Only Dating is free. Joining is free, and sending a message is free. There is no subscription to get around by moving to WhatsApp, and no reply that unlocks once you hand over a number. If someone says the site has charged them, or that texting is the only way to continue, that person is not telling you the truth.
A phone number, a text message, WhatsApp, Instagram, or Facebook is your ordinary life. Those apps sit next to your name, your friends, and your photos. A notification on a lock screen, a contact saved under a real name, or a mutual friend on a social profile is how a conversation you meant to keep private becomes visible to people who were never part of it.
A social profile is the larger risk. It often has your face, your friends, your workplace, and your surname. Sending it so someone can "check you are real" gives them the details the site was built to leave off your profile. They can look you up later. Anyone who shares that profile can look you up too.
Texts and WhatsApp also stay on the phone. A preview on a lock screen, a shared photo library, or a banner on a laptop is enough. Staying on Only Dating keeps the conversation in one place, where you can still report it and block them. A number you have already sent cannot be unsent.
You do not need their number to decide if you want to meet. Arrange the time here. If they will not continue unless you leave the site, you already have your answer. The guide on spotting a fake profile is the earlier version of that pressure.
If you have already sent a number or a profile, stop there. Do not send more to smooth it over. Block them here, and block them on the other app. You do not owe an explanation in a message that other people can open.
Create a free account to message someone on Only Dating.