Russia is consistently ranked in the top 5 for having the most beautiful ladies by various groups and organizations. If you like the finer things in life and prefer to have a stunning Russian beauty on your arm who is family-oriented and intelligent (yes, beauty and brains – a killer combo), then look no further.
Your Russian soulmate is out there, waiting for you to find her.
While you can consider a singles tour to one or more Russian cities or villages to search for your true love, you can also check out Russian online dating sites. But be sure to only sign up to a reputable, affordable, and high-quality site.
Ru-Brides isn’t any of that, and that’s why I blacklist the international dating service.
Read on to learn about why I don’t recommend or advise you to create a profile on Ru-Brides.
Reasons Why You Can Trust Us
- Faithfully reviewed over 1000 International online dating and matchmaking services
- Our team has been testing online dating services for over 10 years.
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TOP3 Sites For Russian & Ukraine Dating
What Is Ru-Brides.com?
Ru-Brides.com is an international dating site, but it’s more accurate to call them a Russian dating platform since most of the ladies on the site are Russian or from Slavic countries. Related read: Russian & Ukrainian Dating Site Reviews
The dating platform is operated by a British company that has an office in London, England. The company’s name is Crystal Universal Transit LLP, and a Google search reveals they are an “integrated marketing solutions partner.”
Ru-Brides was established in 2009, so it’s been around for more than a decade (at the time of writing).
Browsing the blog section of the website reveals that no new blog posts have been created since the latter part of 2020.
I’m sure the pandemic is the cause, but it is strange when a website isn’t regularly updated. It makes me ask many questions, the chief one being is this company (still) legit and are they still operational?
In a way, the women’s profiles are public. On the homepage, a bunch of profile pics appear and you have the option to load more.
Hovering over a profile pic loads a video clip, and you can favorite, message, play, or start a video chat. If you click on the pic itself, it takes you to the profile. You’ll need to register to action any of these options.
But the fact that you can see the profiles of the ladies … many red flags are waving.
How Do I Set Up an Account on Ru-Brides.com?
To register on Ru-Brides.com, visit the homepage of the website. The registration form is something you will eventually see after you’ve gawked at the ladies’ profile pics.
Under “Register Now And Find Your Love,” you need to fill in:
- Your name
- Your email address
- Your password
Next, click the box to agree that you’ve read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Clicking also means you consent to getting a newsletter and account alert to your email address.
Then, click on the pink box that says “Create Account.”
You need to then fill out personal information to populate your online dating profile.
Alternatively, you can click the blue box from the get-go to use your Facebook account to sign up on Ru-Brides.com.
Choosing the Facebook option also means the site uses your Facebook info to populate your profile. The good news is you can edit this info.
How Does Ru-Brides.com Work?
There’s nothing unique about Ru-Brides.com. Like all online dating sites, you need to register an account and create a profile to use most, if not all, of the features and services.
On Ru-Brides, you can access the profiles of the ladies without registering since they are public. Browse the profiles via:
- Ru-Brides.com homepage
- Click on the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines) on the homepage and click on Video Chat, Women Gallery, or Video Clips
- Or you can use the search function to find a love match
You can only access Ru-Brides via a website browser; there is no mobile app to make things even easier for you.
Usability: Is the Site Easy to Use?
Overall, the site is easy to use. You’ll be able to find your way around. It’s almost too simplistic.
How Can I Get a Free Trial on Ru-Brides.com?
Technically, there is no free trial on Ru-Brides.
However, unlike other international dating platforms, you can search and browse all the profiles for free. To connect with the lady you fancy, you’ll need to spend some money.
Costs & Pricing: Is Ru-Brides.com Expensive or Cheap?
Ru-Brides.com is quite expensive. The dating site doesn’t have a monthly membership option. You need to pay to access certain features on the site.
Free services on Ru-Brides.com include:
- Creating an account
- Setting up your dating profile
- Searching
- Browsing
- Watching pre-recorded video clips (with no sound = #voyeurism, anyone?)
- Perusing the blog for dating tips
Paid-for services on Ru-Brides.com include:
- Chatting
- Sending and receiving letters
- Video chat
- Sending gifts
- Requesting contact information
To access the paid-for Ru-Brides services, you need to buy credits – the dating site’s online currency you buy and then spend on services.
You need to buy the credits in bundles, and here’s how much the various bundles on offer cost:
- 20 credits - US$12
- 60 credits - US$33
- 120 credits - US$60
- 250 credits - US$112
- 350 credits - US$140
- 500 credits - US$199
- 750 credits - US$299
- 1,000 credits - US$399
You can pay via credit card, Western Union, and Money Gram.
So how much do the services cost on Ru-Brides?
- 1 credit for 1 minute of chat
- 1 credit for 1 minute of video chat
- 1 credit to view a lady’s profile
- 7 credits to send a letter
- 10 credits for a video presentation
There are other services like sending gifts that also cost credits, and these prices are shown when you want to use them.
You’ll need to exchange at least 15 messages or spend 180 minutes on a lady before you can request her contact information. But good luck in getting contact info, or contact info that matches what your lady has been sharing about her.
Is Ru-Brides.com Full of Fake Profiles?
I saw quite a few (aka many!) fake dating profiles on Ru-Brides when I was browsing. The ladies just didn’t seem like they were real people, and when you are ready for love, you want someone authentic, right? An authentic person to love the authentic you.
All the women on Ru-Brides looked picture perfect and many posed suggestively too. That just tells me they want to entice desperate men to spend money on the site. And who knows who is actually behind the profile? (A fat, bald old guy working for the site, most likely.)
How to Contact Customer Service at Ru-Brides.com?
There are two contact methods if you need to contact the customer service team from Ru-Brides: Fill in a web contact form (a ticket) or send a mail.
On the Support page (which you can find by clicking the hamburger menu – three horizontal lines – on the homepage and then Support), the web contact form appears.
You need to fill in your name, email address, a subject, your message, and the Captcha letters or numbers that appear. Click send when ready.
Or you can email the support team on support [at] rubrides.com.
Ru-Brides.com Customer Reviews on Trustpilot.com and Sitejabber.com
When I review an online dating site, I always check out reviews on independent review sites like Trustpilot and Sitejabber.
RuBrides has an unclaimed profile on Trustpilot with 7 reviews and a 3.3 star rating. So reviewers rate it as average:
- 43% of reviewers gave the service 5 stars
- 29% gave it 4 stars
- 14% gave it 3 stars
- Another 14% gave it 1 star
General comments in the reviews mention how pricey Ru-Brides.com is, how responses are generic, how the video messages or chats are pre-recorded, and how there are lots of ads.
Now for Sitejabber.
There are two profiles for the dating platform here: one for Ru-brides and the other for RuBrides. Each has one review:
- 1 reviewer gave Ru-brides 5 stars
- 1 reviewer gave RuBrides 2 stars
The 2-star reviewer mentions how their inbox filled every day (aka spam dating messages) and how the lady’s contact info the person requested was of a street that doesn’t exist in the lady’s city and the WhatApps number showed a profile pic of an elderly lady and a baby. When the person asked about the pic, the lady blocked them.
Our Review Verdict: It’s a No!
After all that, the last word is my final verdict: I blacklist Ru-Brides.com because of:
- The poor customer reviews
- Many, many fake profiles
- Expensive services
- Basic service and feature offering
- And sketchy, red-flag raising aspects like public women’s profiles, scarce information about the service, company, and history, no FAQS, and no transparency about cost of credits and services and more.
If you have your heart set on a Russian girlfriend, partner, or wife, there are legit online dating sites you can use.
Recommended READ: Can You Trust a Ukrainian Woman When Dating Online?
And while you are at it, also check out my guides on meeting Russian brides and why are Russian women so beautiful so you can learn more about the culture and women to set you up for romance success.
Good luck!