Harmful app
Not only do I think it is a bad app, I think it can actually be harmful and is not being used as intended. I believe it could have been a good app for community building and peer support, and I saw a few instances of people supporting each other, but most of it was negative, harmful, and at times extremely inappropriate. First, the app has some benefits. Peer-to-peer support apps have been shown to “have a positive effect on clinical and personal recovery outcomes” (Yuan et al., 2026). Many users of these support apps reported feeling more connected to others who may be struggling with similar mental health symptoms. It also reduced negative sentiment toward mental health professionals and encouraged treatment (Yuan et al., 2026).
Second, microtransactions negatively affected my view of the app. Microtransactions have been shown to be associated with gaming and gambling disorders, as they release bursts of dopamine and motivate the teen to engage more with that activity (Raneri et al., 2022). Microtransactions are also connected to novelty, anticipation, uncertainty, and reward seeking (Laser, J.A. & Nicotera, N. (2021). The adolescent brain is wired to seek new experiences, and microtransactions that boost your post to the top fit that pattern.
Next, the number of active adults is a concern for young people's safety on the app. I encountered many older people posting suggestive comments and pictures on the app, and where there is prolonged contact between adolescents and adults on these apps, there is always potential for cyber grooming. Many adolescents lack digital literacy and are very emotionally vulnerable, making them a population easy for predators to exploit. At least 1 in 10 young people experience victimization on messaging apps where adults are allowed, and this can have huge effects on anxiety, depression, and behavior challenges in the adolescents affected (Schittenhelm et al., 2025).
TalkLike has the potential to provide community and peer-to-peer support, but the negative aspects outweigh the benefits. The app could be used to help young people feel less alone and connect with others who understand what they are experiencing. However, these benefits were overshadowed by harmful and inappropriate content, the use of microtransactions that encourage continued engagement, and the presence of adults interacting with young users in concerning ways. An app designed for young people should prioritize their safety and well-being rather than encourage excessive engagement and expose them to potentially harmful posts and people.
Second, microtransactions negatively affected my view of the app. Microtransactions have been shown to be associated with gaming and gambling disorders, as they release bursts of dopamine and motivate the teen to engage more with that activity (Raneri et al., 2022). Microtransactions are also connected to novelty, anticipation, uncertainty, and reward seeking (Laser, J.A. & Nicotera, N. (2021). The adolescent brain is wired to seek new experiences, and microtransactions that boost your post to the top fit that pattern.
Next, the number of active adults is a concern for young people's safety on the app. I encountered many older people posting suggestive comments and pictures on the app, and where there is prolonged contact between adolescents and adults on these apps, there is always potential for cyber grooming. Many adolescents lack digital literacy and are very emotionally vulnerable, making them a population easy for predators to exploit. At least 1 in 10 young people experience victimization on messaging apps where adults are allowed, and this can have huge effects on anxiety, depression, and behavior challenges in the adolescents affected (Schittenhelm et al., 2025).
TalkLike has the potential to provide community and peer-to-peer support, but the negative aspects outweigh the benefits. The app could be used to help young people feel less alone and connect with others who understand what they are experiencing. However, these benefits were overshadowed by harmful and inappropriate content, the use of microtransactions that encourage continued engagement, and the presence of adults interacting with young users in concerning ways. An app designed for young people should prioritize their safety and well-being rather than encourage excessive engagement and expose them to potentially harmful posts and people.
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Power trip
Admins power trip and delete comments and posts which don’t even violate their rules. Mess with one of their buddies and make them look like a fool in a debate, you can cleanly bet everyone of your replies will be removed. Stupid British app taking on what the government like to do all the time. Silence legitimate criticism
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There should be no lifetime ban
So I got this app a few months ago and it was great, I could talks to people about things going on in my life as my life hasn’t been going good lately in the past few years. I am fifteen years old and I know that the app is for sixteen years old but I really need people to talk to. What I don’t understand is why it is a lifetime ban. Why not a ban until your account says your sixteen?
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Love it!
Totally what I was looking for in an app and I feel better already.
Weird panda glitch
Anytime I try typing pillow in the app it changes to panda. I will only type pil but the second l will suddenly change the word to panda. It’s not on my autocorrect and doesn’t make sense in context. Haven’t seen any other word do this and no other app I checked did this. Doesn’t change much just odd.
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This is a terrible app for your mental health
There is so much bullying going on in here, and it's always the same group of people bullying and nothing is done about it. I am 100% convinced they are friends with the admins and moderators. The people they bully always ends up suspended or banned for it, while the bullies do not face any consequences. Any type of response to them will get you banned. They can manipulate the admins into banning you by only reporting to them about what you said. Admins see everything and still believe these people. So what does that look like to you? They are being favored.
It is really disgusting considering this is meant for your mental wellbeing. If someone is being harassed and bullied, and they may not have a good mental health, there is obviously going to be a reaction. Admins ONLY care about the reaction from the victim than the person bullying/trolling them. It's happened to me and many others.
I have been harassed and bullied nonstop by that same group of people in a group chat, and ended up being removed from the chat by a very biased moderator based off of only my response. After being continuously harassed and talked about, I decided to leave it alone and take a break from this app. Still wasn't enough. That group of people kept actively trying to get me banned, and after going back on it after a long day of not being on there, it says my account was banned for 2 days. I suffer with severe depression and should not be going through this. Shame on you guys. I should sue you guys for emotional distress.
If you are looking for a break off of regular social media apps and to better your mental wellbeing, this is not the place for it. Don't even bother.
It is really disgusting considering this is meant for your mental wellbeing. If someone is being harassed and bullied, and they may not have a good mental health, there is obviously going to be a reaction. Admins ONLY care about the reaction from the victim than the person bullying/trolling them. It's happened to me and many others.
I have been harassed and bullied nonstop by that same group of people in a group chat, and ended up being removed from the chat by a very biased moderator based off of only my response. After being continuously harassed and talked about, I decided to leave it alone and take a break from this app. Still wasn't enough. That group of people kept actively trying to get me banned, and after going back on it after a long day of not being on there, it says my account was banned for 2 days. I suffer with severe depression and should not be going through this. Shame on you guys. I should sue you guys for emotional distress.
If you are looking for a break off of regular social media apps and to better your mental wellbeing, this is not the place for it. Don't even bother.
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So boring app
The app is nice but full of Indians and other countries I don’t think there’s American people on there you can’t advertise on there just talk they need to improve I think I wasted my data and time I’m leaving the app now
Did not help
Posted and got ignored
Deleted and reposted still nothing
Kept going you get the picture
They claim your "not alone" when it's really just a popularity contest like every other app....
Deleted and reposted still nothing
Kept going you get the picture
They claim your "not alone" when it's really just a popularity contest like every other app....
YOUR INFORMATION ISNT PRIVATE!
I’m gonna be honest, you’re probably better off at just showing your hole to people on the street. Not kidding. They’re now owned by some weird data mining company and banned my boy for speaking on it
A Long Time Needed Rate
This app has been a great safe space for me for awhile, I like how it has many options to choose to cover out the chats or not. Also it’s nothing like Reddit where people will attack you for the most ridiculous things that’s out there. There should be more apps like this out there honestly.
So chill
This app is awesome. No bloat, ads, or BS! Total interaction with other people. The purest form of social media.
Pretty toxic
Trying to be positive and supportive, but even the admins are abusive with their language.
Bad app
How am I supposed to talk about sexual assault without it including ANY sexual content, never deleted an app so fast in my life
When I put July 14, 1997 than it tells me that I have to be 16+ like um I’m 28 years old 🙄
I never had that problem when I use this app on Android like I hope that’s fixed soon cuz 1997 isn’t under 16 n I think this one is the only one that lets u use it for 100% free to talk about your moods like I hope it’s fixed soon and let me use it when I put 1997, which I was born in that year
It’s a Trap
I honestly feel like TalkLife is a bit of a trap. It presents itself as a mental health support app, but in reality it often feels more like just another dating or social validation platform.
The whole experience seems heavily influenced by appearance and charm. If you’re good-looking or naturally charismatic, you get attention and support. If you’re not, it can feel like you’re invisible or, worse, treated poorly. That completely defeats the purpose of a mental health space.
What’s more disappointing is the level of negativity. Instead of a supportive environment, I’ve seen a lot of dismissive behavior and even bullying. For an app that’s supposed to help people when they’re vulnerable, that’s a serious problem.
Overall, it doesn’t feel like a safe or genuinely supportive space. If you’re looking for real mental health support, this probably isn’t the place.
The whole experience seems heavily influenced by appearance and charm. If you’re good-looking or naturally charismatic, you get attention and support. If you’re not, it can feel like you’re invisible or, worse, treated poorly. That completely defeats the purpose of a mental health space.
What’s more disappointing is the level of negativity. Instead of a supportive environment, I’ve seen a lot of dismissive behavior and even bullying. For an app that’s supposed to help people when they’re vulnerable, that’s a serious problem.
Overall, it doesn’t feel like a safe or genuinely supportive space. If you’re looking for real mental health support, this probably isn’t the place.
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DOES NOT WORK
I would have tried it out and maybe gave it a good review but it won’t even let me input my date of birth to access the app. I’m TWENTY THREE why am I having issues truly a waste of my time
Not ideal for English speakers, but well-suited for Hindi speakers.
It seems like the admins may not be fully fluent in English and may have limited reading comprehension. I wouldn’t recommend it, because anything you say is likely to be misinterpreted unless it’s written in very simple, straightforward English.
Just an app used for teen dating
Had my account for two days, made one post. Second day, the first post I seen was a guy complaining that nobody was talking to him (he had just made his account that day).
Lots of teenagers acting big, rude and very off putting for what the app is meant to be used for.
Lots of teenagers acting big, rude and very off putting for what the app is meant to be used for.
Love this
Love sharing my problems in this app.
Very good app
It’s an amazing app theee you can make friends talk to people freely no need to subscribe anything like this it helps me a lot with negative thoughts thanks god I found this app I 100% recommend it to you
