Active Audience | 62% |
Quality Matches | 40% |
Popular Age | 26-34 |
Profiles | 7 645 000 |
Reply Rate | 71% |
Ease of Use | 7.4 |
Popularity | 6.8 |
Fraud | Very Rarely |
Rating |
9.1
|
Registration | Free |
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Willow, just like every dating app, has its good and its bad sides. Before jumping into the full review, you can see the list of pros and cons below. You will then know what to expect.
Willow is a dating app created back in 2015 that helps people around the world to connect. It provides a safe and easy platform where everyone can find someone friendly for a chat. The app aims to help men and women find new friends or a romantic partner. It all depends on what you are looking for.
This dating app tries to be different from the rest. “How come?” you may ask. The app focuses more on conversation than in seeing pictures of other people. You need to put effort into actually connecting rather than just looking good. This is an excellent treat for those who do not like superficial dating sites.
The entrepreneur Michael Bruch had the vision for the app. According to him, there is a problem with most dating apps and websites. The problem is that it is hard to start a conversation with a stranger. Willow makes people chat right away, so this is intended to make people get closer faster than most apps.
When the beta version of the app was launched, it received over 100,000 downloads. Nowadays, there must be many more users than this, but the app does not provide an official number. Nonetheless, you can hope to find people there that live around you or at least in the same country or state (if we are talking about the USA, which is very large).
Since the app does not focus much on appearance, and it also does not have prejudice towards who can create an account. People with all different sexual orientations and ethnicities are welcome to the app. You can find people of many ages above 18. You need to be at least 18 years old to register.
The user will benefit from the app’s intuitive and clean design. Opening the app leads to the home page. There you will find many tabs: “popular,” “global,” “local. All of these have questions that you can answer. The top left features an icon through which you can find the settings of the app. The top right is where you can find the icon for the chat.
The bottom of the home page features five icons. One is for navigating to the home page. The second one consists of two arrows representing your chat conversations. The third is where you can “search,” meaning you can find questions to answer. The fourth is where you can see all of the questions you have set up and the answers from other members. The last icon leads to your profile.
As we said, the app is pretty intuitive. It looks modern and fresh, being very easy to pick up for the first time and use with no problems. The app only relies on the internet, so make sure you have a sufficient connection to it. Instead of seeing many photos or texts, you will see a feed full of questions to answer. You are free to respond to them only if you want to.
Willow is a relationship app very different from others. Instead of uploading tons of pictures trying and impress other men or women, you answer questions. These questions will match you with someone, and you two will start a conversation. You do not need to upload a profile pic if you do not want to. Most dating apps and sites insist that you upload a pic to fully enjoy everything they have to offer. This isn’t the case with Willow as it encourages members to meet other people without caring about their looks.
The app lets you set preferences for conversations. You can choose whether you want to find a permanent partner, a new friend, or just want to have a random talk with some stranger.
It is also possible to search for questions by category. This way, you can find people with mutual interests.
Willow connects people across the internet. To use it, you need first to have an iPhone and download it from the App Store. Once you downloaded the app, you need to register and then answer some questions. Answering questions is the key to finding people. This is the way the app connects: you answer questions, and then you will be matched with people based on your answers. Different from other dating apps, you do not need to pay to chat. Once you are matched, you will immediately have the chance to start a conversation.
The app lets you choose whether you want to talk and make new friends or meet romantic partners. It is an alternative relationship app made for everyone. Willow does not focus on appearance. People who are not very comfortable with exposing themselves to strangers will love this app. You can skip the part of uploading a profile pic and use an avatar instead. Only show yourself to people who you already are comfortable with.
You do not need to pay to access any special features. The app does not have a paid membership. Everything it offers is for free, and if you want more, you can mail the developers and suggest new features.
Signing up in this app is very easy. You need to download the app from the App Store and enter a bit of information. To register, you need first to enter your phone number or connect your Facebook account. You will receive a verification code to input into the verification page if you choose to register with your phone number.
After putting the verification code or choosing to connect with Facebook, you will be directed to a page where information will be asked. You will need to fill in your first name, your gender, and your age. Keep in mind that minors can’t register on the app. If you want to, you can also inform your last name and an email address, but this info is not mandatory.
This is where people might be divided as to whether it is a strong or weak spot of the app. Profiles are limited when it comes to information, as the app aims to make people chat. Chatting is the way you will know someone instead of just reading his or her profile. Of course, profiles have some information, but not too much. Also, many profiles do not have a photo, but an avatar instead. You might not know how the person you are talking to looks like. If you care too much about appearance, this might keep you away from the app. But explorers might love the app as it lets them focus on quality conversations.
When you look at a profile, you can see the person’s name (sometimes only the first name) and the distance between you and them. Also, there is a list of “traits” that can go, such as conservative or liberal, like games, is outgoing, etc. And on the “about” people describe a bit of themselves. You can use this part to express yourself and make a first impression. You can include information about your education too.
Also, members select questions that they want others to answer. Depending on the answers you give, you will be able to message the person. That counts as a connection. Although the app does not focus on photos, you can add pictures to your profile and see other members’ images. You can only see photos from other people once you have established a connection with them, and they consented. It is very rare to find fake profiles. That is because this app does not collect much information. People who create fake profiles are often after credit card info or personal details that they can use to access other people’s accounts.
People love when dating sites have apps. Well, Willow only exists as an app. It has fewer users than it could if it had an Android-compatible version; still, there are many users on it. This is only an app because it attempts to do the contrary of what people experience on Tinder. On Tinder, you choose people based solely on appearance, and this app tries to be the opposite.
The app looks a bit like Tinder, though. But instead of liking or skipping people, you answer or skip questions posted by members. When you answer a question, you are making a new connection with someone. This app surely looks sharp. It functions well since it is designed only for one operating system and does not have to handle compatibility. The theme colors of it are green and orange. It is undoubtedly an attractive choice of colors, making it very friendly. Aside from visuals, the app is also very intuitive. You simply pick the app and do not have any trouble with it.
There are thousands of dating apps out there. If you do not like the idea of not seeing how people look or answering questions before chatting with them, there certainly are alternatives. Indeed, it all depends on what you are looking for. Perhaps you want a casual relationship, even an unusual friendship. But if you are a helpless romantic, there are options for you as well. Below are some of the alternatives:
This one is prevalent and well-known. The site/app offers top discretion for users, and if you are looking for women, you will find plenty of gorgeous beauties. Since the data hack in 2015, the programming team has made the site safer for users. It is now recognized as one of the top options for hookups.
This one is kind of like Ashley Madison. If you are looking for a relationship of any kind, Adultfriendfinder is worth a try. There are over 80 million users worldwide, so it is guaranteed that you will find someone.
Zoosk is a big dating website that is less focused on hookups like the two above. There you might be able to find a romantic partner if that is what you are looking for. Over 40 million people are on this site, and it is available worldwide in many languages.
This site is for you if you are an Asian-American person or are looking for people of such ethnicity. Asian girls are stunning, and the site’s founders let them use all features for free. It is guaranteed that you will find lots of beautiful women on this site. If you are a woman, you will enjoy the possibility of meeting lots of people.
If you are simply looking for casual sex, Xmatch is for you. It has millions of members worldwide and is very trustable. Often enough, people think it is a porn site due to the high amount of erotic content featured on it. But it is a legit hookup website and app. Members are highly active on the site, meaning it will be easy to find a hot partner to have some fun with. Also, since the site is focused on casual sex, it offers sex education courses.
Willow does not have a paid membership. How come? Well, that is baffling, for sure. But the app simply does not ask any money from users and does not offer any premium membership whatsoever.
On this app, you can answer other members’ questions. Doing so will allow you to connect and start chatting with new people. You do not need to upload a profile photo. You can instead use an avatar and only allow people to see how you look after you feel safe. The app lets you choose whether you are looking for new friends or a romantic partner.
Like it was already said, the app does not offer any paid membership.
Because of some features that some might consider disadvantages, this app is actually very safe. You are not giving much information away, and this is one thing that already puts risks at a deficient level.
Of course, some people might take advantage of the fact that they do not need to upload profile pics. But then there are ways to protect yourself. You can feel when people are sincere. As a safety measure, as you start to feel unsafe with someone, you can ask for their Facebook profile or something like that.
Hardly any data you put in the app will be stolen. There are some reasons for that: first, the app does not keep any credit card info since it does not ask for that. Second, since the app is available only for iOS, scammers will not care about it. Apple products are much safer because the code is not open, and there are fewer devices running iOS than devices running Android.
With all the info provided above, it is undeniable that Willow offers a much different experience when it comes to dating apps. It might be for you, or it might not. That is entirely up to you. If you are looking for conversations that focus on real things rather than in saying things like “you are so cute,” then this is the app for you. If you just want a quick hookup, there are better alternatives for such purposes.
The app certainly is not for those who want something to happen super quick. It would be right to claim that Willow is for those that want to enjoy their time and take things slow. It is an app for those that do not have lots of expectations but are eager to have a new and fun experience.
Below are some of the frequently asked questions about this app.
If you want to delete your account on this app, it is easy. You simply need to go to “Settings” and click on “Delete Account.” It is swift.
Once you connect with someone, you can send a message. When you want to chat again with a person, you can find him or her in your inbox.
On this app, you do not “like” other members, but instead, answer questions and connect with them. Thus, you are not able to know who likes you but can see who responds to your questions. And you do not need to pay for anything at all.
If someone is being offensive towards you, you can find a “Block & Report” button on that user’s profile.
This app does not offer any kind of paid subscription.