When looking for an online dating app, not everyone is in search of something serious or long-term. Sometimes people are just looking for a casual hookup, which is what both Adult Friend Finder and Ashley Madison are known for. In this head-to-head, we look into Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison and cover features, scam management, pricing, demographics, and much more.
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Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison: Overall Review
While both Adult Friend Finder and Ashley Madison are sites for someone not looking for anything long-term, they are still geared toward different individuals and contain different features. One is more designed for singles looking for a good time while the other actually encourages affairs.
Adult Friend Finder Rating: 8/10
Adult Friend Finder was originally launched back in 1996, making it one of the older dating site options. However, the audience for this site is not quite the same as other options because it is directed only for individuals that are looking for a hookup. It has a large user base consisting of millions of members worldwide, so there is a wide selection of users to search through. It can be accessed both online and on a mobile device, and members can either meet up in person or use a live streaming feature to interact with other users.
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Ashley Madison Rating: 7/10
This dating app is also an older option which launched back in 2002. However, this site isn’t just for any hookup, but instead, it markets itself directly toward individuals that are not single.
In fact, it’s slogan is: “Life is short. Have an affair.” While this may not seem like the most reasonable dating app option out there, it does market itself toward a very specific audience, and it still contains a large user base. It emphasizes the fact that it tries to be as discreet as possible, which means members user a username as well as filters to cover up their eyes or face in any photos they upload.
Winner: Adult Friend Finder
While both sites have their similarities, Adult Friend Finder is the better option because it allows for a larger variety of users. Not everyone that is looking for a one night stand is looking to cheat on their significant other, so Ashley Madison clearly is not for everyone. However, both options function similarly and can be a successful option depending on each individual person’s preferences.
Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison: Pricing
If you’re not looking for anything serious on a dating site, then odds are that you won’t want to spend much money on the option you select. A hookup site should be quick and easy to use with minimal extra costs. So, how do these two dating sites compare in terms of pricing?
Adult Friend Finder Rating: 7/10
Adult Friend Finder is free to sign up for and use basic functions on, but in order to access everything on the site, you will need to purchase a membership. As a free member, you can create a profile, search through profiles, read and reply to emails, and initiate instant message conversations. While this may be plenty for those not looking to spend any money or extra time on this site, with a membership, you can browse full profiles, send emails, use extra search features, and appear first in searches. Therefore, by having a membership, you can find and connect with other users much easier.
The membership prices for Adult Friend Finder are:
- $40 for one month
- $27 a month for three months ($81 total)
- $20 a month for twelve months ($240 total)
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Ashley Madison Rating: 6/10
Ashley Madison is also free to use for the most part, but it will also cost some money if you want to be able to access all features. However, you don’t necessarily pay for a full membership, but instead, you are charged for the services that you use on the site, such as chats and virtual gifts. Therefore, you can purchase credits to access different parts of the site, which allows you to choose exactly what you want to spend your money on. The more credits you purchase at once, the cheaper each individual credit is.
If you purchase 100 credits, then it costs about 49 cents for each credit. However, if you purchase 500 credits, then it is only 29 cents each, and if you purchase 1,000 credits at once, then they are only 24 cents each. Most things that you can purchase on the site cost between 20 and 50 credits each.
Winner: Adult Friend Finder
While both sites have free basic functions, Adult Friend Finder has a set price for premium members, and most of the important aspects of the site can be accessed without even paying any money. With Ashley Madison, you may not think you’re going to be paying a lot, but you might end up wasting a bunch of money for communications and interactions that would be free on other sites. Therefore, Adult Friend Finder appears to be the more reasonable choice in terms of money.
Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison: Demographics
Just because both sites are designed for individuals looking for a hookup or casual relationship doesn’t mean that the demographics will be the same. The majority of users on each site greatly differ from each other in terms of age and what they’re typically looking for.
Adult Friend Finder Members
On Adult Friend Finder, the majority of users on the site are between the ages of 25 and 44, and they are almost all just looking for some casual fun with no long-term commitments. A large number of these members are from the United States, and unlike Ashley Madison, many of them are single, but there can still be some affairs and couples looking for a match on this site too. Overall, this option is not limited to just one group of people.
Ashley Madison Members
As clearly stated in the slogan, Ashley Madison is a site that is geared only toward users that are married or in a serious relationship while also looking to have an affair. Most members are middle-aged, and there are significantly more males signed up than females. It has an active community of millions of members worldwide, so meeting someone on this site should be no problem at all.
Winner: Adult Friend Finder
While Ashley Madison has a much more specific audience, Adult Friend Finder is suitable for a wide variety of individuals. Adult Friend Finder understands that anyone could be looking for a hookup, not just people that are having affairs. Overall, anyone that uses Ashley Madison could also find success on Adult Friend Finder, but not the other way around.
Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison: Who is Better at Being Scam-Free?
If you’re searching for someone to hook up with, then it is likely that you will want to avoid scammers at all costs. Unfortunately, it is difficult to avoid them completely when looking for someone online, but luckily, some dating sites will work hard to avoid scams as much as possible. However, these two might not be the most scam-free options out there.
Adult Friend Finder
While you will likely come across some scammers on Adult Friend Finder, they do have a verification system in place. It is not required when signing up, but if you want, you can choose to get your profile verified to let others know that you are who you say you are. Once you have been approved, a verification badge will appear on your profile to announce to other members that you are a real person. Therefore, you may want to lean toward other members that have also been verified.
Ashley Madison
On Ashley Madison, there have been a large amount of fake profiles reported, especially the female ones. Since keeping your identity a secret is very important on this site, there is very little personal information needed. You don’t even need to provide your name because profiles showcase a username instead. Because of this, you can’t even background check someone before meeting them in person. Therefore, when using this site, be extra cautious with who you talk to and agree to meet up with.
Winner: Adult Friend Finder
While scammers could easily find their way onto either of these sites, it is more likely that you will be safe on Adult Friend Finder. Ashley Madison not only provides minimal personal information, but it also has been hacked in the past. Therefore, it is probably easier to stick to an option where you can at least see who has been verified and who has not.
Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison: Features Comparison
Every dating site functions differently, so it is important to take features into account when deciding which option to choose. Luckily, Adult Friend Finder and Ashley Madison both have unique features that stand out from other dating sites.
Adult Friend Finder Rating: 7/10
The sign-up process for Adult Friend Finder is simple and should only take a few minutes at most, but to help find a better match, you will want to customize your profile as much as possible. This customization can include adding photos and answering personal questions. Most users on this app are not afraid to share their sexual preferences and fantasies, so you can feel free to get as personal with your answers as possible. Once you’ve been registered, you can browse through a wide selection of users, but you can change your preferences to get more accurate suggestions if you’d like. However, if you purchase a paid membership, then you have much more customization options than you would with the free account.
Ashley Madison Rating: 7/10
Ashley Madison also has a fairly simple sign up process. All you need to do is come up with a username and answer some basic questions before accessing the site. When uploading a picture to your profile, there are ‘mask’ options that allow you to better protect your identity on the site. Therefore, you don’t have to reveal your face until you’ve actually gotten to know someone on the site.
To connect with other users on Ashley Madison, you can send emails or ‘winks’ to other users to let them know you’re interested. To make searches more suited to your preferences, you can fill out sections about what you’re interested in both appearance-wise and sexually. As a woman, it is much easier to use and find matches than it is as a man on this site.
Winner: Both!
Both of these options have very different features from each other, but they are both unique in comparison to other dating sites out there. They both seem like they would work well for individuals just looking for something casual, but it is important to remember that most of these extra features come at a cost. Plus, these sites allow users to be upfront with what they’re looking for to help them find exactly what they’re looking for.
Adult Friend Finder vs Ashley Madison: Dating Success
It is a bit difficult for there to be success stories about dating sites that are only for hookups or affairs. Adult Friend Finder attempts to share their success by making a page where users can share their stories, but unfortunately, most of the comments that are posted are just negative reviews instead of happy endings, so there’s really not much success to be shared on that site.
Ashley Madison has some articles written about experiences that took place on the site, but similar to Adult Friend Finder, a lot of them aren’t very positive. Plus, there isn’t a specific place on the site to put success stories due to the fact that everyone is supposed to remain discreet on the site. Therefore, there is really no way to judge the success of Ashley Madison.
Winner: Neither
Sadly, neither sites have much going for them in terms of success, but this is mostly because users on these sites aren’t looking for a long-term relationship to tell stories about. These sites are much different than normal dating apps, so most users don’t necessarily want to proudly announce their experiences. However, just because the user success of these sites is not clear doesn’t mean that the sites themselves are not successful.
Verdict: Which is Best?
Between these two dating sites, Adult Friend Finder is the better option without a doubt. First of all, Ashley Madison is only geared towards individuals looking to cheat on their significant others, but even though it tries to be discreet, it still sends you lots of notifications and emails, which could easily be seen by those around you.
Therefore, at least Adult Friend Finder is open to anyone looking for a hookup instead of only people that are already tied down. Plus, Adult Friend Finder has been around for a long time and it is simple to use as long as you are cautious around any fake profiles that you might come across.
