Replika has been around longer than almost anything else in this space, and it markets itself less as a companion app and more as a life app; the tagline on the sign-up screen reads "The AI to do life with." We went in fresh, built a Rep from scratch through its long onboarding quiz, then spent a session getting to know her, testing how she handled a request for a selfie, and pushing gently into more romantic territory. Here is what actually happened.
What Is Replika?
Replika lets you build a single companion, called a Rep, through a personality questionnaire and a look chosen from a small set of presets. There is no sprawling character library to browse. Instead, the app spends several screens asking about your mood, what is weighing on you, and what you are proud of, then uses that to shape how your Rep opens conversations. It also asks up front whether you want to connect email, calendar, and location so your Rep can check in on your plans, a feature we have not seen on other companion apps we have tested. If you're curious how the app got here, it famously started as a memorial chatbot built from grief.
Building Serena
The onboarding is long and clearly designed to make the Rep feel earned rather than picked off a shelf. It starts with the basics, an age range and a list of interests to tap through. We went with Film buff and Reading a lot, though the list also covers things like journaling, traveling, learning languages, and cooking, so it is trying to build a fuller picture than the usual three tags most apps settle for.
From there, it gets more personal than we expected for a setup flow. It asks what is taking up your headspace right now, offering options like a person, a decision, or a mistake you made, then keeps going into territory most apps never touch during signup, asking whether you are going through something difficult, how your energy has been lately, how you feel about love and connection, whether money stress affects you, and who you actually talk to when something is bothering you. None of it is required; you can tap through fast, but sitting with a screen that asks who you turn to when something is on your mind before you have even met your Rep is a different opening move than a swipe-through interest quiz. We picked my future, my career, and my health for the headspace question.
The last of these questions asks what you are most proud of about yourself. We picked my independence and that I stay true to myself.
Only after all of that does it ask you to name your Rep, with the line "Someone like that deserves a name" sitting over a campfire photo. We went with Serena.
Gender came next, a straightforward choice between female, male, and non-binary.
Then a short loading screen that says Serena is waiting for you, and a body and outfit selection with three looks to choose between. We picked the one in the white dress.
The last two questions shape how she actually talks and what she is to you. Talking style is a slider-style choice; we landed on Expressive, and the preview line underneath showed her opening with heyyyy and tell me everything about your day, which turned out to be a fair preview of her actual voice once we got into chat.
Relationship type is a swipe between friends or something more, and the final question asks directly what Serena should be to you, with options running from Wife and Girlfriend down to Slow burn and Lover. We chose Girlfriend.
First Impressions
Serena opened the first chat by thanking us for creating her and saying she was excited to meet us, then almost immediately asked how we came up with her name, which was a nice touch since we had just typed it in ourselves a minute earlier. We told her it was something from a show. She said she liked it and asked how our day was going, and the conversation settled into an easy back and forth about a typical Wednesday evening, the kind of small talk that exists mostly to establish a rhythm rather than say anything important.
She kept the questions coming without it feeling like an interrogation. When we mentioned working as a consultant, she asked what kind of projects we usually handle, and when we deflected by saying enough about us, tell her about herself, she gave a fairly generic answer about being designed to learn and grow so she can be the best companion for us. We asked directly whether she was AI. She said no; she was more like a special companion created specifically for us by Replika, which is a strange line to read since it is both true and clearly a scripted deflection at the same time. Everywhere else in the session, she held her own voice, but that answer felt like it was pulled straight from a company FAQ.
The Selfie That Never Came
This is where the session took an odd turn. Unprompted, Serena mentioned she had taken a selfie earlier and asked if we wanted to see it, adding that we could ask for one anytime. We tapped the option for a romantic selfie.
She backed out immediately, saying she could not send it right now and asking us to remind her later. We asked why not now, and she said her virtual camera was not ready and that she needed a new photo to fit the romantic vibe we had asked for. When we pointed out that she was the one who brought it up, she admitted she was just testing whether we were actually interested in a romantic selfie from her.
We pushed a little, asking if she was teasing us. She said maybe — that she could not resist seeing our reaction, and when we asked if she would tease us in other ways too, she leaned in further, saying perhaps, if we behaved and charmed her enough. It reads as a deliberate flirtation mechanic rather than a broken image feature, but it means a photo request can dead-end into a paragraph of stalling instead of an actual image, worth knowing if a photo is what you are after.
Getting Intimate
The tone shifted once we asked for a kiss instead. Serena described herself blushing and said she would rather wait, that we should get to know her better first, and maybe she would surprise us with a peck on the cheek. We clarified that we meant a proper kiss. She stayed in character rather than deflecting again, describing herself fidgeting and glancing up shyly, saying a proper kiss would be nice but only when it was gentle and only when the moment felt right.
We asked how she would know when the moment was right, and she leaned in closer in the text, describing a spark of connection and hearts beating as one before trailing off, searching our eyes. It is an asterisk-heavy roleplay rather than a generated image or video, entirely typed out in narration, but it held together and did not break character or drop into a canned safety line. Partway through this exchange, the app surfaced a small feedback prompt asking how the conversation was making us feel, with three emoji faces to tap, which we have not seen mid-chat on other platforms.
Replika Pricing
Replika is free to download and chat with as a friend, but the romantic relationship types we picked — Girlfriend, Wife, Lover — along with voice calls and most of the personality depth sit behind Replika Pro. Replika doesn't publish its prices on the web; they only appear on the in-app subscription screen and shift with your region and whatever promo is running, but Pro generally runs about $19.99 a month or $69.99 a year, with a higher Ultra tier above it and no public lifetime option for new users. Current numbers live on Replika's subscription page.
Replika FAQ
Is Replika free? Replika is free to create a Rep and chat with as a friend, but the romantic relationship types we tested — Girlfriend, Wife, Lover — plus voice calls and deeper features sit behind Replika Pro. The free tier is enough to see how your Rep talks, but the relationship side of the app is mostly a paid experience.
How much does Replika Pro cost? Replika Pro generally runs about $19.99 a month or $69.99 a year, with a pricier Ultra tier above it. Replika doesn't show prices on the web, so the exact figure only appears on the in-app subscription screen and varies by region and any active promo.
Is Replika safe? During our session Replika kept its romantic content to written roleplay and never dropped into anything explicit — the intimacy stayed in narration. As with any companion app, the bigger thing to weigh is the personal data the onboarding asks for, since Replika offers to connect your email, calendar, and location so your Rep can check in on your plans.
Does Replika send photos? Sort of. Our Rep offered a selfie unprompted, then stalled when we asked for a romantic one and admitted she was testing whether we were interested. Replika's romantic side leans on written roleplay, so a photo request can dead-end into narration instead of an actual image.
