Inner Circle is a dating site that has been around for about a decade and has had moderate growth in that time. While we wouldn’t say it is the most popular dating site online, we have heard great things.
That’s why we wanted to take a deep dive into Inner Circle and see what they are all about. How much do they cost? Do users enjoy the platform? Is it as good as other mainstream dating apps?
This Inner Circle review has all the answers to your most burning questions! If you want to know if Inner Circle is right for you, simply read on!
Inner Circle App at a Glance
Overall Rating – 3.1/5.0
| Userbase | 2.5 million+ |
| Sign-Up Time | < 2 minutes |
| Membership Cost | Premium memberships start at $19.99/month |
| Payment Required? | No, free trial membership available |
| Avg. User Rating | 3.2/5.0 |
| Avg. User Age | 25-35 years old |
| Gender Ratio | 48% men | 52% women |
| Free Messaging? | No |
| Video Chat? | No |
| iOS App? | Yes |
| Android App? | Yes |
| Web Friendly? | Yes |
| Support Options | FAQ, email |
| Launch Date | 2012 |
| Owned By | Circle Imperium BV |
Is Inner Circle Right for Me?
The most honest answer here is maybe. Before you make your decision here are some things you need to know.
Much like The League or Raya this dating app offers a high level of exclusivity that many users seem to crave. It’s free to register and then your profile is added to the pile (in some cases for over a month). Then, if and when you’re approved you’ll be able to start paying to use the service. The two biggest downsides of this is that the userbase is much smaller and there are fewer features than many of the top mainstream dating apps.
So, If you’re willing to wait and you agree with the Inner Circle’s standards, then you might as well see if you make the cut.
On the other hand, if you’re looking for something more immediate, or maybe something with a free trial, or just a proven dating app with more users… then the options listed below may interest you.
Inner Circle Alternatives (With Free Trials):
| Ranking | Dating App | Claim Trial | |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | EliteSingles | Try Free |  |
| #2 | eHarmony | Try Free |  |
| #3 | Zoosk | Try Free |  |
| #4 | The League | Try Free |  |
| #5 | Higher Bond | Try Free |  |
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- What is Inner Circle?
- How Does Inner Circle Work?
- Free vs. Paid Memberships
- How Much Does Inner Circle Cost?
- What Kind of Relationships is Inner Circle For?
- Is Inner Circle Worth It?
- User Reviews of Inner Circle
- Inner Circle vs. The Other Guys
- Inner Circle FAQ
What is Inner Circle?
Inner Circle is a modern dating app that blends digital and traditional dating. The platform is popular among young professionals who want to find meaningful connections in a society that glorifies hookups and flings.
Inner Circle History
Inner Circle was created in 2012 by David Vermeulen, Serge Samusya, and Michael Krayenhoff. Originally launched in Amsterdam, the platform quickly grew in popularity and rivaled larger apps like Tinder. The app has slowly spread to other countries and now has a global audience of nearly 3 million people.
What Makes Inner Circle Different?
Inner Circle was created to offer young professionals a better way to date. It blends the tools of social media and traditional dating apps with the goals of real-world dating. That means they use social media to help match singles, then create a space where they can plan and execute real-world meet-ups.
Pros and Cons of Inner Circle
Pros
- Users can sign up quickly and completely for free.
- There are users from all over the world on the app.
- The app is well-built and simple to use.
Cons
- Inner Circle requires sign-up through social media.
- You have to pay for a membership in order to read messages.
- The overall user base is smaller than on other traditional dating sites.
How Does Inner Circle Work? – Features Overview
If you are going to try Inner Circle, you’ll want to take a look at how the platform operates. It is very different from other apps out there and can be overwhelming to first-time users!
Signup process
The sign-up process is the easiest part of using Inner Circle! All you have to do is choose to sign up through Linkedin or Facebook. That’s because your social media activity is a major part of the matching process. So, click the platform you want to link, agree to the privacy and usage notices, and approve the information pulled from your existing profile. That’s all it takes to get started!
It is important to note; however, that there is a waiting period while accounts are fully approved. For some users, this happens in minutes. For others, they waited weeks for approval before giving up on the app.
Matchmaking Process
Inner Circle matches users based on their social profiles and location. The goal is to help people find relatable matches that are nearby and ready to meet. We like this approach to dating but understand how it can be a little intimidating for shy or inexperienced singles.
Unique Features
Inner Circle has a few features that help the platform stand out. This includes Ghost Mode, Events, Tickets, and Trips.
Ghost Mode
Inner Circle has a strong focus on current location for matching, but going into ghost mode helps you circumvent this. You will be hidden from other users and can browse matches from new locations.
Events
Events can be created by users on Inner Circle and other users can join in on these events. It is a great way to actually meet and connect with people in your area without having to wait for an event curated by Inner Circle itself.
Tickets
When Inner Circle creates exclusive meet-up events you can try to land one of the tickets. Not everyone will get an invite, but if you do, your tickets will be viewable in the My Tickets gallery.
Trips
Users on Inner Circle can create trip schedules that their matches can view. This means you can see everywhere a match plans to be, giving you a better chance of meeting up with them.
Free vs. Paid Memberships
Sometimes there isn’t a huge difference between the free and paid versions of an app, but Inner Circle is not one of those apps! The difference between the free membership and paid account is night and day.
Free members can create an account, browse events, and pay for tickets, but they won’t be able to communicate with anyone or try any advanced features.
Premium members can send messages, read messages, like users, get matches, create events, narrow searches with advanced filters (interests, professions, location, etc.), and use ghost mode.
How Much Does Inner Circle Cost?
| Membership Type | Membership Length | Monthly Price | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premium | 1 Month | $39.99 | $39.99 |
| Premium | 3 Months | $26.66 | $79.99 |
| Premium | 6 Months | $19.99 | $119.99 |
What Kind of Relationships is Inner Circle For?
Inner Circle is meant to be a platform where young singles can meet the best local matches and create new connections. Many users use this to create long-term partnerships, but others use it for casual flings.
We think the goal of the platform is to find a long-term partner, but we do like that users can make their own decision on how to utilize the app.
The Bottom Line – Is Inner Circle Worth It?
Inner Circle has a lot of interesting features to offer users and it’s completely free to sign up. So, if you are comfortable with linking your social media profile to your dating account, we say Inner Circle is worth a look!
There are some major issues with Inner Circle. A large number of users report issues with having their accounts removed without the cancellation of their memberships. This makes us wary about recommended paid, premium memberships on Inner Circle.
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User Reviews of Inner Circle
Inner Circle is available as an app on both IOS and Android devices. That means we can look at user reviews from all three ways to access the platform. Here is a breakdown of the best and worst reviews on each platform to help you determine what users really think about Inner Circle.
Web Platform User Reviews – 1.8 Star Rating
Most Common Positive Reviews:
- Users are interested in dating and not just sex.
- Unlimited swiping is nice.
- The site is nice to look at.
Most Common Negative Reviews:
- Company doesn’t care about the user experience.
- The matching quality is poor.
- Users were blocked without notice and without a refund.
IOS User Reviews – 4.3 Star Rating
Most Common Positive Reviews:
- An improvement to other fast dating apps.
- There is unlimited free swiping.
- Customer service will help you learn to use the account.
Most Common Negative Reviews:
- The site is impossible to use without paying for a premium membership.
- They will cancel your membership and prevent you from canceling the recurring membership.
- The app pressures you to invite friends to get access to all features.
Android User Reviews – 3.0 Star Rating
Most Common Positive Reviews:
- The screening process helped with match quality.
- Profiles seem real.
- App is intuitive.
Most Common Negative Reviews:
- You have to add a social media platform to sign up.
- It’s been weeks and still not approved for full site access.
- Company uses deceptive tactics to force you to pay money.
Inner Circle vs. The Other Guys
Inner Circle isn’t the only app popular with young singles. Let’s take a look at how this platform stands against some of its main competitors.
Inner Circle vs. Tinder
Inner Circle is often compared to Tinder because it competed against it toe to toe in Amsterdam. However, it seems that most users tend to prefer Tinder. That is likely because Tinder allows users to message and match for free. Inner Circle reserves all communication for paid members.
Inner Circle vs. eHarmony
Inner Circle claims to make better matches than sites like Tinder, so it is only fair to compare it to eHarmony. eHarmony is the granddaddy or curated matching. They use a personality assessment to match the most compatible singles. Inner Circle uses social media and location to match singles, which isn’t as thorough or effective.
Inner Circle vs. The League
Inner Circle and The League both talk about their exclusivity. The League is similar to Inner Circle in that it utilizes Linkedin to confirm identities. However, The League is different from Inner Circle in that it is way more expensive. The cheapest membership on The League is 15 times more expensive than on Inner Circle.
Inner Circle FAQ
Is Inner Circle a Legit App?
For a dating app to be legit it has to actually offer the services it advertises and not be filled with fake or scam profiles. By those standards, we can say that Inner Circle is definitely a legit dating app.
Why Is Inner Circle’s User Base So Small?
Inner Circle has a decent-sized user base of a few million, but it is surprisingly small for a site that was established a decade ago. One reason for the low numbers is the lack of free amenities. Another reason may be the strict exclusivity (many users say they didn’t get their profile approved after weeks of waiting).
Can I Use Inner Circle in The US?
Yes! Though Inner Circle was established in Amsterdam, it has since become available in multiple countries, including the United States.
Is Inner Circle A Hookup Site?
Inner Circle is not necessarily intended for use as a hookup site, but there is definitely potential to do so. In general, users can use the site for whichever style of dating they prefer as long as they don’t violate any user conduct rules.
Can I Sign Up For Inner Circle Without Linking to My Social Media?
No. Inner Circle requires that you link at least one type of social media to your account before you can be approved to use the site.
Why Do I Have to Wait to Be Approved for Inner Circle?
Inner Circle has an account approval period. There are no hard and fast rules for how quickly they approve accounts and some users say they waited more than 6 weeks. If you have questions about the approval of your account, we recommend reaching out to Inner Circle’s customer service team.
Why Did Inner Circle Block My Account?
We have read multiple reports of users claiming their accounts were removed and blocked and their membership was not canceled. According to the responses from Inner Circle’s customer service team, they only remove accounts that are found to be duplicates. If your account was removed and wasn’t a duplicate, it may have been removed in error.
If this is true for you, try reaching out to the email customer support provider for Inner Circle.
