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I’ve spent over a decade as a dating app user, and I’m a sex and relationships writer who regularly reviews dating apps, so I used to think I’d seen almost everything there was to see in the digital dating world. I assumed there weren’t many dating apps or sites out there that could surprise me.
Trying FriendFinder-X changed this perspective for me.
I hadn’t really heard much about FriendFinder-X before, and the site definitely surprised me at first glance. The homepage seemed pretty basic, and it led me to be believe the site would be slightly less modern than I’m used to.
FriendFinder-X did seem old-school to me, but it wasn’t slow, and it certainly wasn’t traditional. The X-rated features make it pretty unique from other hookup sites in its class.
One of the most important distinctions to note about this site is that it is NSFW. While there are filters you can use to blur private parts (and I did), FriendFinder-X is basically an “anything goes” kind of site when it comes to nudity.
I found everything from shirtless selfies to full-on pornographic webcam live streams. Just a heads up that this isn’t going to be a site you’ll want to browse at work or with someone peeking over your shoulder at brunch.
Joining the Site
Signing up for FriendFinder-X involves a pretty standard and simple process in line with many other hookup sites.
The landing page asked me for my gender (woman) and the gender I was looking for (men and women).
I did notice that the only gender identity options were man, woman, or trans, which made me think this won’t be the most LGBTQ+ inclusive site if you’re queer, gender non-conforming, or open to meeting others who are.
There were options to list yourself as a couple or a group. And you could indicate that you’re looking for a couple or a group, which was interesting.
Creating an account involves the basic steps I’d expect from a dating site: Birthdate, country, ZIP code, email address, a username, and password are all required to get started.
FriendFinder-X also asks for sexual orientation, body type, race, and marital status; however, it does give the option to choose “prefer not to say” for people who value privacy when building a profile.
The “more about you” step does require an introduction title of at least 10 characters, so you’ll need to write a few words to catch someone’s attention.
Filling out a bio is optional, but I’d recommend it. The site offers tips for writing your bio and an “Instant writer” that I assume is an AI tool if you truly need guidance.
Age Verification
FriendFinder-X requires all members to verify that they’re at least 18 years old to join. This is especially important since the website allows users to post nude content.
Once I finished creating my account, I had to go through a mandatory age verification process. There are two options: age estimation and ID verification.
The age estimation uses your computer or phone camera to confirm an estimation of your age with just your face. The ID verification requires you to scan your passport, driver’s license, or a national ID using your camera.
The ID verification page says it doesn’t store the information, and it’s securely encrypted.
Photos & Kink Tags
While a profile photo isn’t required on FriendFinder-X, the site does encourage it. A pop-up bar even says that profiles with a photo get 10x more interaction.
Once I uploaded a photo, it took 24 hours for the site’s moderation team to officially approve it. That said, my profile was clearly visible the moment I submitted my age verification, and other users began interacting with it almost immediately.
The profile didn’t require information. I could say if I were willing to relocate for a partner (which I found interesting considering the no-strings implication of the site), identify kinks from a list of over two dozen options, and even design and gift something called bling.
The kinks section was interesting — the site has a list of kinks you can select to add to your profile. There are quite a few, from blindfolds to Domination/submission to more X-rated options.
Although some people with less common kinks or fetishes may feel less represented by the pre-selected variety, there were still enough to where I think most people would be satisfied.
The bling feature was intriguing to me. Blings are customized icons that users can create, share, or gift to others. They are very small and pixelated for the most part, so I’m not sure how important they are in terms of expressing your creativity or interests to other users.
It does seem like a lot of people use them, but it also appears to involve a somewhat complicated process to create a new one. The bling editor is like a very outdated, small version of the old school Microsoft Paint application, so I’d imagine it’s time-consuming if you want to make a creative or intricate one.
Free Features
Unlike many other hookup sites, FriendFinder-X actually seems to allow users to do quite a bit without paying for a membership.
I was able to create my profile, immediately see and search for other members, and even join the community forum where people post blogs and, essentially, use the site like a naughty Facebook.
While the blogs, groups, and chat rooms do offer a way to interact with others on the site, it seems that most users will have to pay if they want to actually date in real life.
Liking and messaging other profiles or sending Flirts (prewritten icebreakers) requires a Gold membership. While I started to receive messages right when I completed my profile, I couldn’t actually read them until I had a Gold membership.
I’d imagine not being able to message would become frustrating enough for people to eventually give in to paying for it.
If you’re interested in viewing explicit content, the free membership allows limited access to some chat rooms, interest groups, user-posted blogs, and even public webcam content.
You can like and comment on public content, but you will need to pay to privately interact with any users otherwise.
Although one-on-one interaction is pretty much reserved for paying users, folks who want to use FriendFinder-X as a site to browse for nude content or even use it like a free OnlyFans alternative may enjoy the free membership just fine.
In addition to the Gold membership subscription options, you can choose to buy “Points” that help you access paywalled video or webcam content, bid to become a Top Fan of other creators, or even send tips or virtual gifts.
Opinions on the Profiles I Saw
While browsing profiles, I noticed the vast majority of users were in their 40s and above — and this was without any search filters whatsoever.
To me, this signals the user base on FriendFinder-X probably skews a bit older. This could also be influenced by the preset filters I had when I signed up, which signaled that I was a woman looking for a man.
One thing I also took note of was how many users are clearly active and probably pretty intentional about using this site in particular. The majority of profiles I saw had profile photos, had at least the most basic info filled out, and most of them were even Gold members (as noted by the gold crown icon).
It seems like people who use this app regularly take advantage of all the features, and I’d imagine they treat it like a main social media platform, given its blog, group, livestream, and chat features.
The vast majority of profiles I saw seemed real, and I’d say that most of them filled out enough profile information to get a sense of whether they were using the site for its intended purposes.
I had several ways to search through profiles. I could look through lists sorted by “Online Now,” “New Matches,” or “Members Near Me.” I could create a custom search or kink search as well.
The gender filters included “trans” but not other identities. I could filter by distance or membership tier (only looking at Gold members), and I could widen my search radius to up to 3,000 miles.
The dropdown filters are where things get really interesting. In addition to searching by kinks, I can add extra detail badges to my profile and use them to narrow the search for matches.
It’s a pretty standard list for the most part, with filters like hair color, height, and body type, but there are a few more unusual options like “circumcised,” “female breast size,” and “endowment length/width.” I assume these will have to be publicly listed on a user’s profile for them to come up in that search parameter.
In my honest opinion, the overall user base skewed older and less attractive for my preferences. The photo quality and vibe of each profile weren’t really catering to my type, but I’m also pickier than the average person (a decade of expertise in online dating will do that to you!)
Cost Breakdown
The Gold membership is the core of the site and is very much needed to function for dating and hooking up.
Most people who like their initial experience on the site will probably want to sign up for Gold, if for no other reason than the ability to message other users.
Here’s what Gold Membership costs:
A Gold membership is required to read, send, and reply to private messages, and I wasn’t able to figure out any substantial workarounds to this.
If you want to add to your membership experience or just get a little more access to the nude content or live stream features, you can also purchase points a la carte. It costs $3 to get a bank of 200 points, or you could pay $6 for 500 points or $10 for 1,000 points.
The points come into play more so in the video streaming sections, so if you’re only interested in chatting or looking at pics, you can skip.
Messaging Experience
Once I secured my Gold membership, the messaging feature really became more interesting.
Within the first few hours of my profile’s existence, I hadn’t yet chosen a profile photo — nor had it gone through the moderation process. Despite this, I received 6 messages within that time frame.
This signaled to me that there are probably a good number of people on the site who are really eager to use it for instant hookups, regardless of what someone looks like or the details on their profile.
Within about a week, I had 64 messages. Five of the messages were automatically filtered, I’m assuming for either nudity or explicit content, because I had the nudity filter set to “none” on my account.
The other 59 messages ranged from “Hey, how are you?” to much more forward and even NSFW greetings. The majority of users had profile photos, but some were covered with a “Naughty photo” filter because of my no-nudity setting.
A few of the messages were interesting or amusing. One said, “I think you’re on the wrong dating app,” which made me chuckle. I agree!
Profile Verification & Safety Assurances
While FriendFinder-X seems to be laissez-faire when it comes to nudity, explicit messages, and other sex-positive behavior on the site, I will say that I was impressed by how seriously they seem to take the 18+ age verification process.
No one can complete the signup without either the selfie or ID verification process, and the website uses a third-party service to get it done properly.
I assume this is a required step primarily because some laws surrounding access to pornographic content have tightened in many states. While it’s probably a way for the site to protect themselves legally, it’s still a good thing overall.
Although it seemed like there was an approval process for profile photos once I submitted mine, I can’t confirm how strict or even human-run the moderation system is. Mine was approved without any fuss.
The search filters included a “Verified” option for profiles, so it seems there are additional layers of identity confirmation people can use if they want to, which is helpful to know.
Still, the fact that so many people were able to message me within minutes of my profile going live, knowing nothing about me, was a bit unnerving. I also didn’t like how explicit the messages could be, but that is the nature of the sex site.
I didn’t notice any overt messages or features for reporting spam or bot accounts, nor any encouragement for reporting harassment or abusive behavior, but when I searched for it, I did find a “Report Member Abuse” form on the site’s footer.
You enter the offending user’s username, click from a dropdown as the reason for your report, and there’s a text box for comments. There’s also a phone number listed on the site footer, which I would hope could help users in a serious situation in terms of harassment or account safety.
For additional help, FriendFinder-X has a 24-hour Customer Support phone line available at (669) 208-0363. It also offers a physical address in Mountain View, California, as well as an online contact form.
Pros & Cons
I did not know what I was in for when I created my account on FriendFinder-X. As I mentioned, it was a lot of NSFW content and sexting messages. Once I adjusted my expectations, I saw the upsides for raunchy users, but I also couldn’t help but notice a few drawbacks as well.
Pros
- Quick and easy registration
- ID verification means essentially no underage users can skate by
- No profile photos or identifying details required
- Browse blog content and chat rooms for free
- Very sex-positive and user-friendly interface
- Profile badges and tags highlight specific kinks
Cons
- The user base skews older
- Nudity filters can blur some messages and restrict the experience
- Gold membership is required for any one-on-one interactions
- It’s not very inclusive of queer, bisexual, or nonbinary dating
The NSFW content could be a pro or a con depending on your desires and sensibilities. Maybe the voyeurism of it all is exciting to you. Maybe you just find it cringe. I was more of the latter, personally.
Although there seems to be a wide range of types and personalities on FriendFinder-X, I have to say that this isn’t a space that would appeal to me if not for this assignment. I’m not interested in seeing so many body parts of strangers, and the user base skewed older than I usually date.
It’s Definitely NSFW & That’s the Appeal for Sex Seekers
Overall, FriendFinder-X was a very interesting hookup site. While it isn’t a platform I personally would use to date or find hookups, I can see why people would — especially the older adults out there.
The community element is nice for people who have a harder time meeting dates with interests or tastes, especially when it comes to sexual lifestyle.
The blogs, chat rooms, and live streams are a unique element that sets this site apart from the usual message-and-meet experience on mainstream apps.
The lack of LGBTQ+ inclusivity was a downside for me. FriendFinder-X is far behind in terms of LGBTQ+ options, and it’s very focused on conventional elements of physical attractiveness (i.e., female breast size, endowment measurements, etc).
Despite its apparent commitment to keeping minors off the platform, the site also doesn’t really appear to focus much on user safety overall. In my opinion, there should be more readily available (and encouraged) features for reporting and blocking users for bad behavior.
On the other hand, that could detract from the more “anything goes” vibe the site gives off. If you’re looking for a platform to find your next spicy connection and plenty of NSFW content to enjoy, FriendFinder-X could be the way to go.
