✦ Our Mission & Methodology
Why We Built Haik
Haik exists because mainstream dating apps were not built for neurodivergent minds — and most reviews of dating apps are not written by neurodivergent people. We are both the app and the resource built specifically for the autistic and ADHD community.
The Problem We Solve
Every mainstream dating app is designed for neurotypical social dynamics. The unspoken rules of messaging pace, the indirect signals of interest, the gamification of attraction — these are intuitive for neurotypical users and consistently exhausting for autistic and ADHD adults.
Beyond the apps themselves, the review sites that cover dating apps are written by neurotypical writers who evaluate them on neurotypical criteria. They don't assess sensory design. They don't evaluate whether the community tolerates or celebrates direct communication. They don't consider paywalls through the lens of neurodivergent employment barriers.
Haik is the app and the resource that takes the neurodivergent community seriously — in the product we built, in the reviews we write, and in the guides we create.
How We Review Dating Apps
Real Testing by Neurodivergent Reviewers
Every app reviewed on Haik is tested by neurodivergent team members — not proxies, not hired reviewers without lived experience. Our reviewers are autistic, ADHD, or AuDHD adults who test each app as genuine users for a minimum of 30 days.
Neurodivergent-Specific Evaluation Criteria
We score apps on five dimensions that matter specifically to neurodivergent users: Autism-Friendliness, ADHD-Friendliness, Community Quality (do users understand neurodivergent communication?), Communication Features, and Sensory Design (interface overwhelm).
Community Quality Assessment
We evaluate how the community responds to direct communication, whether special interests are treated as assets, how safe the space feels for unmasked neurodivergent interaction, and how moderation handles neurodiversity-related issues.
Interface and Sensory Evaluation
We document the sensory load of each app's interface — notification intensity, visual complexity, gamification patterns, and the cognitive demands of navigation. These matter significantly for autistic and ADHD users and are rarely addressed in mainstream reviews.
Price and Accessibility
We evaluate the real cost of meaningful use on each platform. Paywalls that lock core functionality are flagged — neurodivergent adults disproportionately face employment barriers that make expensive subscriptions a genuine access issue.
Regular Updates
The app landscape changes. We revisit each reviewed app regularly and update our evaluations when meaningful changes occur. The last-updated date is displayed on every review.
Editorial Independence
This site is operated by the Haik team. We review Haik alongside competing apps using the same criteria. Where Haik outperforms alternatives, we say so. Where it falls short (particularly in current user base size), we say that too. External links — including to Google Play and the App Store — are for user convenience only.
Haik is reviewed alongside other apps. We score it on the same criteria as competitors. Where Haik outperforms alternatives, we say so. Where it falls short (particularly in current user base size), we say so as well.
Lead Reviewer
Sarah Chen
Neurodivergent Relationship Specialist & AuDHD Advocate
5 years research · 8+ apps reviewed