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Meetup

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Overview

Meetup has a rating of 1.3 stars from 496 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Reviewers complaining about Meetup most frequently mention customer service, credit card, and many people problems. Meetup ranks 626th among Social Network sites.

  • Service
    77
  • Value
    77
Positive reviews (last 12 months): 0%
Positive
0
Neutral
0
Negative
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24
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How would you rate Meetup?
Top Positive Review

“Andrei's French convo group is magnifique!”

Masha K.
7/26/16

I've really enjoyed attending the intermediate/advance conversation group led by Andrei on weekend mornings. The topics are always interesting and the Union Square Barnes and Noble is a great location. Looking forward to going again soon!

Top Critical Review

“Meetup is now Greedup”

Jim C.
10/13/24

I have been an organizer for my group on meetup for about seven years. In June, they jumped their pricing sky high, $44 for one month, $180 for six months, $300 for a year and encourage us to have members pay this. Granted, we have 700 members, but that burden should not be placed on them (even 50 cents). When it was about $100 per year, I could justify the cost. At $300, I cannot any longer. And by the way, that is just their standard pricing. Meetup PRO is even more ridiculous than this. When I tried to reach out to support about this, I literally got the cold shoulder. Not a single person contacted me from Meetup about this issue. That was the final straw. Sure like most greedy corporations, they will get their money somehow. We just won't be one of their supporting groups.

Reviews (496)

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customer service (49)
Thumbnail of user reesem25
California
1 review
21 helpful votes
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February 15th, 2017

I've used meetup.com on and off for many years, but after receiving their #Resist email, I am deleting and encouraging all I know to do the same.

It is obvious to me that Meetup hates our country, our President, and the American people. Their hashtag of #Resist is not only disrespectful to the electoral process and the many, many Americans who voted to put Trump in office, but also insinuates a call to violence. Dispicable, disgusting, and treasonous. I voted for Obama in the last two elections and have identified as Democrat for 15 years, but activities and attitudes such as this have pushed me Right, and I plan never to return to the Democratic Party again.

When will businesses learn that their SMARTEST move is to stay neutral and not alienate half of their customer base?

Additionally, I've used this site on-and-off for years to find hiking groups, and have continually found myself fed up with the pervs using it as a hookup site... thus the on-and-off. Don't waste your time... or money!

Thumbnail of user henryb178
Canada
1 review
13 helpful votes
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June 26th, 2019

Hi, i am a 24-year-old male, and i finde every one on the group is in there 30's and unwilling to talk that much. Just be advised that some of the people you meet with are creeps. I remember one time i wanted to go out for a drink with someone and see if we could be possible friends, he seemed uninterested in what i had to say to him and tried to talk to evrey girl he could see. A red flag came up in my mind, as i was just trying to go out and have some fun, and get drunk, it's harder to do with some creepy guy there trying to flirt with every woman he lays his eyes on. I only would do it if she was interested in me, if not i just talk to other people. I used to go to this volleyball group in new west which i liked alot, but it was ruined when some new person came and decided to do two vs two volleyball, and treat me like $#*!. He literally camped out and hogged the second court alot longer than the 30-minute rule. Also, he had his own possy and did not include me in the games.

I am still having a hard time meeting people, as the people that go to the meetup groups just seem like they want to "meet up only, and not make friends." i have had some good experiences from it though, and met some good friends, but still, watch out for the creeps people!

( sorry for the long review guys,)

Thumbnail of user ninaw14
Wisconsin
1 review
14 helpful votes
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January 6th, 2018

Go back to the old version! We are PAYING to use this site and it's unusable! You have added so many new features and taken out the old ones. Get back to the concept! NO ONE LIKES IT!

Thumbnail of user lawrencee7
Pennsylvania
1 review
4 helpful votes
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January 26th, 2014

It varies from one Meetup. To the next Some people are sincere, some aren't, some are well attended some aren't They try to get people to meet based on their interests and they have many actitivities

Thumbnail of user laharld
Canada
20 reviews
69 helpful votes
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February 20th, 2016

No disrespect to anyone, we will all get to that age, but most meetup groups in my town is just for old people.

Thumbnail of user paulm204
Spain
1 review
7 helpful votes
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July 21st, 2015

Nasty, use something else. Someone I know was block in the middle of a meetup. Negative star if it was possible.

Thumbnail of user tommya112
North Carolina
1 review
1 helpful vote
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April 2nd, 2022

I belong to several Meetup groups but after I've signed up for an event and am on the list to go to an event, it doesn't recognize me as a member and I can't find the events I've signed up for.

Thumbnail of user christopherg80
Florida
2 reviews
4 helpful votes
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June 6th, 2017

This is for all of you people in the Central Florida area that are considering to enroll your kids with ASD in Transform your life coaching in Altamonte Springs FL. For those of you that have heard about this company and know about Paula Breeden who is running it, think twice about enrolling your kids with her. Paula Breeden is a scam artist and a liar and is more interested in making money rather than helping your kids with ASD. Whatever you decide to do is your decision, but I would recommend you to enroll your kids with UCF CARD in Orlando instead of with her. You can save your money a whole lot worth it that way.

Thumbnail of user johnm1351
Texas
1 review
6 helpful votes
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April 8th, 2018

Love the idea of having website functionality to help manage and inform a group without being a web designer. Meetup could be awesome. Instead, it has been one of the worst experiences with any company for me.

First, their customer service is non-existent. I tried to contact them on multiple occasions for various issues such as having a very strange URL assigned to our group and also billing questions. No response, until the 3rd attempt. And that response was basically, 'tough, deal with it'.

Second, I cancelled my meetup membership after 2 months because it just wasn't working for the group and I decided to go back to using a website. Apparently, the membership canceling process was ignored or didn't work. They billed me for 2 additional month despite me removing my credit card information from the site. (this is when I received the 'tough, deal with it answer'.

Third, apparently the new UI defeatured the site. It is really not functional at least for our group. You can only post pictures. Navigation is awkward at best. It seems like a UI from about 2003. Just not good.

Thumbnail of user dicks84
Texas
1 review
2 helpful votes
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July 29th, 2023

I have been wanting to cancel my subcription but you all are not responding at all! 3 months. $37 Each

Thumbnail of user ta5385
Arizona
1 review
13 helpful votes
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December 13th, 2015

We run a sports meetup on MEETUP and guy pulled a knife and was upset and threatening. He then harassed members for several weeks.

We emailed police report, photos of him at events, and testimony from several members TO MeetUp Headquarters.

Naturally we banned him, so what did MeetUp HQ ask: did we ban him. WHEN he was banned he immediately attempted to start his own group on MeetUP.

What did MeetUp do? They took his money and started his MeetUp while he harassed members several more weeks.

We asked, why are you profiting from this guy?

They said go to your local cops. We had already sent MeetUp police report, so it was pointless.

We literally email MeetUp photos of this guy at an event, UN invited (not rsvp d), AND we email testimony from members that he was stocking group, AND MEETUP TOOK HIS MONEY TO START A NEW MEETUP? They are scum.

MeetUp totally sucks if there is an issue, and since you are dealing with the public, in time, there will be an issue.

MeetUp actively promotes violence BY watching and not acting.

It is like the teacher who watches bullying and then blames it on the bully. The violent guy acts out because he knows there is an environment that encourages it.

I do not doubt that one day they'll be a big news story on MeetUp for being sued for this type of non-action.

Tip for consumers:
avoid MeetUp

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Thumbnail of user lamontc3
Colorado
1 review
6 helpful votes
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November 18th, 2012

This is a great site by which to find social events and activities, but the good thing about meetup is also the bad thing: Anyone and everyone can join any meetup group. The people lie in their profiles, post pictures of cartoon characters or when they were 20 years younger and so forth. The groups get huge turnout when they are first announced and then after that, no one is interested and attendance fades to nothing after 2-3 meetings.

If you charge for workshops, even fewer people will come, and everyone is out for themselves from their own farming angle: if you go to a singles group rest assured the organizer has a singles company or website business, and so on.

Also, if you want to organize a meetup group, the fees are fairly expensive considering that most groups lose 90 percent of their turnout after the first two meetings or so.

So... there are pros and cons, and they're huge. Big turnout when your group is announced, only to have turnout drop drastically after one or two meetings as people lose interest and look for the next "new" thing that they can go to for free. The people lie and just click on whatever the "new" group is without reading group descriptions or requirements and meeting places are often expensive to reserve with no-shows a huge issue with meetup.

I've organized close to a hundred meetup groups at this point and feel very ambivalent about the groups, the people, and the company. Meetup has deleted my groups for no apparent reason and without notice, sending automated e-mails when I asked them why (you have to use very vague language in offering descriptions).

So I can take or leave meetup depending on the day of the week and how I feel.

Thumbnail of user jamiles
Georgia
1 review
13 helpful votes
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December 6th, 2017

Meetup is going through a transition and things are not good.

I have been an organizer or assistant organizer for multiple Meetup.com groups over the past five years. It's a great way to meet new people who have similar interests, it's usually a safe way to meet new friends, and it can offer new experiences at events to teach you a new skill.

That said, Meetup was sold in late 2017 and they have been undergoing a re-programming of the website and it has been a disaster. As an organizer, I find it harder and harder each day to use either the website or the mobile app because links are broken, tools I used to use are no longer working or missing, and members of my group are being dropped from event without their permission.

Meetup corporate has changed their phone number and emails to their team are bouncing back unanswered. The few people who used to be there to help with web problems are gone. I'm still paying almost $200 a year for the ability to use Meetup with my group, but getting more frustrated each week as more problems arise.

It's not that we organizers cannot learn their new system. It's that the new system does not work as promised. If anyone is checking reviews and thinking of becoming an organizer and using Meetup my advise would be to wait 4-6 months and not sign up right now. You will pull your hair out waiting for things to be fixed. If I didn't have so many events already on the calendar I would walk away from Meetup today.

Update 2/28/18. Website is still not usable. I and my members are fed-up with the lack of support from Meetup management. This week I told Meetup I will not renew when my group comes up for the next payment.

Thumbnail of user deniseh94
California
1 review
17 helpful votes
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January 8th, 2018

As an organizer, Im shocked that any functionality is all but lost with the new system. To schedule a meetup, you cant format text, cant add price, or change number of guests allowed. The max number of guests you do set doesnt get set. Forget copying an old meetup and keeping the same settings. Worst of all, If you do want to set price, youre directed to the old interfaceand guess what? If you didnt save first, if you click on go to the old interfaceyou just lost your copy. THEN when you manage to get a meetup scheduled... the rsvp list is unreliable. Users rsvp or un-rsvp and the system doesnt always record it. The syncing between the mobile app isnt reliable... also it doesnt seem to show maximum number of participants to users... and thats just from an organizers POV -my community of users isnt happy either. What the heck? Meetup currently owns this market - how could their systemtheir ONE PRODUCTfail so badly?

Thumbnail of user printm4
GB
1 review
5 helpful votes
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April 25th, 2020

Hi, I asked meetup to make adjustment to my subscription payment since it is an outdoor events group that I took over this year. They declined and asked me to do online events (what?), So I decided to cancel, however it was difficult, on the iPhone and web browser no option to cancel subscription (really), you have to send email to support. Even then they will not cancel but send you and offer with a discount on next renewal fee. What I did find (web search) is that the Android app does allow you to cancel within the App very easily (i do have a spare Android phone luckily). So cancelled using Android platform, and stepped down as organizer using the PC web browser (because I wanted to delete grp), however it didn't allow me to delete group, that option appeared and vanished quickly (new owners). I would recommend to all of you to cancel your subscription on this platform with the current situation I feel this platform is NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE AND MANAGEMENT HAVE NOT REACHED OUT TO ORGANIZERS WITH REAL WORLD SOLUTIONS THEY ARE only after your money, it is not going to spend any money on an new concepts and are definitely not interested in your well being.

Thumbnail of user kathys123
California
1 review
3 helpful votes
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August 16th, 2016

Customer service is horrible, they don't know the basic integrity and quality of a human being. I contacted them for a fraut organizer who charged my money but lied. Who pretended to be a some kind of facility to help! Very apparant scam. I asked a refund, the organizor didn't reply me but told her members that she would like to refund me if I reached out to her, said I never requested a refund. I reported to the customer service, but you know what, the customer service people blocked my account, deleted my comment for the fraud. I showed them the evidence of messenger. They just said they can't confirm the organizor is fraud! And deleted my true comment and blocked my account.
I think they just try to charge business money, do not care anything happened with customer. The service is so horrible, bad people together.

Stupid people go there and be manupilated.
They should shut the door, they don't deserve exist for our normal people. Super bad. Hopefully they can bankrupt and close their door soon.

Thumbnail of user sarias
Texas
1 review
6 helpful votes
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July 30th, 2018

Web logins dont work; terrible and shockingly poor. No point trying to sign up and use meetup when you can't even login easily or join groups. Lol

Thumbnail of user fuckheads
New Jersey
1 review
6 helpful votes
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September 30th, 2017

Great idea. Lousy execution. I host a meeetup group as well. Its what I would expect in say the year 1999.

Thumbnail of user reneew31
California
9 reviews
65 helpful votes
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April 21st, 2016

I had the extreme misfortune of attending the Meetup "Bay Area New Beginnings" in Menlo Park, Ca. On Thanksgiving Day. I was commenting on how good the mash potatoes were when a woman, along with a male side kick, started imposing her Ku Klux Klan views on everyone there. I calmly countered some of her blatant lies which included a religious slur against Muslims. I commented after her criticism of the Clinton Foundation, that the Foundation had gotten an award for its work in reducing Aids in Africa. This woman then said "Well I work for the Center for Disease Control and I know Muslims can not be taught to control Aids." I pointed out to her that much of Africa is actually Christian. Her remarks violate Meetup guidelines about racism (her prejudice against Africans) and religious discrimination but the host did nothing to shut her up and my fellow attendees were harassing ME to shut up instead of this far right racist kook. I sent an email to the host about this bad behavior and she just has ignored my concerns, not even posting a response. IF YOUR ARE A MINORITY, A FEMINIST OR EVEN A MODERATE REPUBLICAN, DO NOT ATTEND THIS MEETUP! When I expressed concerns about the Republican party's plans to cut Social Security and Medicare and just let seniors starve, this woman started grinning like it was funny! I just told the people present I was not putting up with anymore crap and left. What a bunch of racist, sexist, ageist pricks in this Meetup. BOYCOTT THEM!

Thumbnail of user ljr10
Oregon
1 review
10 helpful votes
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January 23rd, 2020

I am a leader of a mental health advocacy group, and wanted to use MU to gather people in our rural areas applying as a PAID member. Meet Up rejected my application, but continued to send spam wanting me to join their forum. NO THANKS, you just rejected me, but hey, us people who have a tendency to be more vocal than you "normal" people (ha ha lol sure if you believe it), we are vocal because we get pushed aside at every turn. We are lumped into one type of person and suddenly when you have this horrendous label called "mental illness" that society has hatefully tagged us with, it's scary when your rights quickly deminish and you find yourself pretty much alone. Don't anyone even dare say they MIGHT be depressed otherwise you may have people trying to get you to the hospital. Over two years ago I made the horrendous mistake of "confiding" in my neighbor that i was severely depressed. Prior to that dreadful conversation that I regret having, we shared a wonderful friendship as far as distant neighbors can go including Christmas gift exchange. Now she won't talk to me and peers out windows as if she should be afraid. Can anyone understand how horrible this is to endure when I have a Master's degree and helped many many people in my former career? I'm far more advanced than this neighbor, BUT for the label I have now, she believes she should fear me? I've had a rude awakening as now I know exactly how mentally ill people are treated, and Meet Up is just another business who would rather not have us less desirable types on their forum. I will never associate with Meet Up for any reason or any purpose or any group. Meet Up Discriminates! Does anyone know of a competitor that would allow a mental illness advocacy group on their forum? We really could use the help in getting the word out to folks who have nobody to talk to in rural areas so they are not feeling so alone. Thx

Thumbnail of user disappointedg2
Pennsylvania
1 review
6 helpful votes
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October 22nd, 2016

The old calendar that allowed you to scroll through all the events by day and time was WAY better. Hate the new app.

Thumbnail of user martina502
North Carolina
2 reviews
4 helpful votes
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October 31st, 2023

Meetup keeps taking organizer tools so you'll have to pay for the Meetup Pro App! I'll move to another site before I pay them more money!

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Thumbnail of user oskar.l
Poland
1 review
2 helpful votes
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October 28th, 2023

They will charge you for nothing, then the support will tell you it's ok and deny any refund... It's such a scam website, you better avoid it.

Products used:
organizer subscription

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Thumbnail of user meowem
New Jersey
3 reviews
14 helpful votes
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March 14th, 2016

I was a member since 2005. I attended my first meetup in 2006, met my longterm bf of nearly 4 years that day which unfortunately ended badly with a horrible break. I then met a close friend not long after the break up at another meetup and met many nice people, none of whom became more than meet up friends but who were nice people to occasionally spend time with.

I had my frustrations with meetup: endless rsvps and warnings not to cancel at short notice or you will be deleted from a group- I find this ridiculous since life happens, we get sick suddenly, emergencies come up etc. Bad instructions to meet up locations, early morning only events and such, event organizers who don't show up, don't wait for the group, don't communicate via email, and one who refused to give more specific parking directions to an event because I hadn't signed up for the meetup yet. The worst was probably when I was on a hike, my blood sugar was dropping and I and another woman who had bad knee pain lagged behind and the leader never even noticed or asked if we needed help. Overall it was a good experience and the people organizing events were nice.

I hadn't logged in on my phone/laptop for 2 months maybe due to having too much going on and I tried to log in the other day to find Meetup has deleted my account, with no notification. I received a response that various email providers such as yahoo/aol etc. require that if an email isn't working and or someone hasn't used the account for 6 months their account should be deleted. I know I had logged in in a six month period so this is bogus. My email is still working, it's not a yahoo/aol etc. I'm very disappointed that all my groups and friends are gone now, I had some old comments from friends I wanted to keep and who knows I might have wanted to click on those friends and look them up at some point again. How does meetup justify deleting a member account in good standing without even notifying them? Very upset!

Thumbnail of user grahamb209
Canada
1 review
5 helpful votes
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February 23rd, 2022

Avoid becoming an organizer for Meetup.org. It is difficult to resign as an organizer and stop payments. I smell a scam.

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