Although you may have heard the name of the popular dating site Zoosk, you may be asking, “What is Zoosk, anyway? How does it work?” There are so many online dating sites that cater to everything from young adults to senior singles, and you can even find apps for polyamorous couples, married, and throuples looking for a little action on the side.
Zoosk is what’s known as a mainstream dating site, so it doesn’t operate in one niche – it can serve all dating and social networking needs.
Zoosk is a dating platform that has been around for a long time – it was launched in 2007 – and its success comes down to the company’s willingness to listen to feedback and innovate solutions to common issues. Our Zoosk review can tell you how the dating site compares to other online dating platforms, but this article focuses more specifically on what Zoosk is, how it works, and what sets it apart for daters.
Zoosk Is an Online Dating Network With Over 30M Users
Zoosk established itself early on as a major contender in the online dating site space. It offered singles a fast-paced alternative to more established platforms like eharmony and OkCupid. Although the online dating space continues to grow more crowded every year, Zoosk maintains a major following with over 30 million users across 80 countries and in 25 languages.
The site’s founders, Shayan Zadeh and Alex Mehr, started the Zoosk website after traveling to the US from Iran to continue their education. The two friends ran into trouble initially in bringing their American Dream to life, but a few lucky breaks and a good deal of grit put them in the position to start a company. Through trial and error, Shayan and Alex came up with a highly competitive dating platform.
Zoosk is a socially savvy dating site known for its diverse membership base and behavioral matchmaking system. Over 40 million singles in 80 countries have joined the network so far, and it’s growing larger every day. The platform offers many different ways to communicate and express interest in members, so it’s easy to form a fast connection here.
- Send messages to premium members for free
- Over 3 million messages sent a day
- Premium perks include photo verification and sending virtual gifts
- Browse Zoosk profiles 100% free »
Zoosk started out as a Facebook application, but it rapidly grew from a tool to upload and rate videos into a dating site. Alex and Shayan pursued that lead, developing Zoosk into a website to rival the other dating options online at the time. From the outset, Zoosk’s founders didn’t try to distance themselves too much from the social media functionality.
Instead, the site leans into those aspects to create a more holistic experience for users. The Zoosk company provides a lot of online dating assistance, including straightforward advice from The Date Mix, which offers dating insights and expert advice. Popular post topics include tips for flirting over text messages, how to plan an impressive first date, and tactics to make your dating profile stand out from the crowd.
The Dating Website Launched in 2007
Although the origins of the company began as a Facebook application, Zoosk the online dating site launched in 2007. Based in San Francisco, the company grew rapidly over the course of several years, keeping itself competitive with the online dating market.
The company’s founders focused on creating a dating platform with a broad experience: Something for everyone. Whether users wanted friendships, casual dates, or marriage, Zoosk aimed to offer a solution. Even within the crowded online dating and dating app space, Zoosk continued to grow its user base and develop a smart matchmaking feature to suit modern singles. In 2011, the Wall Street Journal ranked Zoosk at 29 on its Next Big Thing list for the year, a jump from number 42 the previous year.
The online dating platform first went public in 2014, and in the same year began a premium membership offering. The Zoosk subscription allows for members who are serious to send private messages and pursue real-life date opportunities. Although the company brought in massive revenues that year, the Zoosk company later had to withdraw its IPO, due to expanding too rapidly. The company forged on, however, and kept innovating in the face of challenges.
In 2019, Spark Networks bought Zoosk, adding it to a roster of high-quality, competitive dating sites and apps like Elite Singles and Silver Singles. Although Alex and Shayan don’t run the company any longer, Zoosk has continued to develop and adapt to changing times and the member feedback it receives. The dating platform remains one of the most popular options globally, and certainly in the US.
Innovative Features Make Virtual Dating More Engaging
One of the ways that Zoosk maintains its competitive edge in the online dating world is through offering innovative features that differ from other dating sites and mobile app companies. Due to its initial start as a Facebook application, Zoosk was among the first dating services to allow users to verify their profiles through Facebook. It was a natural step, considering the early connection to the social media giant.
Additionally, Zoosk launched Great Dates in 2021 to give singles a more engaging online experience. The virtual dating feature allows users to go on a date without even leaving their living room. Couples can go exploring interactive virtual city experiences in cities like Kyoto, Athens, and Naples.
The Great Dates perk launched for Zoosk subscribers in the US just in time to ease the stir-crazy feelings of singles and couples living under lockdown and postponing travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though quarantines made it harder for singles to meet in person, the new Zoosk feature gave members opportunities for exotic, inspiring dates.
The Zoosk company’s research suggests that many Zoosk members want to continue their virtual dating experiences even as restrictions are lifted and the dating world goes back to pre-COVID norms. Still looking to problem-solve, the site’s developers are working to make the Great Dates available more widely.
In the future, Zoosk is planning to build up its Great Dates experience and offer a greater variety of locations for the virtual dates. The team says it could even provide interactive material and curated experiences with locals from foreign destinations of interest.
Zoosk Customer Service is Available to Help
Another way that Zoosk maintains its popularity with its membership is by making customer service accessible to every Zoosk user. Whether you have a paid subscription or a free membership, you can contact Zoosk customer service to address any issues you run into on the dating website.
The contact form is easy to find across the Zoosk website, and FAQs pages also answer commonly asked questions. The contact form itself is fairly basic and simple: provide your first and last name, email address, and choose one of the options from the dropdown menu: billing questions, technical support, or other issues. Then you can describe the concern or problem you’ve encountered in more detail.
If the contact form isn’t your preferred method to get in touch, Zoosk also provides email-based customer support as well as a Help page that can provide the answers to many questions.
Zoosk allows members to flag profiles and conversations easily in case of trouble, so a fake profile or scammer doesn’t stand a chance here. The customer service team and content moderation teams work hard to make sure they get to each request quickly. Zoosk is committed to safety and security for its members, whether on the website or on the Zoosk app. The robust customer service aspects of the dating site are one of its most appealing features for members, who say that rapid response times and quick resolutions are a major reason for their customer satisfaction.
Zoosk Has Many Success Stories to Its Name
The real proof of any dating site is its success stories. A great dating platform and innovative features are only good if they mean that the members using the site find a compatible person and make meaningful connections. Zoosk comes through on that score with plenty of success stories from happy former users.
Zoosk has a section dedicated to the many success stories the site has collected over the years. It celebrates each member who set up a dating profile, contacted a potential match, and found their happily-ever-after ending.
“We chatted for a month then had the most incredible first date ever.” — Tilly and Todd, former Zoosk members
Users like Antonette and Daniel have used Zoosk to reconnect after drifting apart, finding each other and rekindling their romances. As Antonette explains, “Danny and I dated in high school for a short amount of time,” but their teenage romance didn’t work out. After finding other partners, getting married, having children and getting divorced, both turned to Zoosk for another chance at love and ended up making a lifelong bond. As of their interview with Zoosk, the two had not only rekindled things, but began living together with their children, forming a new family together.
Other singles on Zoosk have gone on to get married. Synthia and Roy tied the knot not too long after reconnecting on Zoosk. Synthia explained in an interview, “Having been a widow for three years, I was ready to try online dating, hoping for an occasional date to share a movie or lunch.” She found Roy, who she’d known in her high school days, and the two hit it off right away. By the time of her interview with Zoosk, she and Roy had married, and barely spent more than a day apart since they first got together.
There are many more success stories by Zoosk users who found their ideal partner on the site. The successes include high school sweethearts who reconnected, older divorced men and women who got the second-chance romance they dreamed of, young professionals who turned to Zoosk to find their perfect date and found their perfect spouse in the process, and some couples who never expected to be monogamous and get married – until a Zoosk match changed their mind.
FAQs: How Much Does Zoosk Cost?
Zoosk operates on a “freemium” model, which means that you can set up a Zoosk account and browse other profiles for free. You can even browse the site itself to a degree without signing up. Where the cost comes in is when you want to make contact.
As a free member, you can use some communication methods, such as flirts and free replies. Premium members can contact anyone at any time, and they have a variety of messaging tools at their disposal. Premium membership comes with perks like Smart Pick introductions, and the Super Send option to get in touch with multiple members at once.
Subscription prices can vary, and Zoosk offers discount codes throughout the year to sweeten the deal. The basic rundown of prices, based on your subscription length, goes as follows:
- $29.95 for one month
- $19.98/month for three months
- $11.00/month for six months
- $8.83/month for twelve months
As you can see, the price gets more reasonable per month for a longer commitment. If you’re willing to commit to the dating site, you’ll get a better rate for the Zoosk subscription. Premium members consistently see the merits of paying, and the number of paid memberships on Zoosk grows every year.
If you want to test some of the premium features without the commitment, you can purchase Zoosk Coins. The coins won’t pay for premium membership, but will allow you to send individual messages or reply to them, as well as to partake in individual features.
Do I Need a Facebook Account to Login?
No, you don’t need a Facebook account to use Zoosk. You don’t need it to verify your dating profile, and you don’t need it to log in once you’ve created your account. An email address or a Google+ account signin work just fine. However, linking your Facebook to Zoosk can speed things up in a lot of ways.
Linking your Facebook account to Zoosk lets you transfer personal details and photos to the dating site. Instead of having to enter the information and upload the pictures yourself, you can have it all set up automatically and instantly. Linking your Facebook profile to your Zoosk profile also means you will appear more legitimate to other members on the site.
Don’t worry that linking your Facebook to Zoosk will let all of your family and friends in on your dating life. Zoosk uses the connection to verify your details and streamline the signup process. Zoosk doesn’t post on your wall, will not appear in your Facebook profile, and won’t be part of your Facebook browsing experience at all.
Is Zoosk Good for Seniors?
Zoosk is a good option for seniors because the dating website provides a straightforward, intuitive platform for meeting other senior singles within a local area or in other parts of the same country. While it’s not a dedicated dating platform for older people, Zoosk does make sense as a place to meet like-minded people and have conversations, and it’s especially helpful for seniors who don’t want to exclude younger partners.
Zoosk’s simple signup and intuitive messaging system appeals to senior singles looking for romance. The dating site has over 40 million members, and it sees over 3.8 million monthly visits on average. The site’s signature Behavioral Matchmaking system facilitates love connections by recommending profiles that are similar to the ones you’ve viewed and liked.
- Browse profiles and send likes for free
- Dating Insights can offer personalized advice to seniors
- Photo verification badges authenticate profile pictures
- Browse Zoosk profiles 100% free »
Features like the Zoosk carousel, along with enhanced security features, make Zoosk an excellent choice for seniors who are looking to get out there and start dating on websites or apps. The carousel is an intuitive swiping feature that lets each Zoosk member reach out to other members based on common interests. The AI gets smarter each time you use it, learning your preferences and desires in a potential partner.
Built-in security features and safeguards on the dating website also mean that seniors are at a lower risk of running into scammers or bots, making it a more comfortable, less stressful experience all around.
How Does Zoosk Spot & Remove Fake Profiles?
While no system is perfect, and online dating users should do their due diligence to protect themselves, Zoosk takes its own security measures to keep catfishers, scammers, and other fake profile problems off of the platform. Content moderation and strict profile picture rules go a long way when it comes to helping keep members safe.
Zoosk has strict guidelines on the types of pictures you can include in your profile, and moderators check each one to ensure that it’s consistent. Singles won’t be able to pass with a stock photo, a photoshopped picture, or anything obscene. The online dating website also makes it easy to report profiles you suspect are fake, so policing of the Zoosk network is always ongoing.
Zoosk also moderates content on the website and dating app with a careful hand. While the moderators aren’t reading everything you write on the dating profile, a smart algorithmic feature is in place to highlight potential issues and flag any fake profile that tries to slip past.
Of course, if you’re in doubt, you can always reach out to the customer service team, report suspicious profiles, and block any person who makes you uncomfortable, all with just a few clicks of the mouse.
Is Zoosk Legit?
Zoosk is a completely legitimate dating site that has been serving the single population for decades. It is now part of a larger network of dating sites in the Spark Networks. Zoosk provides a “something for everyone” approach to dating, so you can browse profiles to find new friends, enjoy your next fling, or even meet that special single person you want to marry.
Whether it’s facilitating true love or a casual hookup, the Zoosk site doesn’t judge as it helps users make new connections in their local area and beyond. This genuine dating site connects real people and provides dating insights to make the experience even better.
Zoosk subscribers can mingle by using the dating website or the Zoosk app, which is available in the App store and Google Play store for free download. If you have any doubt that Zoosk is legit, just take a look at the success stories that Zoosk continues to compile. Its testimonials prove that Zoosk can work for single people.
Zoosk: One of the Top Apps for Smart Matches
So, hopefully that covers everything you need to answer the question “what is Zoosk?” It is one of the most competitive dating sites and apps in the global market, and it has been introducing single people to smart matches since 2007.
Despite its advanced age, the social networking site is still highly relevant when it comes to finding your next date. Zoosk is an all-purpose dating site and social platform where a single person can find friends, flings, and even long-term partners.
As part of Spark Networks, Zoosk Inc keeps itself competitive by continuing to innovate new features.
As our Zoosk review makes clear, the site and dating app that goes with it keep things fresh by incorporating new features that answer the problems and concerns that singles have. Take the plunge and meet your matches on Zoosk!
