If you’re looking for a casual encounter, the good news is that apps for getting laid are more popular than ever. Tinder snagged the majority of market share for dating apps in 2021, but new players continue to launch, and people looking for a quick hookup have plenty of options.

Whether you’re a swinging couple, a single looking for no-strings sex or dating, or anything in between, there’s an app out there to help you connect with the right partner. In this article, we will review the best hookup site or dating app to find your next steamy date.

Overall Best Hookup Apps

Our experts have gone over each of the most popular hookup sites and apps in detail, checking the different features and benefits. These sites are the best of the top options, offering the right balance of ease of use, lots of users, and tools to help you get together with your potential partner as quickly as possible.

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★★★★★ 4.8/5.0
  • Discreetly arranges one-night stands and extramarital affairs
  • More than 80 million profiles worldwide
  • Travel-friendly features for seeking matches in other cities

Ashley Madison is the go-to app for married people interested in having an affair, but it’s much more than that. Whether you are single and married, Ashley Madison offers daters a judgment-free venue to pursue sexy chats, meet new people, and indulge fantasies.

Many users on the site are interested in a local hookup with no strings attached. Ashley Madison has over 80 million members who identify openly as married, in a relationship, or single, so there’s no pretending the connection isn’t an affair.

In addition to the website, Ashley Madison offers a popular dating app through the App Store and Google Play store, with the core features of the dating platform condensed into a mobile-friendly format. Photo blurring and masking, along with security features like encryption and browser history clearing make it a safe venue to explore your desires, whether you’re married or looking to hook up with a married person.

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★★★★★ 4.5/5.0
  • A massive user base of over 70 million dating profiles
  • Send a free private message or Flirtcast to get something going
  • Exchange nude pics or adult videos with a Flirt member you trust

It can be tricky for dating platforms to balance a user-friendly signup process with privacy and security. But Flirt.com hits the right note, giving users flexibility on what they want to share while weeding out fake profiles and scammers.

Flirt.com offers a variety of communication methods, including public chat rooms, private messaging, and the innovative Flirtcast feature that sends the same message to several users at once. This open communication paired with the simple signup process makes it easy for users to find their next casual encounter without breaking a sweat.

Free members on Flirt.com get a good deal: messaging options open up as soon as you upload a picture or two, and you have a lot of freedom to connect with other members in a variety of ways. Upgrade your membership for perks like incognito browsing, or safe mode, which limits who can contact you at any given time. 

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★★★★ 4.1/5.0

With more than 13 million active monthly members, BeNaughty plays host to some of the friskiest singles on the web. The online dating site makes it easy to get started: you can sign up for free, as well as browse profiles and search for a potential match by age, location, orientation, and appearance. Men with free memberships have a limited number of free messages, but BeNaughty has a flexible approach to premium memberships.

Instead of a flat monthly fee, you can choose from one of three packages, depending on your preferences. The Chataholic package gives you access to unlimited messaging and premium communication features like read receipts.

The Security package gives you peace of mind with HTTPS encryption, automatic history cleaning, and incognito browsing. You can opt for the Premium Dater to get all of the above and chase your local sex fantasies with discretion and full communication freedom.

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★★★★★ 4.7/5.0

Adult Friend Finder (AFF) has been around for decades as a popular dating site for people seeking casual sex. Just because the site is an old-school favorite, however, that doesn’t mean it hasn’t kept up with the times.

AFF is ahead of the curve in a lot of areas, including being one of the earliest dating sites to incorporate video chat functions. Just be aware that the video chats on AFF tend to be more like strip teases and other titillating content.

And of course, you can only access the video options on AFF if you have a premium membership. A Gold Member on AFF gets the full run of the adult dating site’s features and benefits, including unlimited messaging and racy bonus content to keep your motor running while you search for your next match. 

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★★★★★ 4.5/5.0

OneNightFriend is one of those sites that gives you exactly what it says in the name. The online dating site hosts a community of people looking locally for one-night stands, with none of the games and questions about intentions that you might run into with more mainstream dating sites.

The top-rated platform is simple and user-friendly, without confusing bells and whistles to make it tricky to find the person you want to hook up with.

Free members have access to limited messaging options but have access to free browsing on the site, including search functions and a swipe option like on Tinder or OkCupid. Certain limitations make it a less-than-ideal option for LGBTQ+ singles, including the fact that users can only match with one gender at a time. And the gender identification options don’t include any nonbinary genders. But if you’re looking for a simple, straightforward platform to find your next hookup, OneNightFriend makes a great wingman. 

6. Tinder

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★★★★ 4.4/5.0
  • The dating app of choice for millions of sexually active singles
  • Accelerating the dating process through swiping
  • Has led to over 97 billion mutual matches

The original swipe app for singles, Tinder is a mainstay for anyone looking to quickly find a date in their area without any fuss or stress. But just because the popular dating app has been around for years doesn’t mean that the team behind it is complacent. Tinder constantly updates features, testing new options for both free members and paid users alike. Best of all, you can sign up, match, and message without getting your credit card out.

Premium features, however, do make for a richer experience. You get access to a whole host of special powers on the platform, from Super Likes to unlimited swiping, visibility boost, and the ability to get back a match you swiped left on by mistake. Tinder launches new features all the time, like an optional Ladies First feature, or new communications options like video chat. 

7. Kasual

Combining game-like features with the need for no-strings-attached intimacy is what Kasual does best, and the sex app definitely stands apart in a crowded field. Kasual launched after Craigslist Personals stopped allowing ads for dating or hookups, and the app took off internationally on the premise of helping singles find something completely casual. If you like to keep your efforts at getting laid anonymous, Kasual is here for you.

This is because Kasual only asks for a bare minimum of information before letting you get down to business. You have to verify age and provide an identifying photo for the safety of the platform, but there are no lengthy bio sections or heavy details to wade through when it comes time to match up with someone.

Instead, you take your chances with the card game at the center of Kasual, flipping cards to find a match and reach out to them. Even if you don’t pick the right card, you still have options to message a prospective partner, so don’t get discouraged. For even better odds, however, you can always upgrade your membership to Elite status.

8. Pure

If anonymity and a quick pace are priorities in your hookup adventures, Pure offers a judgment-free environment where you can indulge yourself. The hookup sex app has been around less than a decade, but it sets itself apart in a few key ways. For one, your profile on the app is anonymous and temporary. This is because your profile on the app is also your personal ad: your gender, the gender you’re interested in, and a line or two about what you’re looking for.

Pure app
Pure is a sex-positive dating app reaching around the world.

Once you allow location settings, the Pure app serves you up the profiles of the people in your area who meet your gender preferences, and you have 24 hours to set something up.

The app is free for women, but men on the platform have to pay a membership fee to access the full features. The app is straightforward, with users posting very explicit ads for what they seek. So if you’re not shy and just want to get right to the point, Pure offers you a great venue for finding like-minded singles and couples in your area.

9. DOWN

DOWN is a discreet dating app that makes it easy to identify the members who are looking for a casual hookup. Part of the matching process asks every DOWN user to decide whether they’re down to date or down to hookup. The development team states that the goal is to help singles get right to the point, instead of dealing with the awkward and frustrating process of figuring out if a potential match is looking for the same thing. 

DOWN keeps things simple, but that doesn’t mean that the platform isn’t adaptive. In the wake of Covid-19 lockdowns, the team launched Delight as a new feature, making it easy for app users to connect in a new way: through voicemail. The sex-positive space that DOWN creates makes it easy to connect with people looking for the same thing you are, without feeling any shame or worry that you’ll be judged for it.

10. The Sauce

While a lot of apps vie for the attention of women, The Sauce makes a strong case for itself when it comes to women looking for a hookup. The app appeals primarily to Gen Z daters, and launched as a reaction by the co-CEOs to many of the issues plaguing online dating.

The Sauce brings something new to the game: video profiles. Instead of writing paragraphs about who you are and what you’re looking for, you create an introduction video and present yourself to the other members.

The Sauce App Brings Excitement Back to the Dating Lives

Through video clips and back-and-forth video chat messages, singles on the app get to know each other a little better, making The Sauce a sort of TikTok meets Tinder experience.

Part of the reasoning behind the video-first choice is that the app’s founders want to help women avoid time-wasters and “kittenfishing” men, who build fake profiles with false details to try and catch a younger woman. With The Sauce, singles know what they’re getting long before the first meeting.

Best Hookup Apps for Same-Sex Partners

The LGBTQ+ community has slightly different needs when it comes to hookup dating, and these apps and sites help create a safe space where they can explore their sexuality and find casual encounters without having to deal with harassment. These apps make it easy to explore your sexuality without the risks.

11. MenNation

Category Rating
★★★★ 4.4/5.0
  • A massive men-only sex and swinger community
  • Browse profiles and send private messages to your favorites
  • Profiles feature erotic videos and sexually explicit blogs

The number of options available to a gay man looking for the right guy for his next hookup can be daunting. MenNation keeps things simple and keeps them sexy. The gay hookup site makes a user’s intentions clear from beginning to end, with profiles that feature written and photographic erotic content to inspire members to get right down to business.

Even better is the fact that you don’t specifically have to identify as a gay man to be welcome on the site. MenNation welcomes any man seeking other men for a good time, whether you’re bi-curious, gay, pansexual, bisexual, or anywhere else on the spectrum. But to get the most out of the site, you’ll definitely want to spring for premium membership, as free members have limited communication options.

Category Rating
★★★★ 4.3/5.0
  • Create a free profile in less than a minute
  • Search filters can identify attractive singles and couples in the area
  • Strip tease videos, revealing photos, and other adult content

As with many lesbian dating platforms, LesbianPersonals puts the focus on community first, creating a safe space for queer women to connect and find love. The site bars straight women and single men, but couples with at least one queer woman can sign up and join in on the discussions. If you meet the woman of your dreams, you can take things private and see where they go.

Browsing and public discussions are open to all site members, but only premium members get access to benefits like unlimited messaging. So if you’re serious about hooking up with beautiful women often, it may be a worthwhile expense. For any woman-loving woman, LesbianPersonals provides a safe community to explore queerness and desire.

13. Grindr

Category Rating
★★★★ 3.8/5.0
  • Sexually active men can create free profiles
  • Matching system uses GPS information to find local dates
  • Millions of prospects available in 192 countries

Known as the Tinder for gay men, Grindr launched in 2009 ahead of the wave of gay-friendly dating platforms for the smartphone, and it’s kept innovating ever since. The hookup app offers gay men not just the swipe-to-match action that made Tinder so innovative, but also a deeper community function, bringing men-loving men together to discuss issues and organize. 

You can access all of the key functions on Grindr without paying anything, and most men find that they can get a hookup easily without ever taking out a credit card. But GrindrX membership has its benefits: more profiles to match with, a bigger block list capacity, and other perks provide a luxe experience. 

FAQs: Which Hookup App Has 100% Free Chatting?

A few casual dating apps have 100% free chatting and messaging systems built into the platform. While most major dating services make you pay a membership fee to send or receive messages (or both), free sites like OkCupid promise to continue offering free messaging options for as long as the site exists. In fact, one of the conditions that the site’s ownership insisted on when Match Group bought the platform years later was that all core functions remain free. 

It’s no secret that Tinder is a wildly popular dating app, and a big part of it staying power on the market is the free chatting features that satisfy users.

Tinder screenshots
The Tinder app has been downloaded over 630 million times.

Plenty of Fish also set itself apart early on by offering free, open communication on the platform. The site and the dating app that goes with it are free to use, and you can contact anyone on the site without the need for a paid membership. While OkCupid and Tinder lock messaging until you’ve matched with users in some way, Plenty of Fish keeps everything simple. 

Where Can I Explore Polyamorous Dating & Relationships?

Non-monogamy is a growing interest for Gen X, Millennial, and Gen Z daters, so it’s only natural that communities, dating sites, and dating apps increasingly cater to people who want to explore polyamory and open relationship dynamics. There are a few standouts that help people who want to participate in ethical non-monogamy foster healthy, sexy encounters.

Feeld was created as a love letter from founder Dimo Trifonov to his partner Ana, who now runs the company. The dating app provides a playful, healthy space for couples to seek singles to bring into their relationships.

Feeld screenshots
Feeld invites polyamorous daters to mix things up a little.

A major selling point for the Feeld app is the seriousness with which the development team takes member privacy. The team keeps things secure and safe for the platform’s membership to explore sexuality in any configuration it wants.

3Fun is on a mission to help singles and couples redefine relationship norms, by offering a secure and private space to explore what they want. The app boasts 2.5 million active members, and the development team constantly upgrades and updates the privacy and security features so non-monogamous singles and couples can connect and get to know each other without having to worry about private info being leaked. 

Which Dating App is Best for Anonymous Sexting?

If you like to get freaky over text with complete anonymity, several platforms make it really easy and do everything possible to maintain your privacy.

Although Ashley Madison has somewhat of a checkered past when it comes to user security, the site and the dating app that goes with it have upgraded since the massive leak years ago.

Among the different privacy and security features the popular dating app includes, users have the option to keep their photos anonymous for as long as they want. In addition, the platform requires all users to stick with pseudonyms instead of using their real names. 

Category Rating
★★★★ 4.2/5.0

If you go for a premium membership, Ashley Madison uses discreet billing as another privacy-maintenance measure. Finally, you can jump away from your sexting at any moment by tapping or clicking the “panic button,” which navigates you to a neutral site to protect you from prying eyes.

Seeking.com, formerly known as SeekingArrangement, also makes it easy to keep your private conversations private, with a whole host of measures to let would-be sugar daddies, sugar mommies, and sugar babies anonymous on the platform.

Like Ashley Madison, Seeking lets you keep your photos private until you’re comfortable revealing them via password protection. You can also browse incognito and protect your identity in other ways. 

Is Bumble a Good Hookup App to Use?

Bumble is not a good app to use for hookups or to find a casual encounter. In fact, the leadership at the dating app works hard to distance Bumble from hookup apps like Tinder. As part of the overall effort to empower women, the platform occasionally checks in with its members.

The reports consistently find that members on the app don’t want a casual relationship, but instead are looking for something more serious. Bumble is so committed to bucking hookup culture that the content moderation guidelines won’t even allow photos of members wearing swimwear indoors. It’s better to stick with platforms that cater to people who want a fling, casual sex, or something less defined and serious. 

Hookup Apps Make Getting Laid Easier Than Ever

After years of pandemic-imposed social distancing and restrictions, it’s no surprise that singles are looking to cut the process of hooking up down to a minimum. Apps for getting laid make it easy to find the right person, get in touch, and set up a casual encounter that will leave you and your potential partner satisfied. 

Get out there and find your new person for some quick, dirty, and flirty fun!

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