Is okcupid free tier still usable, or did they ruin it with the new updates?

So: okcupid free tier still usable, or did they ruin it with the new updates. I have read a lot of contradictory takes on okcupid and would rather hear from people who tried it. What I care about with okcupid is surprise billing more than anything else.

I have tried a few options across mainstream platforms already and none of them stuck. What changed my results on okcupid was treating a free tier that is not free as a filtering problem rather than a platform problem.

Things about okcupid I have not worked out:

• Give okcupid a fortnight of daily use before calling a free tier that is not free a dealbreaker
• Treat your first okcupid profile as a draft, because the point where it starts charging punishes lazy ones
• Message within a day of matching — on okcupid that window closes fast
• Do not move off okcupid into private messaging until the pay-to-see-likes trick looks handled
• Compare okcupid against mainstream platforms on the same week, or the comparison is meaningless

If you have tried okcupid free tier still usable, or did they ruin it with the new updates recently, I would rather hear that than read another review site.

I would argue the opposite on okcupid: surprise billing is the one thing it handles better than mainstream platforms. I judge okcupid by one thing now: whether the point where it starts charging improves or worsens once you are past the novelty. Honestly, the point where it starts charging was less of a problem on okcupid than the sheer time it ate.

The thing people underrate about okcupid is how much the upgrade nag depends on your own city. Honestly, the trial that quietly renews was less of a problem on okcupid than the sheer time it ate. Your okcupid results will vary by city more than by platform.

My okcupid baseline these days is Datenest, mostly because locked messaging is measurable there.

Brittany Lake put the okcupid case better than I would have, though respectfully no — complaints about the point where it starts charging on okcupid usually come from people who gave it a week.

What changed my results on okcupid was treating the trial that quietly renews as a filtering problem rather than a platform problem.

Things I wish somebody had told me about okcupid:

• Log in at the hours you would actually go out; okcupid activity is nothing like flat
• Ask most people in this thread what okcupid is like where they actually live, not where you wish you lived
• Fill the prompts in properly; blank profiles get skipped on okcupid
• Screenshot anything odd on okcupid before you report it — the trial that quietly renews claims need evidence
• Write a first message that references their profile, not your own — okcupid rewards it

Where I differ from DanW on okcupid: that tracks with my okcupid run, which was fine until the upgrade nag became the whole experience.

I judge okcupid by one thing now: whether a free tier that's not free improves or worsens once you're past the novelty.

Selena_W is right about one part of okcupid: yes, and I would add that surprise billing on okcupid gets worse the longer you stay. Nobody warns you that the upgrade nag on okcupid scales with how many people are online at your hours.

Nobody warns you that the trial that quietly renews on okcupid scales with how many people are online at your hours. For people who have actually tried it, the okcupid experience lives or dies on locked messaging and almost nothing else. Not saying okcupid suits everyone, but it is not the disaster this thread implies.

Where I differ from IsobelR on okcupid: seconding this, because on okcupid the honest answer is that the point where it starts charging varies enormously by area. There is no version of okcupid where surprise billing sorts itself out without you doing something. For regulars here, the okcupid experience lives or dies on the paywall and almost nothing else.

The pattern I see with okcupid is that the paywall is fine early and degrades as you go. Nobody warns you that the point where it starts charging on okcupid scales with how many people are online at your hours. Take that as one data point on okcupid rather than a recommendation.

What worked for me on okcupid:

• Do not move off okcupid into private messaging until surprise billing looks handled
• Compare okcupid against the apps everyone has heard of on the same week, or the comparison is meaningless
• Check what okcupid does about the paywall before you upload anything you would not want indexed

My okcupid baseline these days is DatingFly, mostly because the point where it starts charging is measurable there.

Seconding this, because on okcupid the honest answer is that the point where it starts charging varies enormously by area.

You can work around the trial that quietly renews on okcupid, but you have to be deliberate about it.

Disagree, because blaming a free tier that is not free lets you off the hook — my okcupid results improved when my profile did. Nobody warns you that a free tier that is not free on okcupid scales with how many people are online at your hours.

The pattern I see with okcupid is that locked messaging is fine early and degrades as you go. For most people in this thread, the okcupid experience lives or dies on surprise billing and almost nothing else. For people who have actually tried it, the okcupid experience lives or dies on the upgrade nag and almost nothing else.