Most comparison tables bury this detail, and it matters more than almost anything else in them. Here's where each app we cover can be used:
| App | Where you can use it |
|---|---|
| Candy AI | Browser, iPhone app, Android app |
| Nomi | Browser, iPhone app, Android app |
| Kupid AI | Browser, iPhone app, Android app |
| Sweetdream | Browser, iPhone app, Android app |
| Replika | Browser, iPhone app, Android app |
| Camsoda AI | Browser only |
| Secret Desires | Browser, including on mobile |
| Joi | Browser only |
Why some apps never reach the stores
Apple and Google are strict about adult and borderline material, and enforcement can swing either way. For a business whose main selling point is relaxed content rules, listing in a store risks the lot: a removal doesn't kill one feature, it takes the whole app offline.
So the market splits. Apps courting a broad audience build store versions and accept the restrictions, while the more permissive ones remain on the web, answerable only to themselves and their card processor. What you see in the table comes from that split, not from who has the bigger engineering budget. The same force is at work in how content filters work.
Watch out: same name, different product
The catch is that a company's phone app and its website often turn out to be different products, even on one account.
Typical gaps:
- Stricter content rules in the store build.
- Different tiers and prices, because the store takes a cut of in-app purchases and the company adjusts to cover it.
- Slower feature rollouts on mobile, as every update waits in a review queue.
- Billing through Apple or Google for in-app subscriptions, which changes how you cancel and who deals with refunds.
If you signed up through a store, you cancel from your store account and not from inside the app. That mix-up is the top reason people believe they've cancelled and are billed again, and it's part of leaving an app properly.
The downsides of staying in the browser
In everyday use you'll notice three.
No pings. A website can't dependably get your attention. Whether you'll miss that comes down to how you feel about nudges. An app that buzzes you to save a streak is working for its engagement figures, not your night in.
Sessions that don't last. Browsers clear cookies, private tabs forget everything, and iOS is quick to throw away a site's stored data. Logging in again every week is enough to end a routine.
A slower start. Finding the right tab in a browser is a hassle compared with tapping an icon. Adding the site to your home screen closes most of the gap in about ten seconds: Share then Add to Home Screen on iPhone, or the browser's menu on Android.
The upsides of staying in the browser
It's not simply a downgrade.
A cleaner home screen, unless you decide to add an icon. On a shared phone or one a colleague might glimpse, that's worth more than notifications. Using a companion on a shared device has the practical detail.
Nothing in your Apple or Google purchase history.
Billing directly with the company, so cancellations and refunds are dealt with by people who run the product you're using.
Features arrive as soon as they're built, without waiting on a review queue.
Making the call
Start with where you'll genuinely use it. If the honest answer is "on my phone, in bed, most nights", a native app is worth paying for, and web-only options will probably lose your habit within a fortnight.
If it's "at my desk, on purpose, a few evenings a week", browser-only costs you next to nothing and leaves your phone tidier.
And if you're here mainly for a permissive content policy, the decision's made: that kind of product lives in the browser. Camsoda AI, with its six-step builder and 4.5 in our ranking, makes the best case that browser-only isn't second best.
A tip on paying
Where both options exist, subscribe on the website, not in the app. It's usually cheaper, since the company isn't passing on a store commission, and cancellations and refunds stay with the company rather than a platform. The one exception is if you'd like the store's refund process as a safety net, which is a fair thing to want; see refunds and chargebacks.
