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Once Review October 2026

Can Once help you find your one in a million perfect match? Find out and check our review of its features, membership, and other things you need to know!
3.0fair
Screenshot of the Once website
Once is a dating app for singles who prefer a slower pace, with one match sent each day
  • One match sent each day
  • Unlimited chat after a reply within 24 hours
Relationships Finding love Flirts
Is Once right for me?
last updated
Members in Hong Kong10,000
Women / Men 40% 60%
From£19.99/mo
Age 18-24 25-34 35-44

Once in 10 seconds

  • Dating site that promotes personalized matching. Learn more
  • Has thorough and strict application process
  • No search options and the users can only rely on the matchmakers
  • Website is clean, neat, and easy to navigate
  • Unlimited chat feature will only be available if your match will reply within 24 hours
  • You can buy credits to use additional premium features

Is Once right for me? →

“Once could have created a difference on the online dating world since its launch. Instead of having too many options, you get to take your time and everything slow and wait until the perfect one arrives. If you are into personalized matchmaking then it would probably fit into your taste.”

Chris Pleines, Founder of DatingScout and Author of the book "Online Dating for Dummies"
Is Once right for you?

Find out if Once is the right service for you or if there are better options.

Better than Once

  1. We recommend Adultfriendfinder 4.5★★★★★Excellent Visit site Read review
  2. EliteSingles 4.5★★★★★Excellent Visit winner Read review
  3. Hinge 4.5★★★★★Excellent Visit winner Read review

Who is Once for, and not for?

Once is for…
  • People looking for serious relationships and deep commitments
  • Singles who want to find and fall in love
  • Those who want to meet a lot of strangers online
…and not for
  • Those searching for erotic adventures and casual encounters
  • Singles who are into casual flirting and quick hookups
  • People who want unlimited match suggestions

Once pros & cons

  • Chatting with matches is free of charge
  • Website is clean, neat, and easy to navigate
  • Many active users looking for love
  • Signing-up is only via Facebook or mobile number
  • You only get 1 match per day
  • Customer service is reported to be unhelpful to complaints

What Once really costs

VIP
Prices are in British Pounds (GBP)
VIP is a paid membership at 19.99 GBP per Month and renews automatically when your term ends. You can cancel auto renewal in Settings.Total
1 month 19.99 GBP / month 19.99 GBP
Crowns
Crowns are bought as credit packs for paid features, not as a subscription, so automatic renewal does not apply.Total
5 credits 1.80 GBP / credit 8.99 GBP
15 credits 1.20 GBP / credit 17.99 GBP
Our pick: 15 Crowns cost 17.99 GBP, or 1.20 GBP per Credit, which is 33% less per credit than 5 Crowns at 1.80 GBP. We would choose this for regular paid features.
Once costs last updated on Oct 1, 2026
Payment options
Credit CardPayPal
No anonymous payment.With Once you cannot pay anonymously, the charge appears on your bank statement.
On your bank statement
Xeanco Limited, the company named in the terms
Once costs screenshot
Can you try Once for free?
  • You can test Once free of charge
  • You can at least read a message for free to try the service

Is Once right for me? →

What is the notice period on Once?

The notice period on Once is 3 days.

Once offers their paid features via crowns and a VIP subscription. Without these two, you only get to enjoy the app and the full site at a minimal level. The costs for both are a little expensive but they might be worthy once you avail of them. To avail of the crowns, you just need to click the crown symbol on your computer or mobile phone. To subscribe to their VIP plans, simply visit one of their VIP sections. 

Your subscription automatically renews every time your term expires. However, you can always cancel this auto-renewal by simply going to Settings then cancelling the auto-renewal. You can also cancel the subscription itself but not while it is in progress. For more information, check their terms and privacy settings with regard to these specific rules.

Free services
  • Match Quality (You get to rate pictures of users using stars from 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest. This feature allows the matchmakers to infer on what your type is depending on your ratings.)
  • Profile Completion (You can complete your profile anytime without paying.)
  • My Reviews (You can ask your friends on Facebook to write a review about you. Their reviews will be visible on your profile and your match for the day can see them.)
Paid services
  • Crowns (You need 1 crown for each: - Send a chat request on incognito mode - Accept and discover who sent a chat request to you - Pick your new match for tomorrow from a selection of profiles - Get another instant match; you can exceed one match daily - Grab someone's attention and send him or her a message -- you will also get notified once he or she reads it! - Expand your options by getting more matches to choose from - Answer match preferences so the matchmakers can match you with others perfectly)
  • VIP Subscription (- Set a maximum distance to widen your options - Get at least 2 more matches plus one premium match daily - See who passed or liked your profile - Receive unblurred chat requests (incognito mode off) - Discover who rated your profile with 4 or 5 stars)

How to cancel your Once subscription →

Is Once right for me?

Who is signed up on Once?

Most of the members hail from the United States but there are also members who are living in France, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, and others.

There are more male members than females and most of them are straight singles who are on the younger age range of 25 to 34. Since this is an app, the members access the service through their mobile phones.

5,000
Weekly active members
10,000
Members in Hong Kong
Gender
Age of members

How does Once work?

  • Receive one personalized match each day, encouraging focused interaction
  • Connect with potential partners based on shared musical tastes by linking your Spotify account
  • Complete your profile with photos and personal details to enhance matching accuracy

Receive a personalized match each day, encouraging deeper, more focused interactions. Connect with others who share your musical tastes by linking your Spotify account, making it easy to bond over favorite songs. Enhance your matching accuracy by completing your profile with clear photos and personal details, ensuring better compatibility with potential partners.

Once in detail

Signing up at Once ★★★★★ 3.0/5

Email & password
  • You must be at least 18 years old to sign up
  • You must sign up to browse Once

To sign up, visit the Once website or download the Once app, available on iOS and Android. To complete the registration, provide all required information.

Required information

  • Name
  • Date of birth
  • Your gender
  • Type of relationship wanted
  • Partner's gender
  • Profile picture upload

Once verifies new profiles via:

  • Email verification (optional)

Email confirmation is optional, but completing it boosts your position in the feed, leading to more visits and likes.

signing up
Is Once right for me?

Making contact on Once ★★★★★ 3.5/5

  • You get one match daily and you have 24 hours to connect with each other
  • No search options available
  • Flirting or making contact with anyone is limited
  • Contacting other members is only possible if you have crowns or subscribed to their plan
  • You can only chat for free if your match for the day replies
  • Most of the members are women in their late 20s
  • Everybody can send messages for free
  • Once has a chat function

Contacting other members in this dating platform is quite restrictive. This is justified by the fact that they only do personalised matchmaking. There are no search options and you only get contact proposals daily, but this is also limited. You can send a one-time message to your match/es of the day to start connecting with them using your crowns. If they reply within 24 hours, then that is the only time you get to message each other for free. On the other hand, if your match/es do not reply, you will have to use another crown if you would like to send them another message.

In addition, if you happen to encounter a scammer or a fraudulent account, you have the option to either report it to their team via the contact form on their website or simply end the conversation with that person and he or she will not be able to bother you anymore.

Is Once right for me? →

Profile quality ★★★★★ 3.5/5

  • Shows pictures of accounts that were banned or suspended
  • There are safety measures to get rid of fraudulent accounts
  • Other members fill in their profile information completely
  • Your account is automatically linked to Facebook
  • You can only see the profiles of your matches
  • Profiles are moderately detailed
  • Profile pictures are visible to everybody for free
  • You can edit your profile information later

Once you encounter other members' profiles, you will see that they are actually informative. Most members fill in the information completely. These info consists of their birthdays, height, ethnicity, religion, education, work, drinking and smoking preference, and others. It might be possible to get real dates because most users are looking for a serious relationship. 

Since the platform and the app offers no search options, it is quite impossible for you to search according to your mood or preferences. As mentioned earlier, they do personalised matchmaking which means that they are the ones who match you with others. They also have safety measures if in case an account is fraudulent or have done inappropriate acts. They investigate on that person's profile and ban or suspend it if necessary.

The Once app ★★★★★ 3.5/5

  • App and full site have similar and identical features
  • Design of the app is neat, simple, and appropriate
  • App is very functional and easy to navigate
  • Free to download but features are still paid
  • Available for both Apple products and Android smartphones

Technically speaking, Once has probably a better mobile app compared to other dating sites. It is pretty functional just like the full site. In fact, they both have similar features which make it easier for the user to use both without any hassle. Google Play and iTunes offer the downloading of the app without payment and they both brand it as "the only dating site that brings you quality members". Both play stores also offer in-app purchases which prices are similarly equivalent to the dating site's original ones. 

Our field test ★★★★★ 3.0/5

"If you are into looking for a serious relationship, Once is probably for you. If, on the other hand, you are just looking for casual dates and short-term relationships, you might want to try other dating apps. As for me, I have always been the happy-go-lucky guy. I always like looking for fun, excitement, and adventures. I love meeting other people, particularly women and hanging out with them. So I quite find Once a bit restrictive. It might be good if you are really serious about finding your perfect match. Their matchmakers actually do the job for you. But for guys like me who are always looking for fun and other stuff we want to try, it might be not a good option after all."

- Sales Executive, 28

Special features

Love Experiment +

The Love Experiment is a series of 28 quick, modern questions that are designed to identify a person's emotional outlook and personality, and aims to help find them a partner who has a complimentary temperament and outlook in life. This new matching process is designed by an all-female team. The overall algorithm helps users find matches based on their perceived compatibility.

Matching Quality +

This gives you the chance to rate the photos of other members. This feature helps the matchmakers pair you up with other members as they are able to determine your type and taste.

My Reviews +

This is available on your profile information. You can ask your Facebook friends to write a review about you. This allows you to increase your chances of being matched perfectly and liked.

Match Preferences +

This is a paid feature. You get to answer a few questions to help the matchmakers pair you perfectly to others according to your taste and preferences.

Cancelling your Once subscription

How you can cancel

  • By email: support@getonce.com

Contact details

AddressTop 2 AG, Schindellegistrasse 3 8808 Pfäffikon, Switzerland

Do subscriptions auto-renew?

Subscriptions renew automatically, cancel at least 3 days before your current term ends.

Money-back guarantee

  • Once refunds part of your money (partial refund)
  • You have 30 days to cancel and get your money back

Once gives partial refund for unused membership days

Do your credits expire?

Credits expire after 180 days.

Is Once right for me?
Final results
Signup3.0/5
Making contact3.5/5
Profile quality3.5/5
App3.5/5
Field test3.0/5
Overall3.0/5
Is Once right for me?

Compare Once to alternatives

Looking for sites like Once, apps like Once or simply the best Once alternatives? Here are the services that did better than Once in our test, and below you can compare Once side by side with any other dating site we have reviewed.

Better than Once

  1. We recommend Adultfriendfinder 4.5★★★★★Excellent Visit site Read review
  2. EliteSingles 4.5★★★★★Excellent Visit winner Read review
  3. Hinge 4.5★★★★★Excellent Visit winner Read review

Compare Once with other dating sites

Once and Hinge side by side. Add up to four services to the comparison, or remove one and type another name. All tested Dating Apps

Share your Once experience ★★★★★

Once FAQ

ABOUT
What is Once dating app?

Once is a dating site that is also available on Android and Apple phones as a mobile application. It is a specialised and a time-sensitive dating platform because you only get to be matched once on a daily basis.

Who is the founder of Once?

Founded by Jean Meyer and his colleagues back in October 2015, it has been their home ever since.

How does Once dating app work?

The site provides you one new match per day. You have 24 hours to grab that person's attention and connect with him or her. If you both like each other, you will be provided a chat screen where you can send messages to each other.

How do I sign-up for Once?

You can sign-up either by using your Facebook account or mobile number.

Does Once dating app have a website?

Yes. It has a full website, www.getonce.com, and it has the same features with the app.

What is the phone number to contact Once?

Unfortunately, they do not have a phone number to contact. You can, however, send them a message through their contact form on their website.

Does Once accept job applications?

Yes. You can visit their full website and check their job offers.

USABILITY
How can I download Once dating app?

You can visit Google Play if you have an Android phone and iTunes if you are using an Apple product. These stores offer the mobile version. Search for the application on your phone and download it without cost.

What is a chat request on Once?

A chat request allows you to send a request to another member so you can chat with each other or vice versa. However, you can only send and receive chat requests on incognito mode if you have enough crowns. If you want to remove the incognito mode, you must subscribe to their VIP subscription.

What is matching quality in Once?

It is a special feature that lets you rate other members via stars. It gives the matchmakers a chance to find your perfect match.

How do I send messages on Once?

You can only send and receive messages once you avail of either their crowns or VIP subscription plans.

SERVICES AND CANCELLATION
How to delete my Once account?

You can delete your account permanently by sending a message to their customer service. They will ask for your phone number, email, or Facebook email so they can find your profile and delete it for you.

Is Once dating app available on Android phones?

Yes. You can download it on the Google Play store.

How to get crowns on Once?

Just click the crown symbol on the full site or the app. You can choose how many crowns you would want to purchase.

Are there free crowns on Once?

You only get one crown upon signing-up. After that, you will need to buy them.

COSTS AND PAYMENT
Is Once dating app expensive?

The prices for the crowns and VIP subscription are a bit expensive.

What are the prices for Once's VIP subscription?

The dating platform offers three kinds of subscription: 1 month (€19.99/month), 3 months (€15.00/month, and 6 months (€10.00/month).

How do I pay for Once's crowns or VIP subscription?

For the crowns, you can pay via credit cards, gift cards, or PayPal. For the VIP subscription, you can only pay via major credit cards.

SECURITY
Is my Once account protected?

Yes. Your account and other members' account are always protected. You can check their privacy terms in their home page to see their terms and conditions regarding privacy.

You did not find your question? Ask us!

Founder of DatingScout and Author of the book "Online Dating for Dummies"
Chris founded DatingScout 17 years ago, and today he is one of the leading Online Dating Experts. He is the author of the book "Online Dating for Dummies" and the author of the Internet's largest online dating study analyzing 20 Million Profile Pictures with artificial intelligence. Chris Pleines holds a master degree in media science and appeared in numerous television interviews and publications to give expert advice as well as tips about online dating.
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