SCRUFF - Gay Dating & Chat Reviews

by Priapus__

Unfortunately, after paying hundreds of dollars over the years to the this app developers, I won’t be giving them another dollar and I’m not alone... SCRUFF is going the way of Grindr rapidly because of delusional decisions in management, seemingly related to social engineering causes. They significantly lowered the refresh rate of the online global grid which facilitated high speed meeting of guys presumably because it allowed for refined selection of potential interests and this competes with the philosophy of SCRUFF developers who would like to see a less shallow gay culture. You can’t force people to talk to ugly guys, we will just leave your app for one that does provide gay online dating services at the same level as this app used to, and considering the money in this space, it won’t take long. Remember how quick Grindr’s fall was? I just refuse to support a ridiculous development team limiting their app for people who pay over a hundred dollars each year for pro service... especially when it would seem that not data, but instead ideology, is the reason for the regression. At least you now have a great my digital gay yearbook app... young people can just use 4chan or reddit to meet hot young gay guys if your app is broken and artificially delayed, you’re not going to singlehandedly dismantle beauty worship, it’s a feature of sexuality and one that should be celebrated.

by Ih02912

this app is just Grindr on steroids for some reason. People talk about Grindr guys being creepy and awful, but at least you deal with a wide variety of men. SCRUFF just has the worst of the awful guys, the lowest of the low in our community; it’s disgusting. SCRUFF is geared towards ‘masculine’ men, although it claims to be inclusive (more on that below), so you get all the toxic masculinity that comes along with it. I have been using SCRUFF for about 5 years and I’ve only hooked up twice from it for the first time this year. I’m not going to pretend to be a stud, but I’ve always had much better luck on Grindr. It’s only because the personalities of the guys on this app make me want to vomit so I lose interest quickly. Even if just for a quick hook up, it’s still not worth it. SCRUFF allows you to write more stuff on your profile than Grindr does, which makes some guys write entire essays about their likes and dislikes and that’s where you start seeing all the racism, and internalized homophobia even more. I could go on for hours writing about the kind of guys that get on SCRUFF , but it’s clear they only cater to a very particular audience. SCRUFF claims to be inclusive and what not, but even the staff is prejudiced. It’s clear that the good reviews mostly come from the same people who contribute the worst our community has to offer. To top it all off, the same guys will message you on Grindr, but not on this app. It makes no sense.

by Cheki85

I haven’t been on the apps in awhile because, you know, once in a lifetime pandemic and all, but I got tired of looking at cute boys outside my window. Tentatively, I dipped my toes back into the hookup app waters, just for a casual browse and perhaps an occasional chat. The events of the last few weeks, however, made me incredibly sensitive to the fragility of my black body and I wanted to send a message to everyone else on the grids: that black lives matter everywhere. I uploaded the BLM logo to my Grindr, Jack’d, and this app profiles. The first two accepted it with no problem, but this app rejected it multiple times until I sent a support request. They allowed it for about a day before rejecting it again, citing their guidelines. The same company that owns this app also owns Jack’d, btw. While it was annoying, this app’s decision felt like a continuation of the erasure and marginalization I’ve experienced as a queer black man on these apps. Erasure and marginalization that’s built into the very apps. this app shows little to no consideration for black people as it is but it’s a shame when Grindr has better practices than you.

by Wombatmatty

After eight years, I’ve deleted my profile and SCRUFF .

The guys on here are just duplicates of nearly every other app. And since there aren’t as many here is there are another apps, you have more success elsewhere. Wow I get hundreds of messages, many of them from all across the world, I’ve only met a handful of people in those eight years. Ultimately, SCRUFF has been suffering a lot of bugs and glitches in the past few months. The developers are great. Yet the glitches that I run into are beyond annoying. Even when I try to submit feedback using SCRUFF for why I deleted my profile, SCRUFF kept sending me back into the feedback form. I could never even submit it. That’s my point. Add to that the constant messages I get that say my messages were not delivered even though someone is responding to them… it’s a very niche app. The user base is smaller than others, and generally I think friendlier. It just feels more like a penpal app than anything else. A big factor for me is a limit on blocks. I do love how you can have a large profile.

by Puccinissimo

So I made the mistake of taking out a 12 month subscription. All was fine until I updated SCRUFF and was presented with a screen that said a new security policy was in effect and you must either "accept" or "decline". I read the new policy which gives this app the ability to be Big Brother and mine all the info about you that they can - including your device IP and MAC id. So I decided to "decline" and found I couldn't enter he app. Contacted this app regarding some sort of refund for the balance of my subscription and they said they couldn't do anything and to contact Apple. I chatted with Apple support and explained my situation, but Apple has a No Refund After Two Months policy. I asked them what I should do and they said to contact the developer. ..the runaround... I asked for Apple Legal contact info and sent them off an email and of course no response. I'm out sixty bucks, but decided that that amount was fine to pay to keep whatever privacy I have left intact with these thieves.

by TheKimothy

I’ve enjoyed how they’re fostering a sense of community with the events page but SCRUFF isn’t as intuitive to use. For basic chat functions, yes. But when you find a feature it’s hard to go back to it or train yourself to use it right. Also, I subscribed to the pro version and on the same day (within the same minute actually) my profile got suspended for no apparent reason. I’m assuming these are unrelated but I wrote to support and haven’t gotten a real response, just things shuffled about for the past two days. Hope it’s not the case that they let me upgrade on an account that was suspended as I literally was locked out right after I hit the upgrade button. Even worse would be that the upgrade set some automation that triggered something suspicious that caused the suspension. Seems like a simple investigation but still no reply.

by Urban Panther

The developer needs to learn that a feature may be working as designed, but if it doesn’t work the way their customers want it to, it’s not working correctly. Paid version only allows a maximum of 2000 blocks and hides, because (according to this app support), more than that causes app performance to degrade unacceptably. Other dating apps have solved this problem, but this app support were adamant that it’s not a problem and therefore they are not going to change how this works. Instead, they directed me to use their search feature, which also isn’t as robust as it could be, and doesn’t solve the problem I have, which is that the only way to get different guys to show up in my feed is to block or hide the ones who are already shown (so that there is room for other profiles to be displayed). Again the answer from this app support was “this is working as designed and we’re not going to change it.” These answers would be unacceptable from the company I work for, and pretty much any other company I’ve encountered. This developer needs to learn that their paying customers are their most important customers, and the customer is always right. Again, “working as designed” is not the same as “working correctly” if it’s not working how your customers want it to.

by Connor From Da Hood

I’ll start w/ saying this app for me has easily been one of my favorite hookup/dating apps, both in ease of use, selection of eligible great guys, and features for lying members. I deleted my Grindr soon after joining as a premium this app member because I felt I only ever easily found what I was searching for (with actual follow through) on SCRUFF. But all withstanding, this recent update has been abysmal from a technical perspective. Woofs and photo unlocks only seem to work half the time, often you have to fully back out of a chat & profile to see a new incoming message, and don’t even get me started on the photo viewing experience. The best part of premium IMO was the ability to quickly, easily, and fully see a members photo album; to get a better sense of if someone is your type. But now it is almost a pain to view a members full album. If you zoom too much or in a slightly careless way, it completely bumps you out of a user’s photo album back to their main profile, sometimes happening over and over. When you aren’t completely forced out of an album, half the time the zoom feature stops working all together. And will also frequently bump you to a completely different picture than you were viewing. It’s a mess to say the least.

by SuePositori

is what we’re looking for on here, in the end. why not come down to the one of most popular spots in town where you can get attention and validation from people who are seeking attention and validation from someone that isn’t you! bored? hop on this app. horny? let’s go! sad and having an existential crisis about it you’ll ever meet someone while continuing to engage in toxic social media habits that further distance us as a community by having us pick one another like fresh meat, well then SCRUFF is for you! you’ll love when you have a great conversation and then the person disappears. you’ll have such fun overthinking! and if you’re looking for something quick and easy, this is SCRUFF for you! careful though, the eager ones get a little clingy.

by Snowcoolio92

Grindr, Growlr, Jack’d this app, Squirt, have all been rites of passage for us since I was beginning college back in 1992. WIth HIV and the AIDS epidemic, a generation of us was literally taken from the world, the generation that was the whole reason we can be who we are today in fact, and with them the art of cruising, bathhouses and all the kinky mysterious outlets dwindled into almost nothing. This is not from lack of necessity, mind you, so fast forward to THe social dating application age. I definitely am one that has no issue with them, and I see them for what they are… social apps. This may generalize them for some, but yo make of them what you want, and this app is definitely my favorite. In all the time I have had this app, I can say that it has rarely been something for me to hook up as much as the rest, but that is not a dig at all. I have made and still have several good friends that I met on this app, and that meansmore to me than anything else. It’s user friendly, not too set in its namesake niche, and always keeps it interesting consistently. with out being bigger than its competitors like to fancy themselves to be. THats about all .

by Erik D. Phillips

So this is by far the best app I’ve found to work for me. The guys overall are mellow, it is much more so than Grindr…And silly petty disconnects etc. happen much more in frequently. It is, however, changing at least in the city I live in and that probably has to do with the demographics of our city changing. We have had a lot of people from the West Coast moving in who are used to a different style and pace of life and although we welcome them it’s sad to see the friendliness we’ve been used to and becoming more impatient as well that is way way too specific in the types of guys they are looking for. In fact I think guy types should be much less of a feature than it is. Just like Facebook (Meta🙄), the fewer people we allow into our little world even just for chat, the more specific and less friendly people become when someone outside of their limited preference range tries to say hello. My opinion.

by H2O Dandana Ceo

Did the developer know about there advertisement page to become in Pro, that’s stick on the screen and cannot be removed, until I have to cancel all SCRUFF . and download it again, and write again the email password, etc,, and then there no way to go to Pro, this happened many times, and with long experience on my iPhone, I tried different time to inform you about it but no body answer, and still this promotion coming and no one care if this offer serious or just bluffing, let us know how to applicat this promotion without sticky way, and be clear to show the way to activate it.
for that in my review give just one star, until you resolve this problem seriously.

by Dystrbd

this app is better than the ever so played out Grindr. But you can still do a lot with Grindr that you can no longer with this app and vise versa. You see a lot of the same flaky people which is a drag. It seems to be faster than Grindr and a lot less adds. I like the ability of having photo albums but dislike the ability to hold onto pics that are previously sent to others. Would be nice just to hit the button and see the previously shared pics. But I see the point of making it only available to paid subscribers. Monthly cost is on the steep side. A cheaper monthly fee would make this app even more competitive than the competition.

by Hank 68

Without a doubt this app delivers a daily feast of gay men. You can spend hours reading the profiles and viewing face photos of aspiring young gay men on your Smartphone in the privacy of your home or office. You are allowed to “woof” any man that you might fancy. This is purely your individual choice. You can even contact any of these individuals if their profile offers any interest to you. It is up to the individual you try to contact to message you back. It may be problematic as to whether you receive a message back because that is based on mutual interest of looks, hobbies, business interests and numerous other factors. These factors can be included under the very general term of “chemistry”. The basic plan is free. You are limited on the number of guys you can view. It is still very generous on the number of men you can view. For a nominal monthly fee you can upgrade to the “Pro” plan. With this plan you can view many more gay men along with their profiles as well as message any guy you might want. It is very addictive to browse the guys. It is very entertaining as well. I would highly recommend SCRUFF! If you are a gay man I guarantee you will enjoy yourself!

by RainBeauWolf

This is a top notch quality app. It’s well-thought and user friendly. The guys are definitely more reliable when meeting (and I use multiple apps). Customer service is responsive (and quickly). Profiles have freedom for more detail. The only change I’d make would be a face requirement and profile verification to weed out posers using fake pics. I never have issues with ridiculous cartoon ads for childish games. I never get spammed or scammed. Grindr needs to up their game. The only reason its more popular is because it’s been around longer but it’s absolute trash. this app is definitely worth the money but it’s still great as a free app. I’ve had it for many years and recommend over every competitor hands down.

by DJJOEYP

this app changed several methods of filtering and blocking in wanted messages.

I wish you could set up SCRUFF to where when we set up our profiles we only see similar attributes so if I set my profile to Single because I am then when I go to Global I want to see only the single guys Not married not Polyamory not Dating

Also if you had more than Global and New maybe have chat rooms where we could then access to do group chat by state, city or continental region. For that matter have one for singles by city married by city.

Need more than seeing everyone it’s too much and doesn’t allow one person to use SCRUFF like we want from it.

I’ve met you guys in NYC several years ago and asked me my opinion back then and I told you that I love what your doing so nothing At the moment comes to mind.

But now I’m starting to see several needs.

The bar scene is gone and now this is it. So now let’s take it to the next step and create the retro bar scene in this app with streaming video chat with Video Bars for men with certain ages.

I would love to see you take a FaceTime approach where if you were in a chat and wanted to real-time chat you could.

I know that it requires bandwidth for streaming and it’s probably a future release

by ScruffHappy

As apps like this go, I have found more real and quality men, overall. I enjoy the use of other apps too, but each provides differently, which is great. Sometimes I like a meal of my favorite comfort foods and sometimes I want something with more spice or....ok, with men you might not take home to Mom because while I’m not ashamed of that debauchery, I don’t want my intuitive mother to suddenly blush and/or choke mid meal, Dad trying not to “get it” and using all the wrong life saving techniques but wanting to just watch the game but not being able to hide a proud smirk (oh god, why is he really smirking like that)! I’m messing this all up, but now I’m hungry and HUNGRY! Guys, I think you’ll get as much or more here. Not confused, but more good solid dates and fun with sexy men. Now, go forth and multi...well, go getcha some...

by Valued Custmr

I have used this app nearly for ten years! I have nothing but positive compliments about the company. And it’s not only in comparison to Grindr, who is awful. this app’s professionalism is evident in their quality of SCRUFF and customer dedication. With this app I have encountered the following :
- dedicated customer support
- a response in a timely fashion
- a follow on customer/product request
- a follow on abuser reporting
- service dependability, as for example messages being delivered by either parties, sender(s)/receiver(s)
- a human connections when following on on issue
- relatable advertising, no Christian mingle or similar no sense. Just product that enhances the livelihood of our community LGTBQ community! No just anyone buying/selling something.
I don’t give this praise because I despite Grindr’s platform so much, I know quality when I see it. I can’t wait to see this app’s market value and presence exceeds that of overrated Grindr. I would be more happy paying this app’s extra service in comparison to unlimited blocks and whatever other nonsense that comes with “Xtra”.
* I don’t and never have been employed by this app, nor was I compensated in anyway for this review. I enjoy there product and service and will continue to be their valued customer, just as they remember who their real customers are.

Thank you,
Valued Customer

by J_C.

I dislike the amount of people that use this app. That’s it, truthfully, I can’t thing of any other grievances.

At first glance the interface is wonky (Being that all gay boys start on Grindr).
However, this app has amazing capabilities! Everything I could ever ask for in an app of this sort is there, it’s very well thought out.
Some of my favorite things are the private photo albums •You can quickly catch a guys attention by unlocking, rather than a nearly invisible ‘hey’•The human body is art, one should capture it is ways that communicate that and share often•
I also love the fact that you can jot quick notes about someone for yourself •I don’t have PRO at the moment but this would be something I’d us after every conversation•He likes/dislikes... Don’t talk to him he... *giggles*•
Lastly I enjoy the match sectioning SCRUFF •I think it’s super cutesy•It keeps me coming back just about every day, there aren’t very many profiles that catch my attention in my area [What can I say, I’m out of their leagues]•It’s an awesome way to see profiles that I do not come by on a day to day bases•

Okay, okay, okay; This is really the last one. The ability to search lNo need to elaborate•

Truthfully Grindr gets more attention than it deserves and I wish more people would use this app. Pleeeaasssss make it happen some how!!! But only allow the men... I like men not boys... MEN 😍

by NailedOne

When I decided to find a new man in my life I joined this app and started chatting with guys who live nearby. Seeing how close some guys are is nice because you can both choose whether or not you want to develop a relationship with someone before you get to know them.

Something that takes a bit of getting used to though is that the distance that SCRUFF shows you is as-the-crow-flys distance. In other words, my boyfriend lives 37 miles away according to SCRUFF , but in actuality he’s about an hour’s drive away from me. It might be nice if this app utilized Google maps to give you the driving distance instead of what it gives you because it can be misleading.

I ultimately found the man of my dreams on this app and me and my boyfriend now use this app to communicate with each other. We also have an agreement that we can flirt with other guys as long as we’re not looking for potential hookups. this app has been wonderful. I have met a lot of new friends in addition to finding my new boyfriend. SCRUFF has changed my life for the better!

by David12534

I’ve been using SCRUFF for quite some time many years to be more accurate and have recently had a profile photo of myself in costume at a convention removed citing that the member is not in the picture basically saying that I don’t exist because the costume was from a specific fandom that all I can gather just simply doesn’t fit their mold and this is after having customer support tell me it was an accident that my picture was flagged and I should be able to post it and now I’m basically being ignored by the support team and my account is now on the verge of being banned for re posting the picture that I was told was ok to post , utterly disappointed in the way this has been handled , pretty much being told to go put my self expression back in the closet ... and by a gay hook up app nonetheless .... honestly I expected better but I’m not surprised

by Sweeney38468

The “Insights” feature seems awesome—why bother someone who’s not into someone your age, or into bears, or what have you. Saves time and rejection, right? Wrong. The this app support team insists that the results are based on your last 50 interactions. Well, I’m here to tell you that 100% of my interactions were NOT with 36-45 year old boys next door. In fact, very, very few of them were. But all those 18 year old geeks looking at my profile? As far as they know, I’m not into them. And God knows how many guys I didn’t say hello to because I believed that the Insights were...you know...insightful—and they weren’t into me. It’s one thing to have a dating/hookup app that could work better. Everything can work better. But SCRUFF actively works *against* you. Never seen *that* before.

by Soitsme

I actually kind of like the latest version. It’s more stable that the previous version. The previous was kind of glitch filled.

The opening page is the most altered. I personally find it a bit refreshing. The old was stale and repetitive. When you’ve been on SCRUFF since it’s release, even the global is filled with mostly the same people all the time.

One thing though is it would be nice to be able to customize the discovery page. Similar to the way you could before. To chose which categories appear and it what order.

—- older review:

Updated review
I’ve often been a hard critic of SCRUFF (and apps like it) but I rather like the current version. Not sure what all the other bad reviews are about. No current glitches on my iPhone 6s or in my iPad Pro
Although it does look a bit like the new Grindr.
Nice to be able to see video.
Larger photos are a plus. Can actually see a face without having to tap on the pic.
Multi photo display is great.
Font can be selected in settings.
Have been enjoying the trivia quiz game show
Match is fairly good.
Among many other things...
At least the developers seem still engaged into their app unlike some of the other apps.

Other than that, it’s the same local people. Yawn. It’s a finite clientele.
And it’s quite pricy. Yikes! Part of me just says ‘why?’.

by Prydain12345

I do generally like this app, as I think its better that many of its counterparts. However, I've always been disappointed that you want us to pay to be able to view messages and photos sent in chats after a certain point in the past, especially when this is such a basic (and FREE) feature in so many other dating apps. This is just my opinion, but I don't think I should have to pay to view my complete chat history with a guy, especially when this is such a basic feature of SCRUFF . I hope you’ll at least consider making that a free feature, as I think it would make a lot of guys very happy!

by Tonypetz5

Update:
Okay, I'm actually very happy with the changes and updates they've made over the last year (since my last review). SCRUFF is more reliable, and they fixed some in-app glitches and difficulties reported by their customers and users. I'm happy to hear they were responsive and sensitive to the this app community. :)

Original post:
The most recent update added hurdles upon hurdles and has made navigating SCRUFF tiresome. I've always loved this app, but I have no idea what these folks were thinking with this update.