Methodology

How I Test AI Girlfriend Apps

Researched & written by Ranji Mercado · The Coach, aigirlfriend.coach Tap for more +Tap to close ×

Ranji Mercado · content writer & data researcher

I run every page on this site the same way: experience first, write second. I subscribe with my own money, live in each app, log the dates, prices and screenshots, and only then write. Nothing here is a rewrite of someone else's article or a press kit.

Every subscription paid myselfDates, screenshots, receiptsAffiliate links never change verdicts

More about me and how I test →

This exact process has been applied to every review on this site since July 2026

I test AI girlfriend apps by my own experience. No scoring template, no press accounts, no feature checklists copied from a pricing page. Every platform goes through the same four steps, and everything I publish comes from what actually happened in my accounts.

1. First, the cold visit. Before creating anything, I open the website the way anyone would: no account, no cookies accepted, just looking around. After all, each one of us starts here. I want to see whether the site is explorable on its own, whether it offers anything at all to someone who hasn't signed up, and how it sells itself before it knows who you are.
2. Second, the free account. I create one and test everything the free tier actually lets you use. This shows me whether an app is generous enough to let you find out if its features are right for you specifically, because one user may like a platform enough to subscribe, while another won't find enough there to ever pay. A free tier's real job is helping you tell which one you are.
3. Third, I spend my own money. I pay for the monthly or weekly plan and test the app for that entire time. I do this to check what the premium plans actually offer, so you don't have to. Spending your hard-earned money on a subscription that won't even be satisfying is a waste, so I take that risk instead, then tell you honestly what the difference is, whether it's worth buying, and who it's best for, all based on my own testing and notes.
4. Fourth, I keep watching. I visit the sites daily and keep an eye on updates, new features, price changes, anything out of the ordinary, so my living reviews stay current instead of freezing at launch day.

The way I do all of this is through feel, without a template. That's deliberate: you get my actual point of view as a person, backed by my detailed journal as a researcher and writer. Scores and spec tables have their place, but they can't tell you what a companion is like to live with.

What you'll find here