EvenFlirten.nl

What the platform is

EvenFlirten.nl is a Dutch-language free chat and dating site with webcam rooms. It describes itself as "een volledig gratis te gebruiken contact site waar je kan chatten en (sex) daten", a fully free contact site for chatting and (sex) dating, and puts "Gratis Webcamsex, Webcam Chat, Sexchat en Sexdating" in its main heading. It is built around ordinary users chatting and camming with each other, with no performer roster, and the site states there are no paid subscriptions at the moment.

It costs nothing to open. The front page offers a chat entry without a profile (three buttons for man, woman or couple), a login for members who prefer a fixed name, and a free membership that the site says includes all functions. It is aimed at Dutch and Belgian users, in the sense that the site says activity must stay within Dutch, Belgian and European law.

What you get and how the money works

There are two products under one roof. The first is the chat with webcam: rooms, a user list, an optional camera and optional audio. The second is the dating section, which the site says sits a little hidden behind the cam chat and can be used independently of it. It is made of member profiles, including erotic ones, and the site says that sending and reading messages on the sexdating profiles is 100% free.

On cost the site is direct. The front page says there is no subscription fee and no need to buy credits. The FAQ answers the question whether everything is really free with "Ja, alles op onze site is gratis. We hebben geen betaalde abonnementen op dit moment", yes, everything is free and there are no paid subscriptions at the moment. The next answer explains the "at the moment". The site plans to charge NEW members in the future, but says everyone who creates an account now can keep using the webcam chat and the erotic profiles, with all current functions, free for life, unless they cancel, break the rules or the law, the site closes, or legislation forces it to close inactive accounts. When the FAQ urges visitors to make a profile, it adds in brackets "het is nu nog gratis", it is still free for now. As for how it can be free, the FAQ says the ads on the site roughly cover the costs and that the managers, admins and moderators give their time for free.

How the chat works, from the FAQ:

• Rooms. A list of room names sits under the word rooms. Clicking a name switches room, and the number after a room name is how many chatters are in it.
• Watching someone. Click a person in the user list. Only people with a camera icon in front of their name can be watched.
• Broadcasting. A "send video" checkbox sits above the text area. Audio is a separate checkbox right next to it. The FAQ mentions layouts with 4 cams and with 6 cams and tells users where the video control sits in each.
• Camera is optional. The site says you do not have to switch a camera on, and many people chat with their clothes on. It even says you can use it as an ordinary site for normal contacts.
• Private messages. Select a person in the user list and change "Send to All" to a private message. The FAQ gives two caveats: other chatters will not see it, but admins who happen to be watching could, and the netiquette asks users not to type long stories into someone's private box without asking first.
• Private rooms. A user can create a room, set a password for it and choose whether only chatters with their cam on may enter, and in that room they get kick and ban rights. A user room disappears once nobody is left in it; the fixed rooms that EvenFlirten itself runs stay. The FAQ warns that misuse gets you removed by a real admin. Invitations go through an invite button above the room list next to the create button, or by announcing a room password beforehand. This is the site's answer to the question whether you can cam one-on-one without everyone watching.
• Lobby etiquette. Nudity is allowed in the lobby, but the site asks anyone planning a strip show or sex show not to do it there, because it unsettles the regular chatters.

On content, the stance is explicit. The site states that nudity, bare skin and camsex are allowed, as long as everyone involved is at least 18, and it calls itself an 18+ chat. The FAQ is equally clear that the site is not only about sex, and says plenty of people come to chat in clothes. It also says the camera can stay off. Anything that conflicts with Dutch or European law, or with the law of the country the user broadcasts from, is not allowed.

On devices, the FAQ says the chat can be used on a laptop or desktop, and also on an Apple iPhone, an iPad, a Samsung phone or other smartphones and tablets, using a special browser named Puffin. The site points to separate help pages for each case. On a computer, the chat box fills much of the screen and shows room names, a list of chatters, the typing area and 4 to 6 places to watch other people's cams.

Signing up for a profile asks for little: gender, what you are looking for, a made-up profile name (the FAQ advises against using your real name), a password of at least 8 characters, a date of birth, since the site is for 18 and over only, the province and town, and an email address, because only people who confirm their email get access. Every other field is optional. Chatting itself needs no email registration; a profile mainly fixes your chat name so it no longer carries a guest suffix. The profile side can hold nude and sex photos and videos, with the FAQ asking members to respect copyright and to have the consent of anyone else who appears. Profiles can be deleted from the privacy settings, and email notifications can be switched off entirely.

The figures and claims on the site

• Price. "Geen kosten voor een abonnement" and no credits to buy, according to the front page. No token, credit or per-minute rate is published, because the site is not selling any.
• Members. The site says it has "ruim 10.000 inschrijvingen" (more than 10,000 registrations) and is growing every day. That is a claim about sign-ups on the dating side, not a count of people online.
• Who is in the dating section. The site says it has many men and women and a striking number of couples (swingers) looking for partner swapping or a threesome.
• Start date. The FAQ says the chat site began in the second half of April 2018, and describes itself as still new and not yet well known in search engines.
• Profile privacy. A profile can be set so that only friends can see it. The FAQ names the drawback: new contacts will not find you quickly.
• Data. The FAQ says all data stays with EvenFlirten and is not sold to third parties, and that no third-party apps are active with access to your account.
• Guests. A visitor can log in as a guest through the login box on the left of the front page.
• Running costs. Ads on the site, by the FAQ's account, roughly cover the costs, and the volunteer admins and moderators are not paid. The site's menu has a page for anyone who wants to become an admin, and another to report a minor.

Who it suits and who it does not

EvenFlirten suits a Dutch-speaking adult who wants a free room to chat in, with the option of a camera, and who wants a separate free profile section for meeting people without credits. It suits couples looking for other couples, since the site itself says couples are noticeable among its members. It also suits a visitor who simply wants conversation, because the site goes out of its way to say that clothes on is fine.

It does not suit someone who wants professional performers, tip-controlled shows, priced private sessions or toys. None of that exists in what the site describes. The FAQ also gives a candid warning about traffic. It says the chat is young, and that if you sit in the chat for a while and see nobody, the cause is a technical problem on your side, not an empty site. The same FAQ expects the site to get much busier over time, which is a hope and not a count. Finally, the admin caveat on private messages means a private message is not fully private.