Once Review

Launched in October 2015, Once is a female friendly slow dating app that focuses on quality and not the quantity of matches. Everyday at noon Once will send its members between 1 and 4 matches. There is no searching and you only have access to the matches sent to you. This dating service is based in Europe where it enjoys a large following and in 2018 launched in North America including the countries United States and Canada. The Once dating service can be accessed through dating apps and their website and is close to hitting the 10 million members milestone. Every month Once sends out over 50 million matches which generates 5 million chats between their members every day.

There are many benefits to this style of online dating. Compared to other dating services, it saves time since you do not have to scroll through endless profiles quickly scanning each to decide whether to swipe left or right. With Once you only get a couple of matches a day which promotes members taking time and giving specific attention to each of their matches to determine if it is an ideal match. It is also private. Only your matches know anything about you.

It only takes a few minutes to sign up to Once. They ask the required questions needed to create a dating profile. When you have finished you will be sent a new match right away. Matches are based on your preferences; how active the member is on the service and distance from your location. Matching is also based on other profile attributes so it is important to visit your own profile near the beginning where you can add in many additional details about yourself. Once will also prompt you through out your visit to do this by offering you additional features or Crowns for free.

When you are looking at your match of the day you can review their full profile, photos, and any reviews and/or ratings other members might have left. You have several options. If you find the match does not spark any interest you can Pass. If you want to find out more about your match you can Like the profile and/or send a Charm (which is similar to a wink or flirt and designed to express additional interest). If the member likes you back, then the chat section will open, and you will be able to chat with that member for free as long as you like. During your chat sessions you can send text messages and photos. If the match is currently online, you can also ask them to join you in a live one on one private video call.

You can also increase your Match Quality by participating in rating other photos of members. You can give each profile photo a 1 to 5 star rating which helps the matching algorithm to choose your future matches based not only on what the match looks like but also on their profile details. The profiles shown to you here are not necessarily currently active or near your location, but if they are, you do have the option to send them a Chat request. If they approve you can then go ahead and start communicating with them.

Once also offers an interesting testimonials type feature where members can leave ratings and reviews about other matches. For example, after a woman has chatted with their match for a while, Once will ask if you liked the conversation. These answers are combined and given as a percentage on the profile. Likewise using AI and based on your conversation on the service, Once will detect and determine if you have been on a real-life date with the match. After this happens both men and woman will be asked to gauge the accuracy through a predefined answer (Worse, Same, Better) of the other members photos. At this point woman can also leave a rating and short review of their date experience. All reviews are done anonymously and are moderated. Before any reviews are posted the other member is also asked if they have been on a date to avoid any false assessments.

Once can be used for free which allows users to receive 1 match a day and communicate with any match who likes you back. Once does offer a VIP monthly membership which allows you access to premium features like the ability to receive multiple matches per day, and to specify your maximum distance to a match. Other premium features can be purchased using Once's in app currency called Crowns. For example, with a Crown you can purchase a Chat Request or the ability to pick your next match.

In a world of countless swipes, Once's goal is to slow down the process of online dating by offering meaningful matches.

Positives of Once

These are the best parts of Once.

• Free members who liked a member can chat with said member if they liked them back
• Available on Android, iOS and via the Once website. Dating apps and website have similar features (Supports the Apple Watch as well)
• Private one on one video chatting
• Members can earn Crown coins to purchase premium features
• Ideal for members who wish to take the time an get to know their matches
• Will be notified when your profile is viewed by a match
• Female friendly rating system
• Can give and read real life feedback about members including chats, photos and their real-life dates

Negatives of Once

These are the parts of Once which needs improvement.

• Many micro transactions using Crowns
• Some members may not like the slow approach to dating and want more matches
• Matches only, no searching

Editors Bottom Line

What should you take away from this review of Once? Our expert explains:

"Once" is a female friendly dating service that is designed to allow singles to slow down the process of online dating. It removes the endless swiping of profiles and concentrates on one quality match every day. This way each person is invested in truly getting to know their match to determine if they will accept the match or choose to pass and wait until noon the next day to receive another one. While the service does have a free option, some users do complain about the amount of micro-transactions you may find yourself doing.

We give Once, a 3.5 out of 5 Stars! 😃

Once Profiles & Sign Up Process

The dating service Once is available for Android and iOS phones and can be accessed via their website. Once is much more popular on Android and has had over 5 million installs at the time of writing this review. On the Google Play store there has been almost 300,000 reviews giving the service a 4.4 out of 5 star rating which is extremely good for a dating service. In comparison on the Apple App store there are only 1,400 reviews with an average of 3.4 star rating.

We reviewed Once using both the website and Android app. Both experiences are very similar. When you first launch the service, you will be asked if you want to use Facebook or your phone number to create and verify your account. Your email address is not required. When you have verified your account, Once will then ask you for the following information:

• Sign Up
  • First Name, Age, Gender, Sexuality (Men, Women, or Both)
  • Share your location to help Once to find matches around you
  • Upload a photo from your device, camera, Facebook, and Instagram. Photos can be cropped as needed
  • A few yummy Biscuits?
    • Pick 3 questions and then write your answers from a list of 20 questions
    • Examples of questions includes: The perfect day for me..., The thing I love the most in my life is, If I had a crystal ball, I'd love to know...
    • This section is not required
  • Select one or more of your current hobbies and favorite sports (Interests). The selection list is large and includes everything from archery, to baking, to camping, to chess, to reading
  • Pick from a list of countries your favorite travel destinations

After you have created your account, you are sent one match right away where you can Like it or Pass. You can view the full profile to make this decision. See the Matching section for more information on how this works. After you make a decision about your match, Once will ask you for your email address which they will use to send you notifications about new matches and any messages you may receive.

Once will also reward you 1 Crown for free. Crowns are a virtual currency that can be used to buy premium features. See the Costs section for more information.

After, we recommend you visit your own profile by tapping the profile icon located on the far right of the menu bar. Here you can add more photos and fill in the rest of your profile. Doing this will ensure that your profile will stand out from the rest and give you the best chance of Once finding your ideal match. Here is what the complete profile looks like:

• Complete Profile
  • Photos
  • Description (short paragraph about yourself and what type of person you are looking for
  • Profile Details
    • Gender, Age, Sexuality, Height, Position (occupation), Employer, Education (can add in multiples including High School, College, Grad School, PhD/Med School)
    • Kids, Interests, Travel, Religion, Ethnicity, Politics, Drinking, Smoking
  • Matches (preferences)
    • Includes Age Range, Ethnicity (Any or multi-select), Religion (Any or multi-select)
    • Must set your own profile detail before you can be matched on specific preference like religion
    • VIP Settings
      • Paid subscriber match preferences only
      • Can enable or disable Multi matches
      • Can set maximum distance from Match
  • Biscuits (answer 3 questions from a list of 20)

From within your profile if you tap the gear icon located in the top right corner of the screen you will find your Account Settings. This is where you can update your email address, view the Once FAQ, and contact their customer service. You can also logout of the service or deactivate your account. Deactivating your account does not delete it, instead it blocks your profile from being viewed or matched with anyone else until you reactivate it. If you want your profile permanently deleted, you would then need to contact customer service directly.

Once Costs

Once has a two membership types: Free and a paid subscription called VIP. They also have a virtual currency called Crowns which you can spend on premium features. A free trial is also offered, every once in a while as you use the service. /p>

• Prices last confirmed June 06, 2020. Please check Once for most recent pricing. All prices in USD unless specified otherwise. Prices may differ based on location, time of purchase, or access point (this can include device used and/or if accessed from a website or app)
• Free Membership
  • Includes:
    • Creating your profile
    • Get one quality match a day
    • Incentive to earn more matches and Crowns by completing profile
    • Rating other members photos to improve the matching quality
    • Chatting with mutual matches (only matches that you have liked, and they have liked you back)
  • Costs:
    • Free
• VIP Membership
  • A paid monthly subscription for users who want access to Once's premium features
  • A free trial for 3 days of the VIP membership is also offered. If you choose to accept the free trial, it will automatically role into a 1 month membership unless you cancel it before the third day
  • Includes:
    • Everything from the Free Membership
    • Will have access to at least 4 matches per day
    • One premium match (the best of the best) handpicked from the top 5%
    • Unblurred chat requests (stop guessing before accepting)
    • Discover who liked or passed you
    • Set the maximum distance of your daily matches (5, 10, or 15 miles)
    • Discover who rated your pictures 4 or 5 stars
  • Costs:
    • 1 month for $19.99
    • 3 months for $15.00 per month ($45.00 total)
    • 6 months for $10.00 per month ($60.00 total)
• All subscription options auto-renew for the same duration. Auto-renew happens within the 24 hours prior to the end of the current subscription period
• Subscriptions can be canceled anytime. Upon cancellation the unused portion of your subscription is still accessible until it expires (except for the Free Trial)

Once Crowns (or Cr for short) can be earned or purchased and are used to buy premium features.

• Crowns
  • Crown count is found on the top right of the screen. Tap to buy more crowns
  • Each premium feature that you can purchase costs only 1 Crown
  • Use Crowns for:
    • See the section below for more detailed explanation of some of these feature
    • Send a Charm to a member and you will be notified when the member sees it
    • Pick tomorrow's match from a selection of profiles
    • Send a chat request incognito (your photo will be pixelated unless the request is to a VIP member)
    • Accept their chat request and reveal the profile of the member who wants to be connected
    • Get another match now! (pick someone active to be matched with right now)
    • Expand your horizons and pick one from a list of profiles to be matched with
  • Earned by:
    • 1 free Crown when you signup and create a profile
    • 1 free Crown when you verify your email address
    • 1 free Crown when you Like Once on Facebook
  • Costs:
    • 5 Crowns for $11.99 ($2.40 per Cr)
    • 15 Crowns for $24.99 ($1.67 per Cr)
    • 30 Crowns for $36.99 ($1.23 per Cr)
    • 100 Crowns for $104.99 ($1.05 per Cr)

Once Viewing & Communication Features

The menu bar is found in all sections of the Once app and website. On the app the menu bar is found on the bottom of the screen while on the website it is located at the top. This menu bar is the place where you can access most of the features of this dating service. This includes your Matches Dashboard, Match Quality (Ratings), Chats, and Your Profile.

• Profile
  • Member profiles are accessible by tapping / clicking on a member's photo when viewed on the main Dashboard and the Chat section (but not the Ratings section)
  • On any profile you can view the members photos, first name, age, description, distance from you, and any other profile details they have filled out
  • Depending on your match status with the profile, you can Like, Pass, Send a Charm, Request a Chat, Send a Message, or Change Your Mind about passing the match. Most of these options either require a VIP membership or require you to spend a Crown
  • Photos
    • Click on any photo to view a larger version
    • Swipe left or right to view any additional photos
  • Rate Your Date
    • Read feedback about other members chats, photos and their real life dates
    • Designed to allow users to confirm that details from online profiles and photos are the same in real life
    • Any reviews and ratings for the member appear after their profile. Only the last 3 reviews will be visible
    • Reviews are anonymized, and ratings are curated and averaged so it will not be possible to know who has given a review or rating
    • Three different aspects can be reviewed on our app: Photos, conversations, and dates in real life
    • Photos and conversations can only be rated by predefined answers, the dates in real life by short written reviews
    • Women can do ratings on chats, and photos, and reviews on dates in real life. Men are only able to do ratings on photos
    • All reviews are monitored by the Once team and are approved before being published to avoid negativity
    • Before a review is posted the male member must confirm that they have been on a date. Male users cannot respond or comment on any reviews posted
  • Report and/or block the profile

• Matches Dashboard
  • Tap on the crown icon located on the far left of the bottom bar to access
  • Includes the 24 hour count down clock of your next match
  • Top right of the screen includes the number of virtual coins (or Crowns) you own. Tapping on this will allow you to purchase more
  • Actions you can take include (listed in order by panel):
    • Notification
      • Find a list of any Charms or Chat Requests (these are the members who have a crush on you) you have received
      • Tapping on the notification takes you to the chat screen
    • Special Picks
      • Tap to find 1 or more member profiles that you share things in common with
      • Can view members full profile
      • Can send a chat request (costs 1 Crown for free members)
    • Special Picks
      • Tap to find 1 or more member profiles that you share things in common with
      • Can view members full profile
      • Can send a chat request (costs 1 Crown for free members)
    • Feel like a matchmaker?
      • Pick your next match yourself for tomorrow from a list of profiles that have a lot of potential
      • These matches do not know that you picked them
      • Need to fill in your description to pick your next match
      • Costs 1 Crown
    • Can't wait?
      • Pick another match right now from a list of active users
      • Must have at least 3 additional Profile Details questions filled out to pick another match
      • Costs 1 Crown to discover someone new
    • Feeling lucky?
      • Get your next match early
      • Costs 1 Crown
    • Your previous matches
      • Lists the members you have already liked and passed on. With any of these members you can tap on the photo to view their full profile
      • For profiles you have already liked but have not yet been liked you have the option to send a Charm
      • For profiles you have passed you have the option to change your mind and Like them instead

• Match Quality
  • Tap on the star icon located on the bottom bar to access. The red dot on the star icon indicates additional new ratings you can perform
  • At the top of the screen is your Matching Quality Score specified as a percentage and bar graph.
  • The main part of the screen contains a member photo. If the member has more photos you can swipe left or right to view. At the bottom of the photo you can rate the member from 1 to 5 stars. Once you have rated the member a new one will be shown. The more members you rate the better your matches will be. For more information on this see the Searching and Matching section below
  • For any member you really like (a 4 or 5 star rating) you can send a chat request to pursue them further. Chat requests are Once's best working feature and users exchange around 3x more messages when meeting this way
• Chat
  • Tap on the speech bubble icon located on the bottom bar to access
  • Here you will find a list of your current conversations. Each conversation includes a profile photo along with the last message sent
  • Tapping / clicking on a conversation will bring up the actual message stream you have had with the member
  • Along with text you can also include photos in your messages
  • If the person is currently online, you can also start a live one on one video chat. Tapping the video icon will send a text message to the other member asking if they would like to join you in a video call
  • Report and/or block the profile
• Notifications
  • Sent directly from the app and/or via email
  • Includes notifications about new Matches, Views, new Messages, Chat Requests, and receiving a Charm

By tapping the "!" or report button in chat, on a photo, or profile you can report an offensive or suspected false profile. Blocking a profile will just remove it from your view and prevent communication with the user. If you report a profile you must select a predefined reason (like bad behavior or fake profile) and the Once customer service team will investigate it right away.

Searching and Matching

Once is all about Matching and does not offer the ability for members to do any manual searching.

Matching

Every day Once will notify and send each member 1 Daily Match (VIP members can have up to 3 or 4 matches). This Match is sent at noon to optimize your chances of success as everyone will be online checking their matches at the same time. If you view the Once Matches dashboard (by tapping on the crown icon on the far left of the menu bar) you will find the match countdown clock. Once it reaches 0:00 you will be shown your new matches profile which includes profile photos (which you can swipe to see other photos), along with their first name, age, distance away, and the rest of any profile information they have filled out. Also included is the date and time they viewed your profile and (for VIP members only) if they Liked or Passed your profile already.

With your match you can either tap the X red button to Pass, tap the yellow heart button to Like, or the green crown icon to send a Charm. A Charm is like a flirt that shows you are really interested in someone. If you pass on a profile you will then have to wait until your next match becomes available. If you like the profile, and that member has already liked you, then the chat screen will popup and you can then message the member for as long and often as you want. If the member has not liked you yet (you may not have appeared as a match for them yet), then you will have to wait until they have liked you back before communication can start. Remember, you only have a 24 hours to like your match before it disappears.

The matches presented to you are selected by a matching algorithm which takes into account tastes, dating preferences, your own ratings, and previous matches to suggest better profiles every day. A team of dedicated Matchmakers also ensures everything rolls along smoothly making tweaks and improvements as needed. When determining a match for a member, Once also takes into account the profile information available from each user (like religion, age, etc...) along with their location to the member being matched, and when the user was last active on the service (ideally within the last 48 hours). Remember, not only must the member match your preferences, but you must match theirs as well.

To improve your match quality your can rate profiles. This feature is found on the menu bar by tapping on the crown icon. At the top of the screen is your Matching Quality Score bar and percentage. In the middle of the screen is a member's profile photo. You can swipe left or right on the photo to view any other photos the member may have. At the bottom of the screen you can then pick a rating of between 1 and 5 stars. After your rate one profile the next one will be shown to you right away. These profiles that are shown to you are genuine, but not necessarily near you. They are used to help determine your ideal match. If a profile that is shown to you is near your location, you do have the option to reach out and request a chat (which costs 1 Crown for free members).

After rating a few profiles, you will see your Matching Quality Score either increase or decrease. An increase score indicates that you have liked a certain type of person over others giving the matching algorithm and Matchmakers a better ideal of your perfect match. The Matching Quality Score takes into account not only the type of people in the photos but also their profile attributes as well.

You can adjust your basic match preferences by visiting your profile which is found by tapping on the profile icon located on the far right of the bottom bar. You then need to tap the Matches heart icon to change your preferences. Free members can adjust their ideal age range, ethnicity, and religion. In order to change these preferences, you must have already included them in your own profile. VIP members also can adjust their ideal Max Distance and toggle if they want multiple matches every day or not.

If you pass on a match and are not currently communicating with any other members there are several additional options for you when you visit the main Matches dashboard. As a free member you can use Crowns to buy another match, take a peek at your next match and even review your previous matches that you have passed already. If you want, you can change your mind and Like these profiles instead (which costs 1 Crown).

Other Once Information

Once was founded by Jean Meyer and Cle´mentine Lalande. The dating service launched in October of 2015 and has become very popular in Europe. Their target market are singles who want to take online dating nice and slow and move away from the apps that offer endless swiping of photos. By December 2017 Once had 6 million users in 7 countries. At this time over 2 million notifications are sent everyday at noon. For the entire year 98 million chat messages were sent and over 240 million matches were generated. Early in 2018 they officially launched in the United States and released a major new feature of the app which allows members after a date to rate how accurate the other members photos are, along with the woman being able to rate the conversation they had in the app and give any feedback on any dates they may have had with the male member. As of 2020, Once has over 9 million members.

The Once dating service is owned by Once Dating AG and is headquartered in Switzerland. It has been featured in a number of major media publications (mainly European) including Vanity Far, GQ, and Boursorama Lifestyle.

Once Customer Support

Once offers a decent FAQ section which is searchable and answers most common questions a member may have about the dating service. For the app you can find the FAQ section within the Account Settings sections.

Customer support is available via an online form on the website (link found in the footer of every page) and via a similar form on the app (which is found in Account Settings). You can contact customer service for help, feedback, and success stories.

Contact Form

Available 24 Hours a day, 7 days a week. Response times for emails is usually within a couple of hours

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