Gaia Online
Reviews and Complaints

I have tried numerous times to renew my membership. I had to cancel my membership in the hopes of re-booting to re-apply.

I have attempted using several different credit and debit cards - all which have funds available, and even verified with these financial institutions-all who have told me there was no problems on their ends. Additionally, they told me no attempt from Gaia's was made to extract or post the funds initially. There may be a cyber-security problem on Gaia's end.

I have been with your company for many years. I pay yearly.. I signed up with the email address [protected]@cox.net. But now I have forgotten my password that I signed up with and I no longer have that email address. My new email address is [protected]@iicloud.com. So I have not been able to access my account since March and no one has corrected my email address. I was told that I have to give up my PayPal ID number in order to change my email. Since I didn’t know what my ID number was nothing got done.

Since I no longer can access what I’m paying for I went to PayPal and made sure that no more funds would be taken out next year. When I did that, I received an ID number which I can give if still need it.

Don’t understand why it’s so difficult to correct the situation or to even refund my money if I can’t access what I paid for.

It’s the worst Customer Service I’ve ever experienced! Years ago it wasn’t like this….. such a deterioration.

Been using Gaia Online since 2004, and I gotta say, it's not the best for kids or folks who can't resist a good gamble. They just added a dice game where you can bet real money for gold or items, and if you win, you can risk half your winnings to roll again. Not exactly the kind of thing you want your younger teens getting into. It's been promoting addictive behavior for a while now, and it's not getting any better. The site seems like it's on its last legs, and the investors are just trying to milk the users for all they're worth. The interface might look like it's for kids, but it's really just a breeding ground for addiction and depression. A lot of users who spend money on the site admit to being addicted to the Random Item Generators. It's not doing anything good for society anymore, and it's been that way since 2013. The worst part is that the company doesn't seem to care about their shady practices, like false advertising, arguing with users, breaking promises, stealing ideas without giving credit or compensation, and a bunch of other stuff.

I gotta say, Gaia Online used to be the bomb.com. But lately, it's been a real bummer. I mean, yeah, it's still free to play, but everything is so dang expensive now. Like, I can't even buy anything with my virtual money because the prices are through the roof. And they're always pushing these sales with real money, like they're trying to get us to spend all our hard-earned cash. And the worst part is, the stuff they're selling for $50 bucks now used to be like $5 back in the day. It's like they're trying to guilt us into buying stuff we don't even need.

And don't even get me started on the forums. They say it's PG-13, but there's all kinds of crazy stuff going on in there. People talking about sex and violence and using all kinds of bad language. I mean, they don't allow nudity or anything like that, but they still let people talk about it. And it's not just the users, either. The staff used to be really cool, but ever since the new CEO came in, things have gone downhill. They've laid off a bunch of people and they don't seem to care about all the complaints people are making.

If you don't believe me, just check out the Site Feedback forum. It's full of people complaining about the constant sales and all the other shady stuff Gaia is doing. And don't even think about letting your kids on this site. It's not for young children, that's for sure. Most of the people on there are between 16 and 30 years old.

All in all, I used to love Gaia Online, but now I'm not so sure. It's just not the same as it used to be.

GaiaOnline used to be a great place to hang out and meet new people online. I've been a member for almost three years now, which is still considered new compared to the veterans who have been around since the beginning. However, I've noticed a significant decline in the quality of the site since Gary Schofield took over as CEO.

It's clear that the main focus of the higher-ups is money. They've released gold generators that require real money, which has ruined the virtual economy of the site. It's almost impossible to afford anything worthwhile now. On top of that, the site is bombarded with 30+ cash-related announcements every day. It's like they're trying to milk every penny out of their users.

The key features that made GaiaOnline great have been left to rot or taken down altogether. For example, zOMG! was a popular game that was shut down because it didn't bring in enough money. It's disappointing to see the site turn into nothing more than a farm for cash cows.

Nowadays, there's not much to do on the site aside from browsing the forums, which could use an update, and dressing up avatars with low-quality pixels that are overly expensive. The staff ignores users most of the time, and when they do interact with the community, it's always with the same rehearsed and generic responses.

In conclusion, I wouldn't recommend wasting your time on GaiaOnline. The site has lost its value, and the only thing new users can expect is to be bombarded with harassing announcements begging for money every five seconds. The community is as dead and dry as a desert, and there's nothing left to do on the site.

I've been a member of Gaia Online for almost a decade now, and I have to say, it's the best avatar forum out there. There are a few others that are decent, but this one has the most creative opportunity with the avatar system. The forum community is fairly decent as well, and more populated than some of the other avatar based forums.

However, there has been a somewhat recent change in senior management that, to be blunt, ruined the site. Members are treated little better than cash cows. They are constantly spammed with announcements and advertisements to purchase a form of currency within the site that costs actual money. Since the staffing change, little to no attention is given to the free parts of the site. The parts of the site that cost actual money to enjoy continue to increase almost monthly.

But even the users who partake in the real-money currency, Gaia Cash, are treated poorly. Items will be sold for a "limited" time. And be released again within a week, thus severely decreasing the value of the item. There has also been a recent trend of selling "gold generators", items that produce large quantities of the non-cash based currency--gold, for Gaia Cash. This has caused an in-site economic inflation and devalued the average Gaian gold's worth.

New users to the site feel pressured, overwhelmed, and that they must spend money in order to progress on the site. Almost all forms of customer complaint services have either been shut down for good (a thread titled Ask the Admin, self explanatory) or completely ignored (the designated Site Feedback forum goes completely ignored).

This site used to be purely community based, and was never meant to be a "pay-to-play" site. It's a shame that it has turned into one. You would get a better bang for your buck if you bought a years subscription to World of Warcraft.

I gotta say, my experience with Gaia Online was not a good one. I felt like I was being mistreated by both the staff and a group of people who were into role-playing. The staff tried to tell me that I wasn't being abused, but my psychologist said otherwise. I mean, who do you think knows more about this kind of thing? The people who were trying to mistreat me or a trained professional?

And let me tell you, this wasn't one of those situations where I was just being too sensitive. I was sick and tired of people telling me that I wasn't smart enough to do anything. It's like they thought I was dumb or something. But I have writing credentials, so I know that's not true. I didn't get any warnings before they started treating me like this, and that's just not right.

When I talked to my counselor about what was going on, she said that I was being abused. And I believe her. It's not okay to tell someone that they can't write more than six sentences. That's just condescending and disrespectful. And if you think that I don't understand something before you explain it to me, that's just insulting.

I don't want to go into too much detail about what happened, but I will say that people shouldn't have ganged up on me like they did. They didn't even know the whole story. I was just tired of being told that I wasn't smart enough to do things. And I can prove that I am.

Overall, my experience with Gaia Online was not a good one. I felt like I was being mistreated and abused, and that's just not okay. I wouldn't recommend this site to anyone.

Gaia Online is a website that is sure to attract young teens with its lively graphics, games, and opportunities to socialize with other kids. However, parents need to be aware that if they don't turn on the filter, adult language and topics are common. It's important to note that your teen will likely stumble upon threads discussing "masturbation myths and fads" and "WTF moments" in a matter of minutes. The site also encourages kids to buy virtual items with their Gaia Gold virtual currency, which can be earned with every session spent on the site. This can be a positive thing, as it teaches kids about money and saving up for something they like.

When you log on to GAIAONLINE.COM, you can play games like slots and jigsaw, chat with other 13- to 18-year-old users, collect downloadable wallpaper for cell phones, and buy virtual items in virtual stores with Gaia Gold currency. As with most virtual worlds, the first stop after your free sign-up is creating your avatar. You can customize your anime-style character's hairstyles and clothing, and then chat in different rooms with other users.

While the site appears to be kid-friendly and moderators are supposed to be monitoring the boards for inappropriate images, racist and sexist language, and adult content, if you don't use the word filter, you'll find that it's rampant with such content. For example, on a recent visit, I came across threads like "Your best WTF moment was?" "What are your fave pick-up lines?" "Masturbation Myths and Fads" and "Poll: I wanna have sex with a boy." It's unclear whether the moderators were asleep at the wheel or if their safety claim is just that -- a claim. Either way, it's a good idea to sit down with your kids as they surf the site or just steer them away. There are plenty of other websites with cleaner content and just as robust audiences.

Overall, I recommend Gaia Online for ages 15-18. It's a fun website with plenty of opportunities for socializing and gaming, but parents need to be aware of the potential for inappropriate content.

This website, Gaia Online, is rated PG-13, so if you have kids on here, be sure to keep an eye on what they're doing. There's a lot of Gaia cash being thrown around, so make sure to keep your credit cards safe from the computer. With just a few clicks, users can purchase up to $100 worth of Gaia cash to buy virtual items that are being advertised and sold for prices ranging from $10 to $500. This can lead to impulsive purchases and financial strain for kids and adults alike. Most of the nicer items are only available for purchase with Gaia cash or with large amounts of the site's main non-cash currency, "Gaia Gold." If you or your child want to obtain these items, expect to spend a lot of time playing the site's main free game, zOMG, or creating multiple accounts to earn gold. Both options require a lot of time and effort, and can lead to becoming a couch potato in front of the computer.

The admins on this site can be quite rude, and this year they have posted surveys that include body shaming and trigger words and pictures that can negatively impact impressionable teens who already struggle with poor self-esteem. The majority of users on the site are older and tend to speak about sensitive topics like "r. A. p. E.", sex, and masturbation, which can make it an uncomfortable environment for younger users. Many users spend their time trolling others or trying to hack accounts by asking young kids for their passwords and usernames in exchange for promises of getting rich quick, but instead, they end up being robbed.

Unfortunately, many features on the site are dying due to lack of profitability, and the site's economy is currently very inflated. As a result, the quality of games and overall site satisfaction are plummeting.

In my opinion, if you want to avoid a virtual economic mess, trolls, inappropriate language, insensitive money-grabbing admins, and a dying site, it's best to stay away from Gaia Online. If you're already on the site, good luck, and make sure to voice your opinions at every "Ask the Admin" to try and combat the corporate greed and improve the welfare of the Gaian economy and user experience.

I've been a member of gaiaonline.com since way back in July of 2005. Back then, it was a really cool place to hang out and meet new people who shared my interests. It was a lot of fun and there was always something to do or talk about.

But now, in June of 2014, things have really changed. The whole site has become all about money. They introduced something called Gaia Cash a few years ago, which is basically a way for users to pay real money to get virtual currency that they can use to buy stuff for their avatars.

The problem is that inflation has gotten out of control. It used to be that the average user had a few hundred thousand gold, maybe even a million. But now, almost everyone has billions of gold. There's no control over the economy on the site anymore. It's all about dressing up your avatar, and that's really the only thing that sets gaiaonline.com apart from any other forum on the internet.

If you like reading site announcements, then maybe you'll like gaiaonline.com. But be warned: they send out over ten messages a day begging you to spend money on pixels. And if you have any issues with purchasing Gaia Cash or problems with items, good luck getting a response from the staff. It can take months for them to get back to you.

I've been complaining to the staff about all of this, but they don't seem to care. In fact, I was recently banned for making a thread that criticized the staff and the way they run the site. It's really frustrating.

My advice to you is to stay away from gaiaonline.com. There are plenty of other forums and communities out there that actually care about their users and listen to their feedback. I used to have a lot of friends on gaiaonline.com, but now it's like a ghost town. Everyone has left for better things. Don't waste your time on gaiaonline.com.

Gaia Online used to be my go-to place for creative expression and community building. It was a safe haven for me during turbulent times at home, and I made friends from all over the world who I would talk to for hours on end. I've spent a lot of money on the site over the years, from sending letters in the mail to participating in pledge drives.

However, I've noticed that the site has become increasingly polarized in recent years. As someone with centrist views, I find it frustrating that people are afraid to speak their minds for fear of being labeled as "trolls" or "flamers." It seems like the only people who are allowed to express themselves freely are those who align with popular social justice buzzwords.

To make matters worse, the site's Terms of Service are poorly written and easily abused. I've seen users get mass reported for simply expressing a different opinion, even if it wasn't directed at anyone in particular. Meanwhile, threads filled with hate speech and calls for violence are allowed to thrive.

If you're thinking about spending money on Gaia Online, I would advise against it. You don't actually own any of the items you purchase, and there's always a risk of losing them to a hack or scam. Additionally, the site's staff seems to care very little about its users. I've had multiple accounts banned and deleted for seemingly no reason, while known pedophiles are allowed to roam free.

Overall, Gaia Online has become a shady and unpleasant place. It's no longer the welcoming community it used to be, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone looking for a safe space to express themselves.

I've been a member of Gaia Online since 2004, and I have to say, it's not what it used to be. Back in the day, it was a great place to hang out and have fun, but now it's become a wasteland of broken promises and greed.

One of the biggest issues is the firing of so many good staff members. These were people who actually cared about the user base and treated them like human beings. They used to interact with their customers, even having a weekly Q&A in the forums. Now, for the most part, they remain silent.

Another problem is the removal of many of the fun games on the site. They were either glitchy or didn't produce as much revenue as the staff had hoped. The remaining games are capped, meaning you can only earn so much gold (site currency) from them.

The quality of most of the cash shop items has also degraded. The prices for these items have inflated from what they used to be, although for now, monthly collectables are still only $2.50 per item. The inventory arranger is also in dire need of repair and upgrades. It's nearly impossible for someone who has lots of items to find what they are looking for.

But the worst thing about Gaia is the user-run marketplace. Due to people paying real money for gold/random item generators, the prices of older and "premium" items has skyrocketed. Greed not just on the company's side, but also the remaining users who set the prices.

Every day there are roughly 10 announcements site-wide for cash shop items and sales. It's quite annoying to try and find relevant news in the midst of ads.

Newbies start off with a few clothing items and a couple of game items, but there is no real easy way for them to earn gold for the "premium" items unless they pay real money for either gold or items. They can buy gold shop items, which I admit, some are very nicely made.

Zomg, Gaia's MMO, was a great way to meet new people, earn gold, and just have fun. They used to hold events there for holidays (mainly Christmas and Halloween), but now the game is glitchy and has been put in maintenance mode, which means no new content or fixes.

So honestly, I wouldn't waste time or effort on this website. It's just not worth it anymore.

Be very careful if you don't want your subscription renewed. It automatically renews and if you want to cancel they tell you too bad not their policy once charged. No one answers the phone, my email was not accessible so I did not receive notification of the upcoming renewal. The app does not have the cancellation functionality either. Very disappointed in Gaia.

I have been part of the gaia community for 15 years that is now under attack by these types of antifa antics. Cancel culture has caused people to be pushed from a site they loved and a community they loved. Now that all these cult, tribal, anarchist groups have rolled in over the last few years and collectively removed user after user through cancel culture shame tactics. We had just removed an actual white supremacy group that was attempting to root in through the guild system and through the use double-speak tactics, before being blind sided from the left.

After 15 years of time, money, dedication to this site. All it took was a fresh stock of mods and the current political climate of not liking someone = bannable offense. The T.O.S. language is not conducive to the average individual and can be easily abused, this caused me considerable stress within a beloved community as I refused to cowtail to any political side. I was abused through the report system by a group that is growing on the site where anything I said anywhere would be reported for flaming, trolling, and harassment. When asked to further explain what my "bad behavior" was and how i was being seen as trolling and harassing when it was never the intent and had been made known over and over again. I would not receive a response and my posts or threads would be scrubbed. Now after 15 years and thousands of dollars I am left with nothing, scrubbed and silenced.

-The Block system is abused by users to troll and harass.

-You do not own the right to any item no matter if you paid for it with real currency.

-The economy is being destroyed by intentional artificial inflation and taking advantage of the gc giftcard system

-If you are not a currently hot topic protected class of person and make it known you will not find a community there anymore

-art theft is a constant problem

-users making several burner accounts to spam the forums with sexually explicit material, gore, hard drug abuse, race-baiting, etc.

-The site has community known issues with pedophiles and seems to threaten users for building a case on them or talking about them so other users may be aware.

-Known subscription issues. Not receiving items or gcash, people unsubscribing, and their account resubbing without consent.

-banned subscribers being billed month after month while not being able to enter the account, rather they use the zendesk contact support and file a ticket.

- This ticket system is backlogged from years ago and tickets are often not addressed for moths, sometimes years. -Direct sale and sales of rigs (random item generators, gambling machines.)

Really the list goes on and on. In short, you are not valued, you will have to walk on eggshells around the site and be prepared for constant disappointment. It greatly saddens me to see what has become of what once was my home.

I completed a survey and was rewarded over 100 GCash but never received my Free Seraphique Vest. I don't know what to do about it. I still have the message stating I received My GCash for my time but never received anything else even though it was advertised as "Complete any offer of 100 GCash or more to receive your Free Seraphique Vest. My username is SirusValentine. Please just message me back on Gaia to resolve this issue. Thank you and have a wonderful day.

Very disappointed because they used to be great. Now it's nothing but a poorly organized website with a bad customer service.
Now their main purpose is to get as much users' money as they can. But once you have an issue, they care nothing about you.
Unfortunately, that's how they are. I don't know what happened. Maybe they changed their management. It was your worst decision then...

I registered on the website www.gaiaonline.com couple of weeks ago. I haven’t purchased from them, but recently I added my card and purchased some things. I waited for the delivery, because it should be fast. But the moderators scammed me and banned at the same time. I couldn’t open the website and my account. As well as they have all my details and they could use them. I need advice about the cancellation of the account.

I was a loyal customer to gaiaonline.com a online community. I've spent $100's on my account using paypal. Yesterday i've received an e-mail on may 9th stating my account is permanently banned due to hacking. Which is a false statement. Gaia online both bans you & keeps your payment. This is very unlawful & a huge rip off. This is also a huge scam for 13yr old kids. Who is gaia being runned by? More than that why are they banning the users under false accusations? There are many users on gaiaonline who have the same problem. They are banned & forced to start a new account just so they can re-profit from them. This is a very bad business & needs to be looked into more. And that is just one problem that they have. What people also need to know, is this site really safe for kids? It really isnt, they say its suitable for kids at the age of 13. There is cybering in the site, r-rated topics, yet alone the user names on the site.

My friend by handle "kitty darkness" was banished from gaia online, I don't know the whole situation. However she was accused of hacking when she's not exactly capable of such things. First they disabled her trading pass, then banish her from the sight. I wish her to be reestablished asap. She was just running a charity for gaia gold for people wanting things they are unable to afford. I was an active donor to her charity forum.

Thanks to gaia online, my computer constantly gets a back door virus. Every time I log in the virus returns. I don't like doing this because I have many friends on gaia whom I like speaking with, but now I can't get on it for fear of that dang virus!