If you've set up an account and explored what AdultFriendFinder has to offer, you’ll get regular prompts to upgrade your account to a “Premium Gold Plan.” But before you enter your credit card details, it’s good to know and understand the actual benefits of signing up to a paid membership. 

Hey, we get it if you don't want to spend anything. Tight budgets are what they are. And you can absolutely still have fun using AdultFriendFinder's free version, but the site does throw up some annoying barriers that limits the experience for free users. And an awful lot of content and quality-of-life stuff is waiting for you once you upgrade. 

You can test the waters with a one-month membership that will only set you back $25.16. Or you can commit to three months for the price of $20.95 per month. If the trial run goes well, it might be worth committing to a more long-term membership. You can get a one-year membership for a monthly fee of just $14.95. Note, however, that you need to manually cancel your Gold account after each membership period ends, as it does automatically renew your subscription by default. 

Intrigued but still need to know more before you make a commitment? Here are three perks exclusive to paid users that will help justify the monthly cost:

Discover vastly expanded chatting options

If you’re relying on a free membership, actual chatting options are limited. You can search for individual members based on some limited criteria (Man/Woman/Trans or Couple/Group, for example), and you apply some very limited filters (Online or Near Me), but if you try to click through the profile photo and learn more about the person who has caught your eye, you’re instantly prompted to upgrade your account.

Free members are limited to interacting with others in forums and group chat spaces, which is fun but simultaneously restrictive, since there’s no guarantee the people you chat with actually live anywhere nearby. And while free members can receive regular direct messages from premium users, they will need to upgrade to actually respond and get a back-and-forth DM convo going. 

Gold members, on the other hand, can send and respond to private messages, enter webcam shows, and speak to the host for free. They can also add people to a Friends list to make recurring contact easier, and unlock access to the site’s built-in instant messenger for real-time conversations. 

Unlock AdultFriendFinder’s even naughtier side

One quick visit to the homepage — where nudity filters are turned off by default — and you'll see that AdultFriendFinder doesn’t shy away from sexual content. But free members are missing out on a lot more than they might realize. With a premium membership, for example, you gain access to better quality photos, videos, and streams, so those tiny thumbnails and grainy, low-res webcam feeds — you know, the ones that look like they’re being downloaded straight from the ‘90s — will suddenly come to life in stunning HD. 

But more than that, Gold members can also view and comment on nude photos and videos on profiles that the uploader has restricted to paying members. And while standard members are allowed to watch member webcams, they can only watch one at a time. Gold members, meanwhile, can open multiple streams at once. 

Finally, Gold members can access AdultFriendFinder’s Sex Academy, a massive resource for anyone who wants to learn more about sex and sexual health — not to mention discover new techniques and become more skilled in the bedroom. Topics range from the basics — such as how to correctly put on a condom — to more advanced skills, such as oral sex techniques. Everything's covered in a way that's easy to follow and — in the case of practical sex skills — easy to replicate IRL.

Refine your search for the perfect match

We know that free members can’t really interact with their searches anyway, but we still have to admit that it's frustrating to discover how limited the basic search function is, especially when you consider how much information that users voluntarily provide about themselves.

Of course, it's no surprise that paid members get a far better experience. Signing up for a membership unlocks a more refined search that includes not just basics like gender, sexual orientation, and an age and distance range (Straight, Bisexual, Bicurious, Gay, and Prefer Not To Say are all options), but also marital status, ethnicity, and body type (Average, Slim/Petite, Athletic, Ample, A Little Extra Padding, and BBW/BBM are the options here).

Paid members can get super specific in AFF's My Kinks section, which is exactly what it sounds. Fill this out to let people know exactly what you're into — there's no shaming or judgment here. This will help to attract like-minded people and give you the ability to search through other users who share the same kinks. The list is pretty exhaustive and extremely kink-friendly.

Paid members can also build up a friends list, helping to track their favorite people and chat partners. That makes it easy to slip back into a steamy conversations or keep up with a particular streamer’s schedule. 

If you’re after a naughtier online dating experience, something that prioritises kinky fun and taboo-busting chats that other sites keep hidden behind innuendo and self-censorship, AdultFriendFinder’s paid membership experience is very much worth exploring.