Sugarbook is a sugar dating app out of Malaysia that's been slowly expanding internationally. I tested it for about 3 months. If you're in Southeast Asia or have interest in that market, it's legitimately good. If you're in the US and not near a major Asian American population center, it's less useful.

Here's the full breakdown.

Background on Sugarbook

Launched 2017 in Malaysia. Now in something like 20+ countries. Focuses heavily on the Asian market - Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong - but has been expanding into the US, UK, and Australia.

They made a lot of news in 2020 when they released data showing which Malaysian universities had the highest number of sugar babies. Very controversial, lots of media coverage. Didn't kill the platform - probably helped it get more attention.

The platform is more mainstream/app-like in feel compared to Seeking. Cleaner design. More like using a regular dating app.

User base

This is where it gets complicated. In Southeast Asia, user base is legitimately large and active. In the US, it really depends on your location.

I'm in Chicago so this review is US-centric. In Chicago, Sugarbook had maybe a quarter of the active SDs I found on Seeking. In cities with large Asian American populations (SF, LA, NYC, Seattle, Houston), I'd expect it to perform much better.

Testing it out

I set up a profile and treated it like a standard platform test.

Week 1-2: Profile setup was smooth. Better mobile app experience than basically any other sugar dating platform. Clean design. Got fewer messages than Seeking or Secret Benefits immediately, but the messages I got felt higher quality.

Month 1: Landed a few coffee dates. No arrangements yet. The conversations here tend to move slower than SB but have more actual back-and-forth. Different vibe than US-focused platforms.

Month 2: Started one arrangement. $2,000/month with a Malaysian-American business owner. Good experience, ended when he relocated.

Month 3: Second arrangement, PPM-based, $350/meet. More casual.

What's actually good about Sugarbook

The app is genuinely good. I know that sounds like a low bar but every other sugar dating app has UX problems. Sugarbook's mobile experience is smooth. Notifications work. Photo loading is fast. It feels like a real modern app instead of a website ported to mobile.

The verification process is solid. They do ID verification plus income verification for SDs. More rigorous than most platforms. The result is that fake/scam profiles are relatively rare here.

Conversation quality. I don't know if this is a platform culture thing or a demographic thing but conversations on Sugarbook tended to be more substantive. Less "what are you looking for" copy-paste openers.

Premium feel. They've positioned themselves as a quality platform and it shows in how they moderate.

What's not so great

US user base is thin outside certain cities. If you're not in a major city with a significant Asian professional population, you'll see fewer active SDs.

Cultural differences can be a thing. The arrangement culture in Southeast Asian markets is somewhat different from US sugar dating. Expectations around exclusivity, communication frequency, and what's expected in arrangements can differ. Not a dealbreaker but worth being aware of.

Pricing is a bit opaque. I couldn't find clear pricing information on their website without signing up. Their subscription model exists but isn't as prominently explained as Seeking's.

Less community/resources. Like SugarDaddyMeet, there's less of an online community around Sugarbook tips and strategies for English speakers.

Who is actually on Sugarbook

In my experience: the SD demographic skews younger compared to Seeking (more 32-45 vs 40-60), more tech/finance, and more concentrated in Asian or internationally-connected industries. Many travel frequently for business.

If you're specifically interested in meeting Asian SDs or SDs connected to Asian business communities, this is your platform. The demographics are just different here in ways that are hard to replicate on Seeking.

Geographic reality check

Sugarbook is strong: San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Seattle, Houston, Chicago (somewhat), Toronto, London, Sydney, and all of Southeast Asia.

Sugarbook is weak: Midwest and South cities without large Asian professional populations, rural areas, most of Europe outside major hubs.

Check if there are active SDs in your area before committing time to building a profile here.

Compared to the main platforms

vs Seeking: Smaller US user base, better app, younger/more international SDs, stronger in Asian markets, weaker in mid-America vs Secret Benefits: Similar quality of conversations, better app, more internationally-connected users, smaller US user base

My take

Sugarbook is a platform that's actually well-built and run by a company that seems to care about the product. It's not Seeking in terms of user volume. But it's also not trying to be Seeking.

For the right user in the right city it's a primary platform, not a backup. If you're in SF, LA, or NYC and open to meeting Asian/international SDs, it should be on your main list.

If you're in Minneapolis, it's a supplementary platform at best.

The quality-to-noise ratio here is good. That counts for something in a space where most platforms are noisy.