OkCupid Review

expert
Reviewed by
Fiona Eckersley
Reviewed on
21:55
Editor Rating
Membership Base
Profile
Match & Search
Cost & Prices
Safety

The Pros and Cons

OkCupid is a powerhouse in the online dating world (it’s also one of the few dating sites with a high female to male ratio!). Its system is tried and true, but despite being over 17 years old (which is extremely old as far as dating sites go), it still fails to adequately cater to the older clientele.
50+ million members
Active & engaged user base
LGBT+ super-friendly
Mostly for serious relationship
Limited matches for older users
You’ll spend a long time creating a profile

About OkCupid

17 years ago, OkCupid used to be known for finding hookups and quick flings, but these days it’s mainly used by people looking for long-term relationships. Although it’s not one of the top gay dating sites for women, it still provides many options for people in the LGBT community (and the straight community as well!).
With the addition of “looking for” information, OkCupid has effectively enabled its users to connect with other members who share the same relationship goals as them and avoid those that do not.

Membership Base

As mentioned above, OkCupid is an extremely popular site, with over 10 million members from the United States alone. Unlike its early days, the majority of users are looking to create serious connections rather than simply hook up, but the platform now allows users to declare what they’re looking for, which effectively helps like-minded singles connect.
Despite the age of the platform, OkCupid is still the most popular, with younger singles ranging from age 25 to age 34. Older members are still present on the platform, but their options are severely limited by comparison.

OkCupid App

Some online dating services still lack mobile applications, but OkCupid isn’t one of them. In our short OkCupid app review, we were pleasantly surprised by the mobile app. It doesn’t offer any additional features or advantages over the desktop version, but all of the features are still usable and work well (regardless of your mobile platform). The app works well for dating on the go, although the notifications may get overbearing if you’re trying to do something else.

Costs and Prices

Membership isn’t required to enjoy chatting with other singles on OkCupid, but it does provide a few bonuses that can add to your online dating experience, such as the ability to see who’s liked you. The site offers two plans (A-List Basic & A-List Premium) as well as the ability to purchase boosts for your profile.
Plans One Month Three Months Six Months
Basic $7.95 $19.05 $23.70
Premium $24.90 $68.70 $119.40

OkCupid Special Features

Despite not offering services specifically to the LBGT community, the website in question has clearly made an effort to accommodate them. This is apparent in the number of gender identities they allow you to choose from for your profile (the number currently sits at 60). Although this may seem excessive, it’s actually very helpful when trying to find a partner since you can use identities such as “bear” or “femme” to find the perfect partner.

Safety

This dating site maintains a level of safety on its platform by requiring photos and phone verification from all of its members. Any new member will need to upload at least one photo to the website. After that, they’ll need to provide a phone number that will be used to verify their account. Without an active phone number, the account can’t be used.

What It’s Like: OkCupid

Sign Up Process

Sign Up
Although it’s not as in-depth as other platforms such as EliteSingles, you’ll still want to set aside a bit of time when you head over to OkCupid.com to make an account. After clicking the “Join OkCupid” button, you’ll need to provide an email, choose your password, then complete a short personality quiz.
This multiple-choice quiz has 15 questions; once it’s been completed, you’ll need to upload a photo to the platform (or import them from your social media account) then provide a phone number. OkCupid.com will send a code to this phone number, which you will use to verify your account. Without phone verification, you won’t be able to use your account.

Profile Creation

Creating your initial account will only fill in some of your profile information. After uploading photos to your profile (you can upload up to six), you still have questions you can answer (assuming you skipped one or two during the initial signup) and the “About Me” to fill out.
You can also select the answers you’d prefer your partner to have to the questions. Beyond these, there aren’t any additional fields for you to fill out on your profile; it’s time to start finding matches!

Searching and Matchmaking

Searching
It’s very easy to find other members on OkCupid. The main page is the “Discover” page, which shows you other members who have a high compatibility rating with you. On this page, you can choose to “Like” or “Pass” each member shown to you. The second tab, “Questions,” allows you to search through members by the answers they’ve provided to their profile questions. You can also search by interests, which is especially helpful if you’re looking for a partner who shares the same hobbies as you!

Contacting Other Members

Contacting
Reaching out to a potential match is quite easy, and unlike many other dating sites, even free members can do it! After you find someone who catches your eye, click on the “Like” button. Once you’ve done that, a “Message” button will appear, and you can send them a message.

Experts Conclusion

OkCupid.com may be an older platform, but it’s definitely still active and relevant. Offering all the basic online dating features entirely for free, this is definitely a dating website we’d recommend (especially for someone new to the world of online dating!). Membership does provide a few extra features, but none of them are truly necessary, making the overall experience pressure-free & enjoyable overall.

FAQ

Is OkCupid a legit website

Yes, this platform is well-known for providing quality dating services around the world.

Can free members send messages on OkCupid?

Yes! Paid plans mostly enhance your experience, but free members can use the site to its full extent.

Is OkCupid safe to use?

Yes, this website is safe to use. All members are phone-verified prior to being allowed access to the website/app.