CDFF Review 2026: Is It Good for Believers?
The CDFF dating site (Christian Dating For Free) is a legit Christian site and app, run since the mid-2000s by E Dating For Free, Inc. in California, with over a million Android downloads. It’s still free to join, browse and start chatting, but the 2026 apps push hard toward the paid Elevate upgrade, and there’s no ID verification. It’s worth a free try for Christian singles on a budget, including those over 50 the app courts openly. Just don’t believe the “100% free” label, and don’t pay for a long plan up front.
What is CDFF, and who runs it?
CDFF is a website (christiandatingforfree.com) plus iPhone and Android apps for Christian singles looking for dating, marriage or friendship. Its About Us page says it is owned by E Dating for Free, Inc., and the help FAQ gives the company address in Woodland Hills, California. A 2020 press release names David Perez as the company’s CEO.
The name trips people up. The site and its trademark say “Christian Dating For Free”. The App Store listing calls it “Christian Dating Friendship Fellowship”, and the Google Play listing says “Christian Dating Faith & Fellowship”. Same service, same account, three spellings of the acronym. Even the start date wobbles: the site footer says 2006, the App Store text says “since 2007”. Either way, it has been around for nearly two decades, which is more than most faith apps can say.
It is not related to Christian Mingle, ChristianCafe or ChristianCupid. Those belong to other companies.
Who CDFF is for (and who should skip it)
CDFF describes itself as a community for “Conservative Christian” singles. The app listings name dozens of denominations, from Baptist, Catholic and Pentecostal to Orthodox, Lutheran, Seventh-day Adventist and non-denominational, and they target members in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and beyond. Both store listings mention singles over 50 and seniors looking for companionship.
It suits you if you’re a believer who wants a big, faith-only pool without paying, you’re comfortable with a plain, older-style website, and you like features like forums and denomination filters more than swiping.
Skip it if you want verified profiles, a polished modern app, or a mostly local crowd. An App Store reviewer says most messages came from abroad (you can block contact from people outside your country), and the Reddit thread that ranks first for this search, titled “Christian Dating For Free - Scam?”, opens with a long-time member complaining about glitches.
One rule people miss: the terms of use say you must be single, divorced, widowed or legally separated, 18 or older, with one account only. People with a felony or violent crime conviction and registered sex offenders aren’t allowed.
How the CDFF dating site works
You sign up on the website or in the app (email, Facebook, Apple or Google sign-in), answer profile questions, including faith questions, and add up to 8 photos. The FAQ says you can mark photos as private and share them only in a private message.
From there it’s a classic browse-and-write site rather than a swipe-only app:
- Matches: a list of profiles picked from your location and your Account Settings. The FAQ says it only shows people in your age range who also want your age.
- Search: basic and advanced search, user search by name, plus Online Now, Online Today and New Users lists. The apps add a denomination filter.
- Contact: private messages, winks, favorites, a live chat room and faith forums.
- SuperLike: a site banner says you get two free SuperLikes a month to stand out; extra ones are sold in the apps.
- Who can reach you: Account Settings let you block contact from smokers, drinkers, people outside an age range or outside your country.
A small detail worth knowing: the FAQ admits the “Online Now” badge can stay up to an hour after someone closes the site without logging off, so it’s a rough signal, not proof someone is there.
Is CDFF really free?
Partly. The site’s pages still say “100% Free Service with no hidden charges”, and the FAQ explains the original model: Google AdSense ads pay the bills so members don’t have to. Even the terms only describe paid “Premium Services” as ad-free memberships.
The apps tell a different story in 2026. The App Store sells a list of plans and SuperLike packs, and recent Google Play reviews describe a tighter free tier: in April 2026 a reviewer listed paying to see more than 5 profiles per search, to see who viewed or favorited you, and to keep messaging past a limit, or watching an ad instead. In August 2026 another said free members can send a single message per day. The developer’s public reply didn’t deny it: it said “some features require a subscription” alongside free and ad-based options.
So here is the honest version: you can join, build a profile, browse and start conversations without paying, but the apps now ration views and messages and nudge you toward Elevate. CDFF doesn’t publish the free limits for the website or the apps, so check what you can do before deciding to pay.
CDFF prices: what Elevate costs
CDFF doesn’t publish prices on its public website; you only see them once logged in. The clearest public list is the in-app purchase section of the US App Store listing:
| Plan (App Store name) | Price |
|---|---|
| CDFF 1 month plan | $4.99 |
| Elevate 1 month (sale prices) | $11.99, $14.99 or $19.99 |
| Elevate 1 month (regular) | $19.99, $23.99 or $39.99 |
| Elevate 3 months | $18.99 or $24.99 (sale) |
| Elevate 6 months | $25.49 |
Prices checked October 2026 on the US App Store. Apple lists several price points per plan, so what you are offered depends on promotions; the listing doesn’t say what the $4.99 plan includes.
What Elevate adds, per the FAQ: no ads, last login dates on every profile, and your profile at the top of basic and advanced searches. The App Store text also claims Elevate members get “500% more messages”, a company figure with no public data behind it. The 6-month plan works out to about $4.25 a month, which is cheap for a dating app, but only if you’re sure you’ll stay.
Two rules before you pay. Elevate renews automatically, and the FAQ and terms both say there are no refunds. The one exception in the terms: subscribers in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and Wisconsin can cancel without penalty before midnight of the third business day after subscribing.
Safety and verification
This is CDFF’s weak spot. There is no photo or ID verification badge. The FAQ says plainly that CDFF does not run criminal background checks, and the terms add that it doesn’t “attempt to verify the statements of its members”. If you want to know more about someone before meeting, the FAQ suggests a paid background check service.
What CDFF does offer:
- Moderation: the app listings promise a 24/7 team reviewing profiles, photos and chats, and the About page promises action on reported content within 24 hours.
- Retroactive bans: the first FAQ answer explains that if you got a notification for a message that has since vanished, the sender was banned as a scammer and their messages were deleted.
- Reporting: report scammers, money requests or anyone selling something through the Contact Us form, with their username and what they said.
- Blocking: blocking stops someone from messaging you, but the FAQ notes they can still view your profile.
One privacy flag: in the Google Play data safety section, the developer states that data “isn’t encrypted” and may be shared with third parties. Keep anything sensitive out of your profile and messages.
Fake profiles, scams and complaints
CDFF’s own FAQ is unusually candid: scammers “sneak through”, and the giveaway is someone handing you an email address or “personal info” in the very first message. Its rules are the right ones: stay in CDFF messaging until you trust the person, don’t share your contact details early, and never send anyone money.
The app store picture is mixed. 3.5 stars on Google Play from 37.7K reviews, 1M+ downloads, and 4.1 stars from 3.5K ratings on the US App Store (October 2026). The low-star reviews cluster around three things: the paywall getting stricter, bugs after updates, and messages from far away. An App Store review also warns that being a Christian app “doesn’t leave it free of prowling wolves”. The developer is active: the iPhone app got updates in September and October 2026 fixing sign-up, chat and an upgrade prompt wrongly shown to Elevate members.
Is CDFF a scam, then? No. It’s a long-running company that tells you its rules and lets you use it without paying. But the people on it are not screened, so the work of spotting a fake is on you. Ask for a video call before you get attached.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Free to join, browse and start conversations
- Faith-only pool with denomination filters and forums
- Cheap upgrade compared with most paid Christian sites
- Large, long-running service: 1M+ Android downloads, apps updated in October 2026
- Contact filters (age, smoking, country) cut unwanted messages
Cons
- No photo or ID verification, no background checks
- App free tier now rationed (views, messages, ads)
- Confusing pricing with many price points, auto-renewal and no refunds
- Dated design and bug complaints after updates
- Google Play lists data as not encrypted
How to cancel Elevate and delete your CDFF account
Deleting your account or the app does not stop billing, the terms warn. Cancel first, depending on where you paid:
- Website (card): in Account Settings, click the link to let your upgrade expire. You can also email CDFF with your username, real name, billing address and account email. The terms ask for at least 3 days before the next charge.
- iPhone: Settings, tap your name, Subscriptions, CDFF, Cancel. Apple renews unless you turn it off at least 24 hours before the period ends.
- Android: Google Play Store, your profile, Payments & subscriptions, Subscriptions, CDFF, Cancel.
You keep Elevate until the paid period ends, then drop back to a basic account. To close the account itself, use the Close My Account page: “Hide account” removes you from search and pauses notifications, “Delete account” is permanent. The privacy policy also accepts an email with “Delete Account” in the subject and your username.
A niche but useful detail: if you met a fiancé(e) abroad on CDFF, the FAQ says CDFF is not an “international marriage broker” for the US I-129F visa petition, and it will email a statement on request.
CDFF alternatives
- You want a modern swipe app for believers: Upward, rated 3.5/5 in my Upward review, higher than CDFF.
- You want a bigger brand and don’t mind paying: Christian Mingle.
- You want a small Christian site with a trial: ChristianCafe.
- You’re open to international dating: ChristianCupid, with the scam warnings in that review in mind.
- You want another free option: cMatch, which ranks next to CDFF for this search, says on its home page that contacting members is free. For a general free site, see my Mingle2 review.
- Faith matters but marriage matters most: eHarmony, or browse the serious dating sites list. Over 50? The senior dating sites page has more options.
Still curious? You can try it free at christiandatingforfree.com and decide on Elevate later.
How I rate it
I give CDFF 3 out of 5. The rating is based on its public pricing, the features and rules in its FAQ and terms, its safety tools, its App Store and Google Play reputation, and value for money, not on hands-on use. Scores: value for money 3.5 (free entry and a cheap upgrade, but a shrinking free tier in the apps), safety and verification 2 (moderation and reporting, no verification or screening, data not encrypted per Google Play), evidence of an active user base 3.5 (1M+ Android downloads, 37.7K Google Play reviews, public member lists showing profiles added in October 2026), features for its audience 3 (denomination filters, forums, chat, contact filters, dated design), transparency 2.5 (no public price page, many price points, auto-renewal, no refunds, “100% free” claims that no longer match the apps). Average 2.9, rounded to 3.
Frequently asked questions
Is CDFF really free?
Joining, building a profile, browsing and starting conversations are free, and the site says ads keep it free. In 2026 the apps limit profile views and messages and push the paid Elevate upgrade, according to recent Google Play reviews. Elevate removes ads, shows last login dates and puts your profile at the top of searches.
Is CDFF a legit dating site or a scam?
CDFF is legit: it has been run since the mid-2000s by E Dating For Free, Inc. in Woodland Hills, California, and has over a million Android downloads. It does not verify members or run background checks, though, so scammers do get through. Never send money and keep chats on CDFF until you trust someone.
How do I use the CDFF dating app?
Download CDFF from the App Store or Google Play, sign up with email, Facebook, Apple or Google, answer the profile questions and add up to 8 photos. Then browse Matches, search by location or denomination, and send messages, winks or SuperLikes. Use Account Settings to filter who can contact you.
How much does CDFF Elevate cost?
The US App Store lists Elevate from $11.99 to $39.99 for one month depending on promotions, $18.99 or $24.99 for three months and $25.49 for six months (October 2026). Plans renew automatically and CDFF does not give refunds, except a 3-business-day cancellation right in some US states.
How do I delete my CDFF account?
Cancel any Elevate subscription first, because deleting the account does not stop billing. Then use the Close My Account page on christiandatingforfree.com and choose Delete account, which is permanent, or Hide account to pause. You can also email CDFF with Delete Account in the subject line and your username.
Which Christian dating app is 100% free?
Few are. CDFF and cMatch both say you can contact members without paying, while sites like ChristianCupid stop free members from reading each other's messages. CDFF's apps now limit free views and messages, so the honest answer is free to start, not free forever.