2016 was a year of major changes and transition for AshleyMadison.com with its newly stylized image, enhanced security, and changes at the site’s executive management level. For this reason, it has managed to become one of the best hookup sites in the UK today.
This AshleyMadison.com review aims to evaluate the effectiveness and performance of the site to help you see why this is your best option for hookups.
First Impression
The moment you arrive at Ashley Madison, you will notice that its homepage no longer uses imagery boldly to announce its purpose. The website takes on a minimalist homepage design. From there, people who are searching for hookups can quickly and easily access the registration page of the site.
Once you click on the pink-colored button with the label “Find Your Matches,” you will be directed to the registration page. Here, you will enter your personal details including your sex, geographic location, and age.
Ashley Madison also requires you to provide a valid email address that will be used for verifying your registration. You will receive a verification email after a few minutes of submitting your details. Make sure you click on the verification link in the email.
The email content also reassures you that your email address will be safe and protected that will be exclusively used for verification, password recovery if you ever need this action, and communication of details in relation to account administration, specifically billing.
After this email verification, your profile will already go live on the site without any screening or waiting period. Ashley Madison will also screen private photos posted on the platform, with the review taking up to 24 hours. So far, this initial registration process won’t take you more than 5 minutes.
Pricing
Users have to buy a basket of points because the site uses a pay-per-action model. 100 points will cost you $63. You can also buy bigger blocks of points at a discount. For example, a block with 1,000 points can cost $309.
It will cost 5 points for male members to send a message to the female members of the site. It will cost them 10 points if they want to use the priority module that will highlight their message in the inbox of the female members.
Men can also fully open the messages they receive from the female members if they pay for it with 5 points. The instant chat sessions that also come with a webcam party should the parties choose to use will cost 30 points for a session of 30 minutes while 60-minute sessions will cost 60 points.
Male members can also choose from a selection of virtual gifts that can be sent to the ladies. These virtual gifts have different prices. There is also an optional add-on every month that can be bought for $19 a month. It lets the gents engage in continuous conversations that women started for free. The add-on is also available for free as part of the initial 30 days of site membership.
Difference Between What Female and Male Members See
There is a unique difference in what male and female members see on the site. The member page has the same structure when it comes to functionality. However, ladies don’t see enticements or reminders to pay for features. It is because the site lets women enjoy full use of the features of the site for free. On the other hand, men are required to pay for them to enjoy full functionality.
Some labeling used for the features of female and male members is different as well. Men with paid memberships, for example, can use features known as Traveling Man and Priority Man.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Ashley Madison has more than 75 million members all over the world.
- The pricing model that only requires you to pay for what you use helps you save money.
- The security and privacy of the site have been strengthened and revamped.
- The site has strong messaging functionality.
Cons
- The default settings leave the auto-top-off feature activated.
- The site’s Message Center is not visually discreet.
- There is a fee charged every month for using the mobile app.
In-Depth Review
A tsunami of negative publicity hit Ashley Madison, a hookup site, back in 2015. A group of hackers had crept into the user database of the site and got their hands on the names of thousands of members of the platform.
This unfortunate incident was more than enough to make many members of the site worried and anxious. As expected, the hack also had an adverse effect on the number of new memberships on the site.
The good news for the site’s operators is that this experience didn’t completely bring Ashley Madison down. On the contrary, the event was able to reveal the weakness that they were able to address and patch since then.
It also brought more attention to the platform and its claimed purpose, which is to facilitate extramarital affairs. Ashley Madison revamped the site in 2016 and made a few tweaks to its branding. The famous tagline of the site, “life is short, have an affair” that had been used since its 2002 launch, was changed, and became “find your moment.”
The Bottom Line
Ashley Madison is obviously not meant for those people who are looking for long-term serious relationships. But then again, the platform never claims to be. it has been very clear and definite regarding the services it offers. The site doesn’t deceive its members this way.
For people who are looking for this type of side affair, Ashley Madison seems well-designed to offer the kind of results they promote. It has a fair pricing model because it is based on the features you use as well as how often you use them.
With all of these said, it is safe to say that Ashley Madison has managed to leave behind most of its previous issues and is now stronger and more solid going into the near future. If your thing is to find an affair, Ashley Madison is no doubt an above-average hookup site in the UK.