Chubby Buddies Review

Overview of Chubby Buddies

Chubbybuddies.net is a dating site designed to bring Big and Beautiful Singles together. This website advertises that they cater to BBW Singles and Curvy Singles and people who might not be Chubby but can appreciate some Fluff. You can choose from preferred body types and lots of specific details, or you can use a broader search. This site relies largely on Chat and Video Chat as the main social features. It’s a global dating site, so it has members all over the world if you want to date online but does have Search Filters to find local BBW dates or long-term relationships.

The best feature on Chubby Buddies is the Smart Match Technology they use to make the site better for members. You can search the site for something as specific as “Local BBW Dates” or use the Advanced Search tool to choose from other categories. Then the Smart Match uses your Search History on this dating site, your activity, and the personal info you put in your profile to show matches that are compatible. For example, if you only want to date Big Black Women, and you search versions of that or view those profiles, the matching feature recognizes the pattern and continues to show you more of the same things you are telling it you like to see.

You can still search for matches outside your normal preferences by using the Search functions. If what you like changes, so does what you see on the site. That’s why this is my favorite feature – it makes it simple to find what you want without going through tons of profiles that aren’t relevant. It can be really frustrating to be on a site and clicking through endless pages of people you have no interest in.

My least favorite thing is that it’s not a fully free dating site – if you buy a three-month or six-month membership you get better access to the site, but you still have to add a VIP upgrade to get full access to all the best features. I’d also like to see them add a Status Update feature or some version of public chat to make the main pages of the site more social. Some of my favorite dating sites have these kinds of social media tools and I’ve found connecting and interacting a lot easier when there’s a way to start a convo without messaging as the first move.

Features and Activities

ChubbyBuddies has a lot of ways to connect and get to know the other members. This is a bigger deal than you might think – I don’t see a lot of sites getting both the tech and the social aspects right. It’s often one or the other, and sometimes neither. This site manages to combine great tech (with the Smart Match) and active social features (like the Flirt and Video Chat) in a way that works really well. You do have to have a paid membership to do all of these things, so keep that in mind.

  • Home – You’ll see this page every time you log in. Your Notifications, Messages, Chats, Activity, Member Pics, Flirts, and Your New Matches are all accessible from here.
    • Inbox – There’s a large envelope icon on the screen that will tell you when you have a new message.
    • New Members – See who’s new. This site is a lot busier than some of the other sites I have been reviewing lately, and it was refreshing to see all the new faces coming up in the New Members feeds.
    • Your New Matches – These are matches ChubbyBuddies suggests for you because of your Likes, Searches, and Activity. This is where the Smart Match Tool I talked about in the Intro comes into play.
  • Browse – Browse members by category or see people you’ve Flirted, Chatted, or Messaged with. Pick from the choices on the dashboard to see people who are:
    • New – Shows new members.
    • Online – Shows people who are Online Now. You can check “Offline” if you want to search the site discreetly.
    • Matches – Shows compatible Members.
    • VIP – Shows VIPs. You can see many of these members, but can only connect with them if you have a VIP Membership.
    • Admirers – People who’ve Liked your profile.
    • Favorites – People you’ve Liked and who have Liked you, too.
    • Visitors – Members who have visited your full Profile to learn more about you.
    • Blocked – Use the Block feature for any reason. You can Unblock at any time, which I really like. Sometimes I need a break from members on dating sites but want to see them again later.
  • Profile – View your profile information to edit and add to it. The more you update your profile, the higher you’ll rank in Search. The details you provide help the site find you compatible Matches. Even if you’re just using the site to Video Chat or talk to BBW singles, you’ll want a full profile so your Searches are more relevant.
  • Chat – Chat and Video Chat are the main ways to connect on the site, but again, only if you’re a Paid Member. This is where they convince you to buy the Gold Membership and VIP Package. This site is fun and busy, but if you can’t chat or interact, it makes the site pointless unless you’re using it to look at pics, which you can do anywhere online.

  • Flirt – This is a social game that shows you members to Flirt with and keeps track of Top Flirts of the Week – the people who’ve Flirted the most. This is something that can get you seen by more members and featured on the Home Page, so if being noticed is one of your goals on the site, this feature might help.

Memberships

The “Free Big and Beautiful Dating Site with No Hidden Fees” is really just a fairytale. Sadly. Not just on this site, and not just with Chubby Singles Sites, but all over the internet. Dating websites usually let you sign up for free, but that is much different than using the site for free. Once you get in, they ask you to upgrade so you can Message and Video Chat. ChubbyBuddies is no exception. The Free Standard Membership gives you enough access to use the most basic tools, like search, browsing, and accepting incoming messages – just enough to get you interested. If you want to use the good features of the site, you need a Membership and the VIP Upgrade.

There are 3 Basic Upgrade Options, Plus the Add-On:

1-month membership at $39.99/month

3-month membership at $29.99/month

6-month membership at $24.99/month

If you plan to be a Paid Member, it’s best to just suck it up and get the VIP add-on, too. There are some great features on here that you can’t use if you don’t upgrade to a full Membership. Upgrading without also buying the VIP is a waste of money, as backward as that seems (even to me).

The Gold Plan is the best value, and even adding the VIP Plan to it makes it less per month than the monthly recurring plan. The flip side is that while it saves a huge amount of money to buy the longer plans, they are charged at the time of sign-up for the whole package, so it ends up being more upfront.

Summary

ChubbyBuddies.com is one of the best BBW Dating Websites I’ve reviewed, and there are a lot of them because it’s a popular niche. This one is really well populated, with a lot of new members coming in. It has good features for interacting and dating. They have a good system for making sure profiles are real and not trolls, great security, and the members are active (this matters because it’s not fun to try to find a date on a dead site).

The winning features of this dating site are the Search and the Smart Match. The way they work together to show compatible matches and learn your preferences makes it easier and faster to find what you want.

The worst thing about the site is the way they offer Memberships. I don’t have an issue with the price. It’s on par with what others are charging. They’re also not the only ones using the Add-On as a separate option. I just prefer things as easy as possible, and this seems to be the opposite of that.

Overall, I like the layout and theme. It isn’t glitchy, has a lot of members and makes good use of new tech. It’s worth the price for the membership if you purchase the VIP. If the VIP add-on isn’t in your budget, I’d start with one month to see if you like the site with the limited benefits. I would pay for this site again.