We’ve all heard of Chaturbate, but have you come across CamSoda yet?
Pun intended!
Chaturbate is the most popular live cam site in the world with a staggering 320+ million hits each month. It is the 5th most visited adult website on the planet.
Yet, the giants of online sex cams aren’t the only platform in town.
There are plenty of challengers eager to offer audiences bigger and better experiences.
CamSoda, a newcomer to the market in 2014, has been rapidly growing in popularity with increasingly bolder marketing campaigns and innovating new cam technologies.
Though still smaller than Chaturbate in terms of traffic volume, there is a growing ‘rivalry’ between the sites, particularly as they both follow the model of free-to-view cams and fully-explicit content.
So, CamSoda vs Chaturbate… which of these popular camgirl websites is the best?
In this comparison, we take a closer look at the rivalry between CamSoda and Chaturbate. We assess how and why Chaturbate became the number one adult cam site, and what companies like CamSoda are doing to close the gap.
Which is the best site for viewers? Which is best for cam models?
Let’s find out!
Who are CamSoda and Chaturbate?
Read our full CamSoda review.
Read our full Chaturbate review.
Two camming sites, CamSoda and Chaturbate both offer live streaming of adult content broadcast by independent models.
Unlike other cam sites, the majority of the content is free-to-view and fully-explicit. The models rely on a tipping model where their shows are basically ‘crowdfunded’ by generous users.
This results in massive audiences. While shows are free to view, the models can still make big money by securing tips from a small minority of the viewers.
This goes against the grain of other cam site business models where the ‘free shows’ are basically teasers with the models trying to lure in private viewers for paid one-on-one shows.
Chaturbate was one of the pioneers of the tipping model, and it’s a model that CamSoda is also using to drive massive growth.
The basic functionality of each site is nearly identical.
Audiences can log in to one of thousands of channels to connect with a live performer.
This can be in a group situation or as a private session.
Models require tips to perform or you can simply pay by the minute for a one-to-one chat. What goes on in those sessions is between you and the performer.
Live cam sites have become a popular alternative to phone sex and adult chat rooms and are seen as a safe way for women, men and couples to engage with the sex industry remotely.
The coronavirus crisis has turbo charged cam site growth with many sex workers (and amateur content producers) now heading online.
Both CamSoda and Chaturbate are seeing record sign-up rates of new models wanting to get started camming.
There are dozens of big live cam platforms around but Chaturbate remains the most popular… for now.
Newcomers like CamSoda have a lot to offer, too.
CamSoda vs Chaturbate: Stats and Facts
So, lets start with some basic details about how these two live cam sites are performing and find out just how popular they are in terms of traffic.
At the time of this review, and according to SimilarWeb, these two sites are separated in the global rank by over 2,400 positions with Chaturbate reaching almost 16 times the volume of people.
Metric | CamSoda | Chaturbate |
Total Monthly Visits | 19.07 million | 321.47 million |
Average Visit Duration | 5 minutes 36 seconds | 11 minutes and 1 second |
Global Rank | 2508 | 61 |
Category Rank (Adult) | 183 | 5 |
Country Rank (United States) | 687 | 56 |
Pages per visit | 4.47 | 10.99 |
Whilst Chaturbate remains the market leader, it is worth looking at how interest in CamSoda has been rising over the last five years. A quick search on Google Trends reveals a very promising trajectory with interest in the term ‘camsoda’ clearly continuing to rise:
By contrast, interest in the term ‘chaturbate’ worldwide shows a distinctly more static trend:
But what about the services and variety that each can offer?
CamSoda has over 12,400 models registered on their site ranging from some famous porn adult film stars like Dani Daniels, Tori Black and Brandi Love to regular amateur broadcasters.
The vast majority of these channels are operated by solo female performers but there are also solo guys, couples and transsexual performers too.
Quality on the site can be pretty variable as CamSoda has no rules about the resolution its performers broadcast in.
A lot of models are opting for HD cameras so there is a decent amount of choice available.
A freemium site, prices for private chats vary by performer but the group chats are free yet tipping does get you a better show.
Models on the site earn a proportion of the money they generate so whilst they are keen to tempt audiences in, they don’t give away the milk with the barn, so to speak!
One of the features of CamSoda which sets it apart is its VR broadcasting as well as variety in terms of interactive toys, show types and live streaming SFW events.
Chaturbate offers a similar service with a nice range of models including couples, men, women and trans as well as voyeur/spy cams.
Viewers can also watch group broadcasts for free with a diverse offering of show types to get more exclusive access to models.
They have a lot more registered models on their site than CamSoda and more of these are online at any given time.
CamSoda vs The Rest of the Competition
So, how does CamSoda stack up against the rest of the live cam market? Are they really one of the frontrunners to challenge Chaturbate for its crown?
MyFreeCams is ranked 46th most popular adult website with monthly traffic figures of around 60.73 million hits yet has a lower average visit duration (5 minutes 10 seconds) and fewer pages per visit (4.44).
BongaCams is ranked 11th most popular adult website with monthly traffic figures of around 313.55 million hits but has much lower engagement levels with visitors (on average) staying on the site for 3 minutes 17 seconds and visiting just 2.57 pages.
Ranked 62nd in the adult category, Cam4 achieves around 40.77 million hits each month and engages visitors for around 9 minutes 1 second over an average of 6.11 pages per visit.
LiveJasmin is ranked 14th in the adult category reaching a monthly audience of around 272.85 million people. However, visitors do not stay as long as on CamSoda nor do they visit as many pages with one of the shortest average visit durations of just 2 minutes 33 seconds. This means the typical visitor to the site is only browsing 2.08 pages.
Ranked 37th in the adult category StripChat is the closest in terms of profile to CamSoda yet reaching a larger audience. With 67.63 million hits monthly, their average visit duration is 5 minutes and 51 seconds with 5.12 pages being viewed per visit.
Which Site Is Cheaper For Viewers?
Out of Chaturbate and CamSoda, which site offers the best value for paying viewers?
Well, the true value of each show will vary based on the model you choose. Some are good, some are bad. That applies to both platforms.
However, Chaturbate has an average private one-to-one cost of $0.50-$7/min.
This compares to $2.50-$6/min on CamSoda.
While Chaturbate has some very cheap private shows, the reality is that you are going to be skimping on quality if you go for the lowest possible cost.
Unless you’ve found a model in a third-world country who is happy to perform for less.
The majority of live shows are priced roughly the same on each platform. There’s little variation beyond the fact that Chaturbate has a higher number of dirt cheap lower quality shows.
CamSoda vs Chaturbate For Models
If you are a model, there are a few good reasons why you would consider broadcasting on CamSoda instead of Chaturbate.
Firstly, there is less competition on CamSoda but arguably superior self-promotion tools for each model.
There is also the matter of pay.
CamSoda boasts that its models get the “highest payout and the largest bonuses in the industry“.
It’s notoriously difficult to fact check these claims, but there’s no doubt that their ratios are generous compared to some of the other top sites (including Chaturbate).
A model on CamSoda will earn at least $0.05 per token, which works out to around 50-55% of the total share. Generous by industry standards.
In addition, CamSoda claims that 65% of all gross money spent on CamSoda is sent to models.
Their business strategy is clear: attract models to the platform, and let the models drive further growth.
CamSoda Has The Edge on Innovation
One of the main things which sets CamSoda apart from its competition is the company’s drive towards new technology and fresh ways for audiences to interact with their models.
Over the last six years, the company has pioneered the use of 360 degree VR live streaming and other broadcast formats such as adult holograms.
They have also been particularly creative with their marketing campaigns including some memorable stunts, promotions and launches.
Mostly hoaxes simply designed to get as much attention as possible, all of the ideas are the brainchild of the CamSoda Labs (a department whose primary aim is to create a stir around the brand).
These are just a few of the headline grabbing ideas released over the last few years:
- The Jerk Shirt – launched in 2016, this tongue-in-cheek invention was covered by Cosmopolitan magazine as one of those ‘why does this exist’ ideas. The shirt includes a prosthetic arm so that men can secretly masturbate under their clothing without anyone noticing.
- The OhRama Sensory Mask – a new type of VR headset which pumps out the smell of used ‘panties’ and ‘private’ parts, this CamSoda Labs innovation promised to take immersive porn to the next level. Another story that the media was rather shocked by but produced plenty of publicity.
- Penis Recognition Technology (PRT) – another attempt to produce some fun hype around its platform, the CamSoda labs announced Dick-ometrics in July 2017. Offering secure login with your penis, the story was widely picked up both in the United States and internationally.
- RubGrub – in February 2018, CamSoda was once again in the news for one of its inventions…this time a vibrator which ordered you a post-orgasm pizza. Simply hit the button at the base when you are ‘done’ and this nifty little sex toy (supposedly) ordered you a Dominos as a reward.
- The O-Seat – a seat for your bicycle including a secret compartment for a vibrating sex toy, the press, yet again, went wild over this product launch in January 2020.
Other stunts over the years include a fake shark attack on one of its cam models, BlowCast (an on-demand virtual blowjob) and an app for your phone that let users simulate oral sex.
Whilst most of the above ideas were hoaxes, jokes or novelty one-offs simply to create a buzz, CamSoda has been at the very cutting edge of innovation with some more interesting and game-changing developments.
In 2016, they launched 3D holographic porn. Though it hasn’t panned out as a leading technology, the launch of Holo-Cam showed how forward-thinking this live camming site is.
The company was also the first to create live streams using 360-degree VR technology.
They were also one of the first adult cams site to launch live streaming on its site with LifeStream.
Also known as voyeur cams, these 24/7 broadcasts catch more than just porn and audiences can tune in to watch models simply going about their daily business from eating breakfast or sleeping to watching TV or getting dressed.
They even offered regular people the chance to stream their Thanksgiving meals in November 2019 and paid up to $250 to cover the cost of the food!
CamSoda has also been offering a SFW alternative to their main service.
With the launch of CamSodaLive, the company has been broadcasting everything from live MMA bouts to stand-up comedy and even concerts.
This has been particularly popular during the coronavirus lockdown and CamSoda has been determined to leverage its technology to help alleviate the boredom under stay-at-home social distancing.
They were also pretty sharp in response to the initial outbreak.
In February 2020, CamSoda offered the passengers aboard isolated cruise ships in Asia free access to its live cam services for the duration of their quarantine.
In October 2018, the company also moved into esports sponsorship becoming the first live cam site to do so.
However, they haven’t always been the first at everything and it wasn’t until April 2019 that CamSoda integrated payment by cryptocurrency into its platform.
The site now joins a select bunch of cam sites where users can pay via BitCoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Tron.
However, they were on the periphery of the cryptocurrency markets when they launched an interactive sex toy in December 2017 called BitCast.
These ‘personal massage’ devices were linked to the performance of your currencies so as prices of your investment soared, you could experience the highs with more intense vibrations.
Oh, and let’s not forget about CockBlockChain….the CamSoda Labs attempt at creating their own digital trading currency using dick pics!
With all these innovative ideas and creative publicity, CamSoda has managed to create a (cheeky) high-profile in mainstream media.
The net result?
More growth for CamSoda.
One of the interesting things to watch in the Chaturbate vs CamSoda battle is whether this extra publicity will help to close the gap in real-time users on each site.
CamSoda vs Chaturbate: A Rivalry Set To Grow…
Whilst there is no sign that Chaturbate’s grip on the top live cam spot is in any danger, CamSoda is proving itself a viable and popular alternative.
Offering exactly the same kind of service with similar prices, quality and features with a cast of excellent models, CamSoda is displaying the right qualities for a company that wants to make it big.
Innovation, creativity and exclusivity are three of the prime factors which can determine how successful any company is in their sector and on these scores CamSoda has got most of the competition licked.
The stats on traffic and engagement show that CamSoda is performing well but still has a long way to go before really troubling Chaturbate.