, there is no verification process for real names. Once you are in the game, it is easy to start searching and connecting to people. Everything about how you contact people is intuitive and easy.
Their mobile app is very well developed and has a special section that allows you to find out which members are currently near your location too. The mobile app has the added bonus of using prompt windows to ask you what you want to do. You can also easily block people from messaging you or appearing in your search results. It also allows for multiple sexual orientations and relationship types to be listed and/or searched for.
How does it compare in the real world?
Alexa shows a rising trend in the ratings for OK Cupid with a global rating of 421 and a US rank of 123. The usage graph shows a steady increase in members and use, with the low points still being higher than the high points it registered a year ago.
- The demographics are mostly women younger than 35 who are still in some sort of schooling
- The average daily visitor spends almost 15 minutes on the site.
- It is ad powered
Features
The features on OK Cupid are designed to appeal to the 35 and under crowd. You can get as deep as you want into your profile, or not fill it out at all and just list your details. There are no chat rooms or forums, the main features are:
- Ability to upload multiple pictures
- Uncensored profiles
- Quizzes and games that post to your profile
- Extensive questionnaire that is provided by staff and other members
- An undefined matching system
- Ability to search by multiple criteria
- Ability to search by attractiveness and keywords with an A-list membership
- A-list members can also see who viewed them but stay hidden from visitor lists
The message feature is the giveaway to whom this site is designed to appeal to, it looks much like the iPhone message system with messages appearing in little bubbles. There is also a star rating system for profiles that is then translated into an “attractiveness” rating.
Price and membership
OK Cupid is completely free to use. If you want to pay a monthly fee to join the A-List ($29.95 and then descending for multiple month agreements) you can get rid of the ads, search by extended criteria and keywords, search by attractiveness and also hide yourself from other’s visitor lists (allowing you to lurk secretly). Other than the extended search abilities and being able to hide your visits, there is no special feature unlocked with a paid membership.
Conclusion
OK Cupid is gaining momentum, especially in the US. While much is made of the site’s drive towards those below the age of 35, there is a strong representation of other age groups on the site. What people enjoy the most is just answering the questions. You get to skip the question or, choose your answer, the answers you will accept, rate how important the answer is to you and leave an extra explanation if you want. Many of the people on OK Cupid are guilty of less looking for a date than spending some time entertaining themselves with the fun quizzes and games that are available for free.
OkCupid ask me for money