Whether you’re trying online dating for the first time or getting back out there after taking a break, choosing the right platform can make all the difference in your dating experience. In your search, you may have come across Zoosk. Aside from a fun-to-say name, what else does Zoosk have going for it, and can it help singles find love?
Take a deep-dive into what Zoosk is all about and the features it offers users. We cover its key advantages and disadvantages, distill online user reviews into at-a-glance summaries, and even compare Zoosk to other popular online dating services. Keep reading to learn if Zoosk is right for you.
Zoosk is an online dating app and website that aims to make dating “fun . . . without the games.” The platform is known for its Behavioral Matching™ algorithm to help personalize the dating experience as well as its many features for free and paid subscribers. Many singles looking for serious relationships turn to Zoosk for its compatibility-focused algorithm.
Zoosk was launched in 2007 by Shayan Zadeh and Alex Mehr, who co-founded the dating app and site. Zoosk was originally a Facebook app, where users could upload videos and photos and have their friends vote on the best ones. The app became popular, and Zadeh and Mehr realized that some of the features could lend themselves well to a dating site. Zoosk, the dating site, was born.
Since then, Zoosk has grown to allegedly have more than 35 million users across 80 countries. (However, recent data from Statista shows that only 8% of Americans who use dating services use Zoosk.) In 2019, Zoosk was acquired by Spark Networks, which owns other dating sites, including Christian Mingle, EliteSingles, and Jdate.
Target users of Zoosk are singles who are looking for serious relationships vs. casual dating or hookups. This is because one of the major features of the platform is its Behavioral Matching technology.
Singles of all ages use Zoosk, but it tends to be more popular with Gen X individuals.
There are several ways for singles to use Zoosk, from liking or swiping through profiles, opting for daily matches to be provided, or searching by criteria. Mutual likes become connections, but you can also create connections by sending and replying to messages. Users can also navigate to Zoosk Live to meet more people in livestreams.
But first, users need to start the sign-up process.
You can sign up for Zoosk through the downloaded app or on its website. Very little information is needed to sign up: Just select your gender, who you’re interested in, and your birthday, then enter your email address and a password. You can also sign up through your Facebook or Google accounts.
After you sign up, it’s time to create your profile. You can choose to link your Facebook or Google account to update your profile, or simply fill it out manually. There’s no lengthy questionnaire here—just some basic information, like location, religion, interests (taken from Facebook), and background. In addition to answering icebreakers, users also have the opportunity to write their own “about me” sections.
Add up to six profile pictures, choose a display name (no full names allowed), and you’re all set.
The more that Zoosk users interact with the dating platform, the better their matches will be. That’s because Zoosk’s Behavior Matching technology learns from users’ behaviors—when liking or passing on profiles—to display profiles that more closely align with their preferences. The algorithm works through the Carousel and SmartPick features.
Zoosk users can communicate by sending messages, chatting in the platform, and through Zoosk Live, whose NextDate feature follows a live blind-date format. You don’t have to create a connection with someone before sending a message; however, you do need to send a smile or like to someone’s profile to view the message box. From there, type away!
The Zoosk dating platform can be accessed for free, but a paid subscription is necessary to unlock most features and have the best experience.
Signing up, creating a profile, and browsing profiles on Zoosk is free. Additionally, free members can’t send new messages, but they can reply to messages from premium subscribers. To use most of Zoosk’s features, you’ll need to pay for a subscription.
Zoosk offers four standard paid subscriptions—one month, three months, six months, and twelve months—ranging from $10 per month to $29.95 per month. These subscriptions allow users to have full access to the dating platform, from the SmartPick matchmaking feature to messaging other users or participating in Zoosk Live. You’ll also be able to see who has viewed your profile.
For Zoosk members who want even more out of their online dating experience, you can upgrade your subscription to include:
There’s also an option for both free and paid subscribers to purchase Zoosk coins, which can be used to boost your profile, browse anonymously, buy virtual gifts for Zoosk members, and get delivery confirmations on messages (this final option is just for paid members, though). Users can purchase coins in batches, which cost anywhere from $19.95 to $99.95.
Zoosk offers a variety of features that help it stand out. Let’s take a look.
Carousel is one of Zoosk’s features that influences its behavioral matching algorithm. Users are presented with many profiles, which they can like, skip, or add to a “maybe” list to evaluate later. It’s a quick way to browse several profiles in one sitting—without the legwork of searching for specific criteria. Zoosk’s algorithm learns from every reaction.
SmartPick is where the behavioral matching technology really kicks into action, presenting daily matches that align with your behaviors (likes, skips, and so on) and the information you’ve provided in your profile. With this feature, Zoosk works to pair people according to their compatibility.
Mutual likes on SmartPick create a connection, and every one of your reactions is kept private until there is a mutual match.
To combat interactions with fake profiles, Zoosk encourages users to go through the profile photo verification process. Phone number verification is done independently, but photo verification goes through moderator review. Once you verify your photo with a selfie video, the Zoosk team will review. If your verification is approved, a Photo Verified badge will be added to your profile. You’ll also be able to find these badges on other users’ profiles.
Looking for someone who meets specific criteria? Use Zoosk’s search feature, which allows you to create and save different searches and edit existing ones. Through Advanced Search, you can adjust things like distance, age, religion, height, kids, and more.
People have a lot to say about Zoosk—let’s unpack their online reviews.
App Store reviewers rate Zoosk 4.2 out of 102,400 total reviews. Many people say that they’ve encountered good connections that have led to long-term relationships, but many others complain about the number of advertisements, fake or inactive profiles, and confusing design.
On the Google Play Store, Zoosk is rated 3.3 out of 628,000 reviews. Although there are some 4- and 5-star reviews, it seems that many Zoosk users are frustrated about having to pay to message other users, fake profiles, and inconsistent location parameters.
Zoosk ranks even lower on Trustpilot, with an average of 2.3 stars out of more than 2,300 reviews. Forty-six percent of reviews rate the dating platform 1 star. Complaints range from the spammy interface to getting too many messages from fake profiles to being overpriced. Positive reviews discuss Zoosk’s good customer service, and one person notes that they met their partner through the platform—but that they had to be picky with who they communicated with.
Reviews of Zoosk on Reddit aren’t very positive. Aside from Reddit users asking how specific Zoosk features work, most reviews are critical of the dating platform. Several people complain about the Carousel feature—that it has limited information and that many profiles seem inactive. Others believe that the emails about profile views are misleading. There is one positive review from seven years ago of someone meeting their wife through Zoosk.
Zoosk is a legit online dating platform that aims to help singles find a compatible partner. But as with any dating method, it’s important to understand the potential risks so that you can prioritize your safety and time.
There are a few ways that Zoosk helps keep users safe: through photo verification and its Report/Block option. You can see if other users have had their profile photos verified by locating their Photo Verified badge. Even with this badge, however, it’s still important to practice safe online dating tips when interacting with others. Zoosk doesn’t verify profile information, just photos.
If you notice any suspicious or inappropriate behavior, you can report profiles or block them entirely, where they can no longer interact with you.
According to its privacy policy, Zoosk can collect a lot of information about users and share it with its parent company, Spark Networks, as well as with a variety of third parties. Additionally, when you use Zoosk Live, you will be subject to another company’s terms of use and “may be visible to users from other dating and social platforms outside of Zoosk.”
It’s always helpful to hear from other people how a dating site worked for them, so Zoosk shares on its blog success stories of couples who have met on the platform and fallen in love. However, there haven’t been any success stories posted since 2020.
We couldn’t find any statistics on how many successful matches Zoosk has.
Let’s see how other popular online dating platforms stack up to Zoosk.
Match and Zoosk share some similarities, like being able to message other members without having mutually “liked” each other, personalized match recommendations, and simple profile setup. And while Match also offers a live one-on-one video feature called Vibe Check, Zoosk Live is a more gamified version, providing users with access to multiple live streams and even a blind-date feature.
Bumble stands out in the online dating space for its unique approach to messaging, where women are required to make the first move in heterosexual matches and initial connections expire after 24 hours. Zoosk, on the other hand, allows paid users to message other members, regardless of if there is a match, and connections never expire.
eHarmony is known for its extensive and detailed sign-up and profile creation process. To complete their profiles, eHarmony users answer an 80-question Compatibility Quiz, which influences how the eHarmony algorithm matches profiles. Zoosk takes a more casual approach to profile creation, focusing less on personality and more on users’ set preferences and, later, their behaviors while using the platform.
Before signing up for Zoosk, get an idea of what’s great—and not so great—about this dating platform.
The sheer number of features and communication options on Zoosk works to its advantage. From features like auto-replies to Super Send for mass messages and even to seeing who’s online now, there are so many ways for subscribers to connect with potential matches. Plus, with its Behavioral Matching algorithm, the more that users interact with profiles, the better their matches will be.
Users will notice right away during sign-up that Zoosk only provides two genders to choose from and doesn’t offer any sexual preferences other than “man,” “woman,” or “both.” This is a big downside for a large population of singles who are looking for love outside of those parameters.
Another disadvantage of Zoosk that users complain about is its pricing system. Even though it claims to work on a “freemium” subscription model, the dating platform provides a bare-bones experience for free users. Additionally, even paid subscribers will discover that some features are only available through paid upgrades.
Zoosk may be worth it, but it depends on your specific needs and willingness to pay for a subscription.
Zoosk can be a great option for singles who aren’t bothered by paying for an online dating subscription as well as for those who have specific criteria in mind for their ideal mate but who are also open to meeting a variety of people. While Zoosk’s Behavioral Matching technology is designed to provide more personalized matches, there are multiple ways to connect with people outside of the algorithm-powered features.
Singles who want a more robust free online dating experience probably shouldn’t sign up for Zoosk, as full functionality only comes with a paid subscription. Additionally, if a simpler, more curated matching experience is for you, Zoosk might not fulfill your expectations. Users describe encountering lots of ads in the app, receiving a large number of notifications, and having a complicated experience with navigating the platform’s layout.
Online dating is a great way to find love, but it can also create dating fatigue and burnout. Try a refreshing, simpler method to finding a lifelong partner with matchmaking.
Tawkify provides a personalized, customized approach for clients who are looking for serious relationships. Dedicated matchmakers work with you to understand your needs, preferences, and goals and seek to align those with a potential match—no algorithm required. Your matchmaker acts like your trusted friend throughout the process, providing advice and garnering feedback after every match and first date, all in an effort to give you the best chance at landing your forever person.
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