We’re a pretty big fan of dating sites, and our Badoo review shows a good example of a dating site doing things right and improving people’s lives.
Let’s be real — before online dating, meeting people was a huge hassle. You’d either have to have your friends or family set you up, fall for someone at work, go up to a stranger at a bar, or put a classified ad in the newspaper and wait by the phone. Not ideal.
When dating sites and apps came along, they changed the dating game forever. Singles can now instantly find a match whether they were on their laptop at home, in line at Starbucks, or anywhere else in the world. If you’re looking for the best of the best, Badoo is usually part of the conversation. We’ll take you through everything the dating site, app, and social network has to offer as well as provide a better alternative if you’re not completely sold.
The Badoo App & Site: Free & Popular But Lacking in Safety Features (4.0/5.0 Rating)
One of the first things people want to know about Badoo is what the site has a truly massive user base. Badoo is available in 180 countries (including the United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore, India, Canada, and Australia) and has more than 446 million members. They also see more than 300,000 new signups a day, 60 million monthly active users, and 350 million daily messages.
To get started, you can sign up through Facebook or the homepage, or you can download the app via iTunes, Google Play, or Windows. You only have to give them a few pieces of info, including your gender, age, location, and what you’re there for (to chat, make new friends, or date, but it seems mostly for hookups). Then they’ll use that information to find you the perfect match.
Badoo will show you a picture of a user, and you have the option to either like them (hit the heart icon) or dislike them (hit the X). You’re also able to look at their profile and add them to your Favorites list before deciding. Overall, the Badoo interface could be more exciting, but it’s good if you like something that’s straightforward and you want to get right to it.
In terms of payment, most features on Badoo are free (registration, profile creation, browsing, etc.). You’ll have to buy credits if you want to do things like have your profile featured in the top navigation bar, and if you want to activate Super Powers, such as having your messages sent to matches sooner, you’ll have to buy credits or invite other people to join.
The common thread we noticed when testing and researching Badoo is that there seem to be a lot of complaints about people noticing fake profiles and receiving messages that were clearly from scammers in other countries. According to the privacy page, Badoo’s safety features include email verification, cookies and other devices.
The dating site’s experts have also published an online dating guide on how to stay safe and have a good experience on the platform. In general, when you’re using any dating site or app, keep your wits about you because you never really know if someone is for real until you meet in the real world.
Top Alternative
For those online daters who feel that Badoo isn’t quite the right choice for them, that’s not a problem at all — there are tons of other great alternatives out there. For starters, you can take a look at Match.
We like Match not only because it’s popular but also because it’s secure. For example, every member has to confirm their email address upon signup, and if someone is harassing you, there’s a block button that will prevent them from being able to contact you and see your profile.
- 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. Our Review »
- Browse Free: View Photos Now
OK, we won’t sugar-coat it — Match is the best online dating service in the world. The dating site was launched in 1995, making it the grandfather of online dating with more success stories to its name than any of its competitors. The Match app was launched in 2014 and has three stars on iTunes and three and a half stars on Google Play.
With such a rich history, Match is less likely to have fake profiles and scammers on the site, so you can go about your business without having that to worry about getting hoodwinked.
Badoo: A Popular Choice But Not the Only One
Badoo has been around since 2006, and it has definitely made an impact in the online dating industry. If you like a platform that mixes dating with social media, give it a try and see what you think.
Badoo can foster deep friendships and relationships, but it’s hardly the only game in town. There are over 8,000 dating sites in the world, so don’t be afraid to play the field and keep your options open. Any of the Badoo alternatives on this list could work well for you too.
No matter which dating site you choose, remember that it can’t do all the work for you. It’s up to you to sort through those millions of profiles and find the one that makes you smile. Good luck!
