What Is Badoo?
The Badoo dating app was created in 2006 and initially launched as a Facebook dating app. It's come a long way since then, keeping up with online dating trends such as swiping to like profiles and incorporating profile prompts. It is free to join and start chatting with people, but a subscription is available for additional features. The app also employs a credit system that allows users to pay for various features.
In this Badoo review, we'll cover all aspects you need to know about the site. If you're seeking a well-established dating platform successful for various dating styles, including chatting, serious relationships, and friendships, you're in the right place!
Pros
Easy to use.
A great Badoo app is available for mobile devices.
Free profiles can browse profiles and send messages.
Profiles seem real and active.
Cons
There's very little to do outside of swiping through profiles and chatting.
There is no matching algorithm.
Somewhat pushy about completing your profile (constant popup notifications)
Login Process
Joining the Badoo dating website starts with a block prompting you to sign up using your email address, phone number, Google account, or Facebook account. Clicking 'Badoo sign up' in the top right corner unlocks another method: connecting your Apple account. Depending on which option you choose, you'll select the account you want to use and then enter your name and birth date. You also have to add your gender, which is very inclusive, with over 15 options.
Next, you need to add two photos of yourself (or only one if you're using the app) and create a password. You'll then need to verify your email address or password by entering an OTP emailed or texted to you. They ask what you're looking for: casual dates with no labels, just chat, or ready for a relationship. You can only pick one, but you can change it at a later stage.
This is followed by an optional quiz for account completion. If you skip the quiz, the last thing you need to do is allow Badoo to access your location and choose to opt into marketing emails or not.
Profile Completion
Completing your free Badoo profile involves a 'quiz,' which you can either finish during registration or at any time afterward. The quiz features a progress bar at the bottom, indicating how far you are in the process. While this feature is interesting and novel, it may start to feel a bit lengthy and time-consuming.
The first question covers your sexual orientation and offers 10 answer options, ranging from straight to pansexual to asexual. The second question focuses on your current relationship status, followed by selecting interests from a provided list. Subsequently, you can add a bio where you can write a few words about yourself and provide details such as your height, university, and job.
Next, there are some more in-depth questions or prompts, and you will need to answer three of them. You can choose your responses from a provided list or write your own answers. Following this, there are questions about your drinking and smoking habits and your stance on kids.
The last few questions are about your education level if you're an introvert or extrovert, your star sign if you have any pets, and your religious beliefs. You're also prompted to do a photo verification, and you're finally finished.
User Account Quality
Photo verification is a great way to make sure that people are using their own photos and prevent catfish from using fake pictures. All accounts have photos, and more than 50% of accounts are photo-verified. So, it's likely that most profiles are run by real people, which is exactly what you want from a dating site.
Something to consider is that Badoo dating is more popular with younger users, so if you're more mature, your dating pool will be smaller. The site is also LGBT-friendly, meaning there's a fair number of queer folks.
Dating Features
Chat Feature
The Badoo chat is where you can converse and get to know people before feeling comfortable enough to take the conversation outside the site. In addition to sending text messages, Badoo also allows you to send voice messages, a helpful feature that lets you hear the person's voice, which can sometimes be more convenient than typing a message. Additionally, you have the option to share pictures in the chat.
To kick off a conversation, you can play the question game, a fun way to initiate a chat if you're unsure how to begin. Here's how it works: Badoo will prompt you in the chat, asking first if you want to play. You can then choose a question – if you're not fond of the given one, you can shuffle to get a new one. Both users have to answer the question, and once you're both done, your responses are revealed. Here are a few examples of questions:
Are you typically the heartbreaker or the heartbroken?
What's your go-to comfort food?
What would you guess about me that isn't on my profile?
Nearby
On Badoo com, there are two ways to browse profiles. The first is called 'Nearby,' where you can explore the profiles of people physically close to your location. You'll see several profile pictures, names, and ages, allowing you to browse at your leisure. In this section, you can send a message to someone even if you haven't matched yet, providing more freedom than other dating sites where you can only exchange messages if you both express mutual interest.
Encounters
The alternative way to find Badoo users is called Encounters, a swiping game that presents profiles based on shared interests. You'll be shown a user's profile; all you have to do is swipe right if you like the person and left if you're not interested in them. This is a fun way to discover users you're attracted to and learn who also appreciates your looks.
This page will also display individuals you've physically crossed paths with in the real world! It provides information on when and where these encounters happened, offering an interesting feature to identify potential connections at your favorite coffee shop or other places you visit.
Filters
You can filter the matches you're shown on the Encounters page by several different criteria. This is helpful if you've got certain dealbreakers or if you've got a very specific type. Using the filters, you can choose to be shown only people who have been photo-verified, people with a certain star sign, or people who speak certain languages.
You can also set a height range, choose to speak to people who are looking for the same thing as you, or filter them based on their sexuality. Keep in mind that the more filters you apply, the smaller your pool of potential matches becomes.
Moods
A fun feature that's only available on the app is to update your mood. This allows you to share how you're feeling and possibly connect with others who are feeling the same way!
Some of the moods available are:
Make me laugh.
Feeling flirty.
Send me good energy.
Let's hang out.
Prices & Costs
The Badoo website earns money through ads, both on-screen ads and some while swiping. You'll find that every 7th to 10th swipe will be an ad. They also earn money by offering two levels of a premium subscription (Premium and Premium Plus) and a credit system to use certain features. They operate on a freemium model, meaning they offer the basic features for free, and you can choose to pay if you want to get some premium benefits.
The basic Premium membership offers the following perks:
Access to the list of who's liked your profile.
Your messages are prioritized in people's inboxes.
Unlimited swipes.
Access to the 'Undo' button if you accidentally swipe left.
Unlimited filters.
Browse in incognito mode – people don't get a notification that you view their profiles.
Remove ads.
Badoo Premium costs:
1 Day: $0.79 per day
1 Week: $3.99 per week
1 Month: $12.99
3 Months: $31.99 ($10.66 per month)
6 Months: $47.99 ($8.00 per month)
Lifetime: $79.99 once off
You can also get Premium Plus, which is an upgrade to your Premium subscription. This comes with the following:
All the same benefits as the basic Premium.
1 Extra Show each week.
1 Crush per day.
Read receipts on all chats.
Badoo Premium Plus costs:
1 Week: $39.99
1 Month: $79.99
3 Months: $159.99 ($53.99 per month)
6 Months: $229.99 ($38.33 per month)
You can also buy credits on Badoo. These are used to send Crushes (50 credits per crush), which is a step up from a normal right swipe. Having 100 credits on your account also allows you to be seen first on the Nearby page, and you can use credits to purchase Extra Shows. This feature adds your profile to the Encounters page a few extra times, exposing you to more people and enhancing your chances of getting a match.
Credits costs:
100 credits: $4.99
450 credits: $19.99
1350 credits: $39.99
3050 credits: $59.99
How Safe Is Badoo .com?
Safety Features
From your profile on Badoo.com, you can access safety features. In invisible mode, you can toggle options to show or hide your online status, profile visits, and Badoo Premium status. With a free profile, you can only control the visibility of your online status.
You can also access your privacy settings, which is where you can turn your location, online status, and public visibility of your profile on and off. These are useful if you want to control who can see where you are and what you're doing.
Profile Verification
The Badoo dating site has a few profile verification methods that help ensure that people are who they say they are. The first requires two photos to join the site, which prevents people from using photos they got from the internet. You can also verify yourself using your phone number, which is another way to ensure a real person is behind the screen.
You're also prompted to do a photo verification. This involves uploading a photo where you're imitating a given pose. The Badoo moderation team will compare this photo to your uploaded profile photos to verify that you're the same person. People who've done this get a blue check badge on their profile to show that they're, in fact, real, and many profiles on the site have this badge.
Safety Concerns
We've carefully consulted the Terms and Conditions of Use and the Privacy Policy and have good and bad news. The good news is that there are no obvious safety or privacy concerns. While your information does get shared with third-party service providers, most dating sites do the same thing. Badoo takes reasonable steps to make sure the third parties have adequate data protection and information security measures.
There are also no indications in the Ts & Cs that Badoo has any staff-run fake accounts. The bad news is that some other Badoo reviews found many fake profiles (scammers), and one stated that the site may be involved in data fraud. The privacy policy does not reflect this, but they may be contravening their well-written policy.
Final Thoughts
Badoo offers a unique dating site and app experience. Despite being around for more than 15 years, there aren't many features beyond swiping through profiles and chatting with the ones you're interested in. Then again, this is online dating; you're here to meet people, and those features help you achieve that goal.
Creating an account is easy, and the quiz format to complete your profile is more interesting and engaging than filling out a web page with loads of questions. We found the profiles to be high quality and quite real, but some other Badoo reviews complain of many fake profiles. While the Premium membership is reasonably affordable, the credit system seems to have little benefit and may be perceived as a money grab.
There are no bells and whistles; it's a straightforward site. Reasonably popular, with a good number of users, it caters to most kinds of people. Since signing up and using it is free, we'd recommend giving Badoo a try.
FAQ
What is Badoo used for?
The Badoo app and site serve various purposes, including making friends, casual dating, and seeking a serious relationship. Upon exploring both the site and app, we found that the majority of users are mostly looking for something casual.
How to change location on Badoo?
Changing your location on Badoo is only possible by physically moving to a new place. So, you'll need to get in your car and drive to the next town or city. However, don't worry—Badoo isn't strictly bound by location. The Encounters tab also allows you to connect with people from other towns.
What does moderated mean on Badoo?
Badoo has a dedicated team to review photos and certain messages uploaded to the site, ensuring users follow the terms and conditions. If a photo or message is flagged as being moderated, it indicates that the team is assessing it against the guidelines and may remove it if it violates any rules. This proactive moderation is in place to maintain a safe place for everyone on the site.
Is Badoo legit?
Badoo is a dating website and app that has more than 50% photo-verified profiles. It's free to like and message other people, with no limit on messaging. For these reasons, we'd say it's totally legit.
How to delete Badoo account?
Click the top-right gear icon from your profile page to access settings. Click on Account, and at the bottom of the page, you'll see the Badoo delete account button.
