Gay Friendfinder

You can sign up in no more than a minute or two. Simply complete the join form on the home page and this will get you started with a free guest account.

After completing that step you'll then have a chance to customize your profile and add some photos. The preferences, as stated on your profile, will determine who's visible when you do searches - and if or not you're visible to other people.

Helpfully, it tells you if your preferences are too restrictive. This becomes apparent when you do a search and nothing is found.

When you view someone's profile it'll tell you how well you match up on a core set of compatibility factors.

As with most other Friendfinder sites, Standard members can't view full-size pictures or even read the more detailed parts of profiles - only a thumbnail view is visible. Creating hot-lists and sending e-flirts is however possible, but initiating contact via email or chat is not.

Upgrading

To gain unlimited access to the main areas - and be allowed the ability to send messages, you will need to upgrade membership to Silver or Gold. Striking up a conversation with a potential match is then possible using any means of communication including live chat & emailing. Upgrading also unlocks profile, picture and video viewing, and allows for more detailed searches.

Like other FriendFinder sites, social interaction is made possible thanks to their community tools. GayFriendfinder has polls, featured listings, photo rankings, blogs, an online magazine, and local groups. The interest groups can be a good way to get to know people and introduce yourself. This can be a bit of a "hit and miss" though as some are more active than others.

Overall there is enough activity to make it worthwhile. As part of the Friendfinder network, it is secure, well designed and very easy to use and offers a number of easy payment plans.

While it is designed exclusively for Gay men, there's also a companion site called OutPersonals. This is much larger and caters to the gay, lesbian and bisexual community.