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Our Favorite Dating Sites |
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Top Dating Categories |
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Christian Cafe: Full Review |
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Pro Rating :
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User Ratings :
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Avg. Rating :
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About Christian Cafe |
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URL
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Year Started
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2004
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Location
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Canada
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Languages
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English
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Short Description
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An attractive Christian dating site for true believers in mixing romance and religion, is designed to be a CyberStarbucks for heterosexual Christian singles looking for that special someone. There seem to be tons of members on , but the management is a little defensive about why you have to contribute to the offering plate ("We doubt you work for free - we don't either and neither do our suppliers!!!" Sorrrrry!). Registration is free and so is the 7-day trial period, which allows you to build a fairly extensive dating profile, enter chat rooms and browse all members' profiles. You just can't exchange private contact info without a paid membership, which they remind you about at every turn (don't even TRY to sneak your email address into your profile, mister!). You can extend the free trial by a few days if you upload photos of yourself or coerce friends to sign up on (they'll even send you fliers you can print and pass out at church). After the free trial is up, however, it's farewell and Amen, 'cause you're tossed out of this congregation.
is one of the better-designed Christian dating sites with a fresh, young feel, but heaven help you if you're not prepared to pay up for membership.
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Overall Rating
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On a scale of one to five, is a four.
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Christian Cafe Categories & Features |
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Relationships
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Friendship
Marriage
Romance
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Religions
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Catholic
Christian
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Ethnicities
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All
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Finding Your Match
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Online indicator
Photo Gallery
Search (Advanced)
Search by location
Search (Quick)
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Contacting Members
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E-mail
Instant messaging
Online Chat
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Christian Cafe Dating Service Review |
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The Company
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is managed by RealCafe.com, based in Ontario, Canada.
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Site Navigation
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offers an elegant design and easy navigation.
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Site Response Speed
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Fast
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Sign-Up Process
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offers immediate sign-up with no credit card required. Profile creation is involved with many essay questions. You are emailed your initial password and user name. Immediate ability to perform a "detailed search," no waiting period for profile to be approved and activated. Photo is optional but will extend your free trial for three more days.
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Breadth of Services
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Friendship, dating and relationship oriented for Christian single heterosexuals. is conservative in nature, with no profanity or vulgarity allowed.
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User Base
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is meant to serve 18 and over heterosexual Christian singles primarily in the U.S. and Canada.
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User Experience
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Setting up a profile took a lot of time - more questions than most Christian dating sites and more essay questions for sure. Was pleasantly surprised by the look and feel, a little more sophisticated than many Christian dating sites. Also was impressed by the number and quality of members and all 's informational extras. Found many matches (300 in most cases, the upper limit) on my various searches. is very weird about money, however: You only get a week Free Trial Membership, which can be extended if you jump through some hoops; you're encouraged to set up a business affiliation with them; their price list has goofy comparisons ("less than the monthly price of a Movie Date!" Huh???) and is the first Christian dating site that actually will email you fliers to print out and distribute to the general public. 's strange undertone of desperate fund-raising unnerved me even though the site itself seemed way above average.
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Customer Service
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Email or snail mail. offers no live help.
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Customer Service Hours
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FAQ help section
Email support
Snail mail support
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Long Description
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An attractive Christian dating site for true believers in mixing romance and religion, is designed to be a CyberStarbucks for heterosexual Christian singles looking for that special someone. Registration is free and so is the 7-day trial period, which allows you to build a fairly extensive profile, enter chat rooms and browse all members' profiles and even email them on . You just can't exchange private contact info without a paid membership. You can extend the free trial by a few days if you upload photos of yourself or coerce friends to sign up on (they'll even send you fliers you can print and pass out at church). After the free trial is up, however, it's farewell and Amen, 'cause you're tossed out of this congregation. There is no free on-going Basic Membership option as there is on some Christian dating sites.
really pushes for paid membership
As a matter of fact, is awfully defensive about why you have to put in to the offering plate if you still want a pew seat after your free week. There is a half-a-page diatribe (much of it in bold face) about other failed Christian dating sites that went bankrupt and how has to pay their bills and you don't work for free, heck no, so we're not going to either, so GIVE US YOUR MASTERCARD NUMBER ALREADY!!! All right, I'm exaggerating just a wee bit, but also repeatedly warns you about not taking advantage of their "generous" free trial offer more than once and, oh, DON'T EVEN TRY to sneak your email address into your free profile, Mister (or Ms.)! Yes, here it's "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash."
: quality Christian dating
If you can get past the freaky money attitude (yeah, we understand, we have to pay on a dating site even if the Lord is involved), the site itself is a lovely, charming place to meet other Christian singles. There seem to be a veritable multitude of members here. 's home page informed me that 245 new members had signed up that very day and there were 341 members online when I was desperately trying to avoid being lectured about money (I get enough of that from my father).
Extensive Christian Dating Profiles
The Christian dating profile you're asked to create upon registration is pretty extensive and you're not given the opportunity to opt out of most questions, except the most personal (like your income - have I mentioned they're weird about money over at ?). Most questions are multiple choice with a few short essay questions, but all in all, depending on how much you want to share, it will take you awhile to do it right. And please, "don't be dishonest, this is a Christian site!" So if you're a lying pagan scum, clear out. Once you're done filling out your profile, you can either do a standard QuickMatch, based on age and location or a more Advanced Search based on the same profile questionnaire you filled out when you registered. The problem with that is it gets a little long and complicated filling in everything you want your match to be.
chat and other contact methods
If you pay for the Full Membership, you can contact Christian daters through email. There doesn't seem to be an "icebreaker" message service, where you can just indicate some interest in someone else. You can also start your own Friends List of people you like on the site. also offers some chat rooms, with some regularly-scheduled and moderated chat topics. When I was on , chat rooms were not in heavy use - eight members in one room, three in another and zero everywhere else.
extras: Christian- and dating-themed
offers a heavenly host of extras. There's a message board where you can post prayers, links to other relevant Christian sites, many testimonials from satisfied customers, lots of relationship advice articles, a link to one-on-one advice on confidential love life problems from a Dr. Jim (as opposed to "Taxi's" Reverend Jim, which might be kind of scary), tips on creating a more attractive profile and you can even get set up on an All Christians Cruise.
Sign up at for a free week of online Christian dating, pay on the Sabbath
So if you've been praying for a piping-hot Christian singles scene, could be the dating site for you. Before you sign up, just make sure your week ahead has plenty of blocks of spare time to check it out, because when your free trial is up, it's up and you're out. Then heaven help you if you're not prepared to pay up for membership.
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Christian Cafe Pros & Cons |
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Pros
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is friendly, easy to navigate
Sophisticated design
Many extras
Many Christian members
is profanity- and vulgarity-free
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Cons
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No on-going free Basic Membership to
Pricier than some Christian dating sites
No "IceBreaker" or Instant Messaging
's profile asks for a lot of info, most of which you have to answer
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Christian Cafe Plans Offered |
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Pricing
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$29.95 for one month ("Less than the price of one dinner date!")
$44.95 for three months ("Less than the monthly price of a movie date!")
$69.95 for six months ("Less than the monthly price of a CD!")
$99.95 for one year ("Less than the monthly price of a pizza!")
Can exchange personal contact info with other members
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Site Freebies
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Detailed profile search
Email other members
Chat
Relationship resources
Message boards
Friends' list
One week free membership only
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