Pure is one of the most popular hookup apps that are free for women to use, and that’s not ideal if you’re looking for a serious relationship. It’s here to help you do one thing only: Get laid ASAP.
It’s been around for six years but still feels like a new player in the casual sex app scene. A rival to Tinder, Pure has steadily been growing its user base over the years, with people enjoying the fact that – unlike Tinder – it’s stayed true to its original principles.
It was created for casual dating, sex, and it’s remained a straightforward hookup app.
But is it the right one for you?
In this Pure app review, I’m going to take an in-depth look at everything you need to know.
I’ll also be discussing my personal experience using the app to help you make a better, more informed decision regarding whether or not it’s the right one for you.
Best For Hookups | AFF Beats Pure in almost every aspect. More features, More worldwide users, cheaper, and have people with all kinds of sexual fantasies. |
Ready? Let’s make a start.
Here's Why I believe pure Is Not For Everyone:
Pure, with its self-destructing profiles, seemed like a good shot.
The sign-up process didn’t take long at all. It's a good thing given that it's not a dating site.
Bear in mind that I didn’t need to add anything at all to my ad/profile. But to increase my chances of success, I decided to state where I was based, what my age was, and what I was looking for (a hookup).
In a matter of minutes, my account was live and I was taken to the main page of Pure, which doubles up as the ‘search’ feature. Of course, Pure doesn’t have a search feature of the kind you commonly see on other dating sites, nor does it use the same ‘profile queue’ concept of Tinder.
Instead, it plasters all potential discreet hookups that meet your criteria (gender, age, and current location) on the main (and, indeed, only page):
Think of this page as being similar to a personal ad page. Essentially, it’s where horny people post what they want in terms of sex.
Within a minute of creating my profile, I was confronted by a wealth of local singles and couples who were looking for the same thing I was. There was absolutely nothing complicated about the app. All I had to do was scroll up and down to find more horny girls who were waiting for someone to message them.
And that’s exactly what I did. I scrolled up and down and, mindful that my profile would self-destruct in 55 minutes already, I started messaging girls who caught my eye. I was naturally drawn to girls who included a profile picture of themselves (many girls choose to remain anonymous), as well as those who added a couple of lines to their “bio”. Like this:
I was also met with a few ‘empty’ profiles that I had to skip over. Like these:
I also found that most users were aged between 25 and 35. As well as singles, there were also couples using the site, as well as women who were married and looking for an affair. Nothing seemed to be out of bounds, with some other users explicitly stating exactly what they were looking for.
At the same time, most users also seemed to be very respectful of others and demanded that equal respect was shown to them. To that end, several women stated that they didn’t want to see “dick pics” without consent.
Overall, I had an okay experience using Pure. I didn’t get inundated with spam, the straightforward design was very pleasing and I thought the price was reasonable.
However, I also found it surprisingly hard to land a hookup within the 60-minute timeframe. I fired off a lot of messages but got a few replies, and even when I did get chatting to a woman, it didn’t go anywhere. Just because Pure is for flings, it doesn’t mean it’s any easier to land a hookup.
My advice when using Pure is to definitely be flirty, confident, and sexy, and to get straight to the point. There’s no time for small talk. But you’ll also need a good profile pic and a good ad to stand out. Otherwise, you could easily get lost amidst all the profiles. And when you’ve got just 60 minutes to set up a meeting with someone, that’s not exactly a good thing.
Because remember: Everyone else only has 60 minutes too. And they won’t waste their time on someone they’re not attracted to.
I wouldn't recommend it if you're not from large cities.
Getting Started on Pure
The sign-up process shouldn’t take any longer than 3 minutes. You don't need social media accounts to complete the signup.
Then, you need to choose what gender you are, as well as what gender you’re looking for, as well as whether you want to sign up via your email address or phone number.
Then, Pure will ask if it can have access to your location settings. Once that’s done, it’s time to upload a photo. This step isn’t mandatory, however, and a fair number of users choose to remain anonymous. You can remain anonymous, too – it’s entirely up to you. However, I highly recommend that you upload a pic, as it’s one of the only ways you’ll stand out.
And that’s it. There is nothing complicated about the Pure sign-up process. Also, you'll have to create a new account every time you use the app.
How Does Pure Work?
Pure app requires you to publish your personal ad on the app. After you signup, you've to complete your profile and post it on Personal Ads. To see other people in your feed, you need to post your Ad. There, you've to write what kind of experience you are looking for and find someone who would share the same experience with you. And, your profile and chat self-destruct after 24 hours.
Are Pure's Profiles Real?
Hook-up apps are always fraught with a little bit of risk because you never quite know how many fake profiles you’re going to come across.
The way the Pure app is set up means it seems at first to be harder than ever to tell whether a profile is real or fake.
For example, no one is obliged to add any photos if they don’t want to, and neither are they obliged to list their age. The Pure team even reminds you that you shouldn’t ask someone their age because it’s purely up to them whether or not they want to reveal it in their profile.
And often, a profile will simply look like this:
However …
Pure is unique in that ALL the profiles are temporary. They’re also self-destructing. Everyone gets an hour to use their account after they first create it. If they haven’t arranged to meet up with someone by then, their profile is deleted.
On the one hand, this can discourage fake profiles because they only get one hour to get noticed at a time. On the other hand, it can also encourage scammers because a) no one is obliged to add PURE photos of themselves and b) everyone is in a hurry to arrange a meeting before their messages get deleted.
Is there anything you can do about this? Is it easy to spot fake profiles?
Unfortunately, no. The “anonymous dating” nature of the site makes it tricky to spot whether someone is fooling you, and you have to rely on your own instinct and your own vetting processes to verify that someone is genuine. Whatever you usually do to stay safe online and offline, you need to do that.
You could, for example, get chatting to someone on Pure and swap numbers before your time limit is up. This is in theory a good way of verifying someone is real before you meet them in person (maybe you could have a quick phone call with them).
Pure themselves have at least taken steps to ensure they catch as many fake profiles as possible as quickly as possible. For example, they’ve implemented a community regulatory system, which allows you to report anyone you think is suspicious/fake. Other than that, they advise you to use your own common sense at all times.
That all said, the majority of profiles on Pure are real. However, because of the self-destructing nature of the app, there is barely any detail added to any of the profiles. Instead, all anyone has to work with is a profile picture and a line or two that states what you’re interested in.
Here is an example of a typical profile on Pure:
The general idea is that, to stand out, you should add your sexiest profile picture possible, as well as one or two lines that you know will catch someone’s attention. Most people simply state what they want out of this, whilst others will add their age and location.
Design & Interface Usability of Pure
As we’ve learned so far, Pure is one of the simplest hookup apps around. And this aesthetic is further reflected in its design.
Do you know those apps that are cluttered with lots of buttons, menus, and sometimes even ads? Yeah, they can be really annoying when all you want is to have sex tonight.
Pure is different. Everything about the design is straightforward, minimal, and yet – somehow – trendy.
One of the problems I have with some sites like Adult Friend Finder is that their design can be so basic and dated that it’s off-putting. This isn’t the case with Pure.
As you can see from the image below, there’s absolutely nothing fussy about it, there are zero distractions, and yet it still looks cool:
Essentially, everything you need is plastered on your homepage. Here, you’ll be greeted by profiles in your area that meet your criteria. They are all looking for discreet hookups, they all are nearby users, and whilst there’s no search filter, you can just scroll down until you find someone who catches your eye.
The only time you’ll leave this homepage is whenever you click the ‘message’ icon, or whenever you want to amend your ad (the ad icon is located at the top right of your screen).
If you’ve not posted an ad of your own just yet, you’ll be shown this prompt:
Once you’ve created your ad, you can then message whoever you like. You can also send them gifts by clicking the corresponding icon.
On Pure, you have only 24 hours to arrange a meeting. If you want to chat longer, turn off the chat timer. Otherwise, your chat history from the chat screen will be erased too.
What are The Features Offered by Pure?
Unlike most other dating apps, Pure doesn’t actually have many special features to write about. It’s just a straight-up, no-frills hookup site that lets you create a profile and send messages to other PURE users. However, there are one or two features worth highlighting:
- Instant Chat
Pure has introduced a new feature called Instant Chat. It allows you to send to message to anyone that you like without getting matched first. However, it's a stand alone feature that costs $3.49 per usage. Once you use it, it's gone. In my opinion, it's very expensive. However, the feature itself is good.
Without this, you'll have to wait for a mutual like before the chat window pops up.
- Gifts
As well as sending messages, you can also send “gifts” to other PURE users. This is a paid feature that is usually used by people to grab someone’s attention. Pure themselves claim a “gesture like this will give you a better chance of success.”
- Self-Destructing Profiles
The most unique feature of Pure is what makes the app stand out from all the others. When you hand over your payment details and create a paid account, you only have one hour before the profile self-destructs so that active users don’t get bogged down by small talk, the self-destructing profile was created. If you want sex tonight, this is clearly the place to get it.
- Devil’s Bones game
It's a new feature that allows users to get matched with someone randomly based on their dating preferences, location, and age. Upon matching, they can enter an anonymous audio chat (like a phone call, let's say, and the conversation is entirely anonymous – unless they feel like continuing their connection afterward. This feature allows users have an intellectual matching experience rather than swiping based on looks.
Is Pure Free?
Pure is free for women, but men must pay a fee. However, they get access to a 3-day free trial period.
What's The Cost of Paid Membership of Pure?
- 1 week – $14.99 per week
- 1 Month – $28.99 per week
Is Pure Worth it?
Compared to Pure’s biggest rival, AdultFriendFinder, it is expensive. Not to mention, AdultFriendFinder is more popular and offers more features that set back Pure big time. So, We would recommend Adult Friend Finder over pure. But, it's worth mentioning that guys get access to a trial and subscription model. This means that you can access Pure and all its features entirely for free for 3 days. Once the three-day free trial is up, your payment method will then be automatically charged.
Is Pure Safe?
There are two things I look at when considering the privacy and security of a dating app:
- How safe you are?
- How safe your details are?
In terms of your safety, using a hookup like Pure is always a tad risky because you don’t always know who you’re talking to, or meeting up with. Because Pure lets people create profiles without a profile picture, it can seem even riskier.
However, it’s really up to you to use common sense. If you’re suspicious of someone, let Pure know. And if you want to verify that someone really is who they say they are, invite them to send you their picture in private.
In terms of your personal details, I looked into Pure and this seems to be a very safe app to use. In fact, it’s safer than most other apps simply because your account is deleted an hour after you create it. Therefore, your details aren’t stored on their server. If there’s a data breach, it won’t matter to you because your profile will be long gone.
| Best For Hookups | AFF Beats Pure in almost every aspect. More features, More worldwide users, cheaper, and have people with all kinds of sexual fantasies. |