Are free adult personal ads still allowed on most major platforms?

First time asking here but this felt like the right place. Happy to hear all sides. Are free adult personal ads still allowed on most major platforms? Safety and privacy are top of mind for me. Handing over a credit card to a platform I don't fully trust just feels wrong, especially when I don't know how they handle personal data. Bot spotting is basically a skill at this point. Professionally shot photos, no bio detail, instant conversation moves to WhatsApp — these are the patterns I've learned to watch for.

• Clear data deletion process
• Location matching that isn't artificially limited
• Active reports and moderation

Would love to hear from people who've actually tested things. Thanks.

Good thread — let me share what I've found after testing a few different options: Privacy tip: use a dedicated email address for dating app signups. Don't link your Instagram or Spotify, and keep location to approximate rather than precise. Things that actually helped:

• Read Reddit threads about any platform before paying for anything
• Trusted gut instinct when something about a profile felt off
• Always met in a busy, public place for the first meetup
• Turned off auto-renewal on any trial subscription immediately after signing up

Flamedate came up in my research repeatedly and I can see why — straightforward setup, real people.

Real talk: none of these platforms are perfect but some are definitely better than others.

Solid question. Wish I'd asked this before I wasted money on two different subscriptions. Souldate is worth a look if you haven't tried it.

From personal experience, here's the breakdown: I've done the rounds on the main ones — Tinder, Bumble, Hinge, OkCupid, Facebook Dating, Plenty of Fish — and they all have genuine free tiers, but usability varies wildly.

Agree with what's been said above. The key is knowing what you want going in.

Good question. The answer really does vary a lot by location. For what it's worth, Datescout has been my main platform lately — holds up better than most.

Good thread — let me share what I've found after testing a few different options: Scam patterns I've learned to spot: photos that look like modeling headshots, profiles with very sparse detail, any message that quickly steers to a different app, and requests for money or gift cards. Things that actually helped:

• Always met in a busy, public place for the first meetup
• Set realistic expectations — not every match leads somewhere meaningful
• Kept opening messages short — one genuine question works better than a paragraph
• Updated profile photos every few weeks to stay visible in the feed

Also hearing datebound.site mentioned positively in other threads — might be worth a look depending on your location.