We conducted an evaluation of KinkD and prepared a review to provide you with a clearer picture of what you can expect from the app. Before you grab that leather whip, take a couple of minutes and read our review. It’s always best to know what you’re getting into before you start thinking of “safe words.”

— Pros and Cons —

Pros

• Fast and easy to use interface
• Available for both Android and iOS devices
• Large and engaged community of open-minded adults
• Option to protect access to the app with a swipe pattern

Cons

• Requires users to verify profile images by sending a photo ID
• Local filtering ineffective
• Requires a paid subscription to get full use of features

— In-Depth KinkD App Review —

KinkD is a relatively new entrant into the world of online hookup apps. As its name suggests, it is part of the kink and fetish niche. The site refers to itself as the “Tinder alternative for kinky couples and singles.”

Mentioned in publications such as Cosmo, HuffPo, and Vice, KinkD has definitely managed to create buzz. If you are into BDSM or other fetishes, KinkD can sound like the perfect app to find like-minded adults in your area.

Of course, marketing and buzz are one thing, actual performance and a great user experience are another.

— The Basics —

KinkD is a mobile hookup app specifically designed for the BDSM and fetish community. It markets itself with the tagline “your private kinky community.”

That means that it attempts to position itself as an app that brings local people with similar fantasies together. It is meant to be used by singles as well as couples of all sexual orientations and ethnicities.

It is available exclusively as a mobile app for Android and iOS devices — it does not have a desktop version. There is a complimentary website that can be found at kinkdapp.com, however, that site is reserved solely to convey information about the app itself and the fetish community in general.

— Installation and Registration Process —

Downloading and installing the KinkD app is fairly straightforward. It can be found on both Google Play and the App Store.

After downloading the app you must register for an account on KinkD in order to start using it.

The registration process for this app differs slightly from the majority of other hookup apps.

While you are asked to provide the expected standard information — such as name, gender, location, and age for yourself and your partner (if you are joining as a couple) — you must also verify your identity.

We know what you are thinking — since when is member verification out of the ordinary? In the general sense verifying the validity and genuineness of new members is nothing new for the online hookup industry. Many sites and apps utilize third-party solutions, such as verifying new members through their Facebook account.

However, KinkD takes a different path. In order to get your account approved, you must submit a copy of an official piece of identification. This could be your driver’s license or passport.

— WTF? Why Do They Want Photo ID? —

The terms of service of KinkD indicate that the photo identification that you upload is protected by the highest standards of data protection. It is supposedly only seen by authorized employees of KinkD. The purpose of this verification procedure is not to verify your name, rather it is to verify the authenticity of any profile photos that you post.

While this focus on verification has some merit, the idea of having to upload an official piece of identification to join this type of app, from our point of view, is disconcerting.

A check on the procedures used by KinkD to safeguard their database did confirm their claim that they use the latest and highest standards for safeguarding personal data. Even so, we could not fault anyone who would hesitate and balk at uploading such sensitive information to a fetish app.

— Platform and Features —

The KinkD platform is well-designed and allows for ease of use. If you have used any of the popular hookup or dating apps you will be familiar with its layout. The user interface is designed around the concept of swiping. You know the drill, swipe right when you encounter a potential match that you approve of and swipe left when you wish to pass.

The KinkD algorithm takes the information that you provided on your profile — inclusive of the specific attributes and fetishes that you indicated that you were looking for in a partner — and presents you with suggested matches.

These profiles are presented to you in batches of eight. You can view as many as six batches (a total of 48 profiles) before the system forces you to take a time-out that lasts for 30 minutes.

The swiping mechanism is the primary discovery feature on KinkD. When there is a mutual like by two profiles, it will open up access to the online messaging features. This will allow you to engage in instant chats and have the ability to exchange email messages.

The internal email messaging system, however, is not limited to those who have made a mutual match. These types of messages can be sent to any member provided that you have a paid subscription.

Photo segregation is another feature offered by KinkD. This allows users to have a public and private album. Your public images can be seen by anybody who is perusing your profile. Access to your private album requires your approval before anyone can view those pictures.

There is a feature called “Moments.” This is similar to Instagram or SnapChat, in that it allows users to post images and status updates about what they are currently doing. After 24 hours, these Moments disappear. We found them to be an ideal way to enhance your profile by giving other users some dynamic insight into your personality.

If you use the Moments feature, we suggest that you do so only when you are actively seeking to engage with others on the app. Our testers found that when they posted Moments the number of incoming messages increased threefold.

For those interested in privacy, KinkD offers the option to protect access to the app with a “pattern swipe.” This way, if you accidentally leave your phone unlocked and someone gains access to it, they will not be able to view your information on KinkD unless they know your pattern swipe.

— Cost —

While KinkD is free to download, install, and join, the features that are made available to free members are very limited. You cannot send messages nor can you reply to them. In order to do so, you must pay for a subscription.

This can be obtained with an in-app purchase. A one-month subscription costs $14.99, a three-month subscription costs $35.99, and a six- month subscription costs $54.99.

— User Experience —

The user experience that our testers obtained on KinkD can be described as pleasant in terms of ease of use of the platform and the variety and number of members who are online.

However, a point of contention was the fact that even when our testers indicated that they were only interested in meeting people from a specific area, they kept receiving messages and were presented with profiles that belonged to members who lived hundreds and thousands of miles away. In our opinion, this deviates harshly from the concept of helping you find local matches.