Comparison

FET vs Beaconaut

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

FET

This app offers an open-minded community for singles and couples exploring alternative lifestyles. Connect through chat rooms, groups, and forums, or find local events. It prioritizes honest communication and consent for various relationship dynamics.

Highlights
  • Open-minded community
  • Chat rooms and private messages
  • Groups and forums
  • Local events and meetups
  • Alternative lifestyle dating
  • Verified profiles and discretion
Features
Read full description

AN OPEN-MINDED COMMUNITY, NOT JUST A DATING APP FET is alternative dating for open-minded people: singles, couples and everyone in between. Chat rooms, groups, a forum, local events and lifestyle dating, all in one place. An alternative lifestyle community. No explaining yourself, no judgement. A REAL COMMUNITY Join groups by interest, follow the forum, post to the newsfeed and get answers from members who have been there. Ask the awkward question. This is the part most dating apps don't have. CHAT ROOMS AND PRIVATE MESSAGES Live chat rooms to meet people in the open, private messages when you'd rather talk one to one. Chat first, meet when you're ready. DATING, YOUR WAY Browse profiles, connect with open-minded singles and couples near you, and be clear about what you're looking for. Casual relationships, polyamory, ethical non-monogamy (ENM), or something lasting. Your call, stated up front. DECIDE WHO LEADS Some like to take the lead. Some prefer to follow. Some switch depending on the day. FET is where open-minded people are honest about the dynamic they want, and where clear consent comes first, always. EVENTS AND MEETUPS NEAR YOU Find local events, community gatherings and workshops. Meet new people in person, at your pace, with people who already get it. SAFETY AND DISCRETION Verified profiles, discreet settings and a dedicated moderation team. Control who sees you and how much. WHY CHOOSE FET? - An open-minded community, not just a swipe queue - Chat rooms, groups, forum and local events - Alternative dating for singles and couples, curious or experienced - Say what you want up front, no guessing games - Discreet, verified and free to join All photos are of models and used for illustrative purposes only. FET is free to download. Optional paid memberships unlock additional features. Privacy: https://www.fet-app.com/en/privacy Terms: https://www.fet-app.com/en/terms Visit: https://www.fet-app.com/en Subscription Service Conditions: 
• The membership costs 18.49 USD / 19,99 EUR / 17.99 GBP for 1 month; 63.99 USD / 69,99 EUR / 63.99 GBP for 6 months; and 90.99 USD / 99,99 EUR / 90.99 GBP for 12 months (Prices may vary slightly depending on location and currency).
• Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase
 • Your subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period
 • Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period
 • You can manage your subscription and switch off the auto-renewal by accessing your Account Settings after purchase
 • You cannot cancel the current subscription during the active subscription period • Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited if you purchase a subscription to that publication.

About

Beaconaut

This app facilitates spontaneous social connections by allowing users to share their current location with trusted friends. It focuses on low-pressure invitations and a sense of shared presence, rather than direct navigation or performance metrics.

Highlights
  • Send temporary location beacons
  • See friends' general presence on a globe
  • Invite-only circles
  • No public profiles or performance metrics
  • Temporary beacons expire automatically
  • Shared gallery within circles
Features
Read full description

Beaconaut is for the friends you'd see far more often if seeing them took no planning. Somewhere between a text you never send and an evening nobody gets around to organising, there is a much smaller thing: letting your people know you're around. THE INVITATION Send up a beacon and your circle sees where you are — I'm here, come find me. There is no note to write and nothing to arrange; the place and the moment are the whole message. Answering costs one tap. So does saying you can't. Saying nothing costs nothing at all, and nobody is ever told you stayed quiet. That lightness is the point. An invitation this cheap to send gets sent on an ordinary Tuesday, which is exactly when you needed it. YOUR PEOPLE, OUT THERE Atlas is the globe on your home screen: everyone you share a circle with gathered around it, the threads between you lit where you have been talking lately. It will not help you find anybody, and it is not trying to. It is there so that on an evening when nobody is free, you can still see that your people exist, somewhere, getting on with their lives. Company rather than navigation. CLOSER, ONLY IF IT'S OFFERED The app gets more precise only as people choose it. Atlas is a feeling. The compass is an approximation — roughly which way someone is, roughly how far, never a route, and enough to feel them nearby without being enough to arrive at them. A beacon is the one exact thing, and it exists only because somebody decided they wanted to be found. Nothing sharpens on its own. THE CIRCLE Circles stay small, and they are invite-only. That limit isn't a tier you can pay to raise; keeping a circle small is what makes it a circle. One shared thread, a shared gallery, and the people already in your life. No feed. No followers. No public profile, no like counts, nothing to perform for. IT ENDS ON ITS OWN A beacon is temporary by design. It closes itself, with nothing to cancel and nobody notified that it lapsed. What stays is the warm part — who came, who sent love — and that is what makes the next one easy to send.

Screenshots

FET4 screens
Beaconaut4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Beaconaut at 5.0 against FET's 4.3. Beaconaut also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ads (none vs shown). FET's advantage is ratings volume (26K vs 1) and chart position (#50 vs unranked). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. FET sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per 7 days. Beaconaut asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Beaconaut holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: FET has 26K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

FET ships an update every 6 weeks, Beaconaut every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
FET versus Beaconaut: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFETBeaconaut
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (26K ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews47.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings26K — better1
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 5 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#50 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.1 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size240 MB15 MB
Age rating17+12+
DeveloperIdeawise Ltd.FutureNow, Inc

Customer experience

FET

All ratings25,488 ratings
Positive81.7%
Neutral8.1%
Negative10.2%
Written reviews2,138 reviews
Positive47.6%
Neutral7.6%
Negative44.8%

Beaconaut

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

FET

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Accounts randomly getting logged out
  • Issues with photo uploads and verification
  • Messaging system glitches
  • Inconsistent app performance on different devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Improved filtering options
  • Faster verification process
  • Better moderation of fake profiles
  • More inclusive gender/sexuality options
  • Ability to delete/deactivate account

Beaconaut

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

10 purchases

FET

Subscriptions8
  • 1 Week$6.997 Days
  • 1 Month Membership$10.991 Month
  • 1 Month$18.491 Month
Show 5 more
  • 1 Month$19.991 Month
  • 1 Month$21.991 Month
  • 6 Months$63.996 Months
  • 12 Months$79.991 Year
  • 12 Months$90.991 Year
One-time2
  • 1000 Points$6.99
  • 10000 Points$44.99
None

Beaconaut

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is FET free?
FET is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Beaconaut free?
Beaconaut is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, FET or Beaconaut?
Beaconaut is rated higher. FET averages 4.3 out of 5 from 26K ratings, while Beaconaut averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do FET or Beaconaut have ads?
FET shows ads; Beaconaut does not.
Which is updated more often, FET or Beaconaut?
FET ships an update every 6 weeks, and Beaconaut every 5 days. Most recently, FET was updated on November 9, 2026 and Beaconaut on October 31, 2026.

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