Mackinaw vs Shake Social
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Mackinaw
This app offers a unique dating experience focused on authentic connections through short video responses to weekly prompts. It aims to reduce swipe fatigue and promote genuine interactions by prioritizing personality over posed photos.
- Video responses to prompts
- Weekly new questions
- No photos or bios
- Focus on real personality
- Safer profile design
- Limited matches
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MACKINAW: A NEW KIND OF DATING EXPERIENCE Tired of endless swiping and copycat dating apps? Mackinaw throws out the old playbook and brings something totally fresh: authentic short videos that let your real personality shine. Every week, you’ll answer a new surprise question on video to join a round. No photos to pose for, no bios to overthink – just you, being yourself. NOW LAUNCHING IN DENVER, CO! Please note: For our initial launch, Mackinaw is exclusively available to users in the Denver, Colorado area. We are working hard to expand to new cities soon! Download Mackinaw today if you're in the Denver area and discover online dating the way it should be. WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT Mackinaw feels part dating app, part game, part social experience – but really, it’s something entirely new. If you’re tired of swiping, ghosting, and guessing who someone really is, Mackinaw makes dating authentic, safe, and fun again. THE MACKINAW DIFFERENCE – No Tinder clones here: Most dating apps are just the same swiping model in disguise. Mackinaw is built from scratch to feel new, fun, and real. – Icebreaker video prompts: Record your answer before you even see the question. Capture the real you, not a polished version. – Fresh weekly rounds: New prompts every Thursday night keep things exciting and reduce dating app burnout. – Meaningful connections: Deeper questions lead to deeper conversations; no more endless small talk. – Safer by design: No public names, jobs, or schools in profiles to reduce stalking or unwanted attention. HOW IT WORKS – Opt into a weekly round when you’re ready. – Record your video to unlock that week’s room. – See everyone else’s responses and start chatting. – Keep up to three matches at a time to focus on real connections. – When the round resets on Thursday night, decide if you’re ready for another. DOWNLOAD & JOIN A ROOM TODAY Ready to move past swipe fatigue and try a video dating app built for authentic connections? Mackinaw is the safer, smarter way to meet new people. Download Mackinaw today if you're in the Denver area and experience dating that finally feels real.
Shake Social
Connect with people in real life by simply shaking phones. Build a visual social network, organize events, and discover secret achievements. It's a unique way to document your real-world interactions and grow your social graph.
- Phone shaking for instant connection
- Visual social network graph
- Event hosting and RSVP management
- Automatic crew formation (scenes)
- Unlockable secret achievements
- Streak tracking for daily connections
- Leaderboards for social activity
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shake is the social app for real life. when you meet someone, you shake your phones together. that's it. no usernames, no QR codes, no "what's your @". one shake and you're connected. every shake becomes part of your story: your graph: watch your real-life social network grow. every person you've shaken with, every group that's shaken together, drawn as a living map. your groups cluster, your worlds collide, and you can replay the whole thing growing from your very first shake. quakes: host a night out or make it a recurring thing. invite your connections and scenes, collect RSVPs, and chat with your guests. recurring dates share one chat. friends can RSVP in their browser without downloading shake. subscribe in Apple Calendar or Google Calendar, then shake at the event to see who actually connected. scenes — shake with the same people enough times and shake works out who your crews are, and names them. nobody invites you into a scene and nobody can invite anyone else in — you shake your way in, and if you drift away from a crew you drift out of it. each one gets its own page, its own chat room, and a map of how it's actually connected. not in one yet? the tab shows your whole graph until your first scene forms. achievements: over 250 badges, most of them secret. you find them by seeing them on other people's profiles… or by earning them yourself. the achievements tab shows the ones you're closest to, the ones you can only earn right now (shake at exactly 11:11), and one featured badge each week whose criteria we reveal. streaks: shake with the same person every day and keep it alive. lose it and, well, there might be a badge for that too. ranks: weekly and all-time leaderboards with your friends or everyone: connections, shakes, streaks, recruits, badges, biggest group shakes. summons: drop a pin and summon your people to you, right now. whoever shows up and shakes made it real. shake works at parties, shows, meetups, weddings, hackathons, first dates, chance encounters — anywhere people actually meet. if your phone is in your hand and someone's in front of you, you're one shake away. shake — because you were there.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Shake Social at weekly against Mackinaw's every 5 weeks. Shake Social also leads on ratings volume (48 vs 3). Mackinaw's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Mackinaw against 5.0 for Shake Social. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Shake Social has 48 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Mackinaw ships an update every 5 weeks, Shake Social weekly. Both last shipped on November 5, 2026.
| Parameter | Mackinaw | Shake Social |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) | 5.0 (48 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 48 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 17 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Mackinaw Dating Company, LLC | Matt Van Ommeren |
Customer experience
Mackinaw
Shake Social
In-app purchases
Mackinaw
No in-app purchases
Shake Social
No in-app purchases









