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Thegradcafe Review

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Should I use Thegradcafe?

Skip to content - thegradcafe.com

· 1 day ago

Use it if you're applying to grad school — the free results database and forums are the de facto standard for applicants. Don't rely on it if you need verified data, or if compulsively refreshing results will spike your anxiety.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 20+ public sources: site pages, Reddit threads, breach databases, and academic references.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo evidence of official support channels.
  • Security posture

Pricing

Not disclosed

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • Grad school applicants
  • PhD/Master's results tracking
  • Program comparison research
  • Applicant peer support

Not for

  • Undergrad applicants — grad school only
  • Anyone needing verified, official admit data
  • Anxiety-prone waiters — it fuels compulsive refreshing
  • Enterprise buyers — this is not B2B software

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

2023 breach exposed user data; use a unique password and consider a burner email.

medium

Guess: self-reported results skew optimistic; rejected or silent applicants underreport.

medium

No public security page found on the site.

low

Forum users complain about intrusive sign-up questions.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Free access to two decades of self-reported admission results (2006–2026).
  • Active applicant forums for program-specific questions.
  • Widely cited as the go-to grad admissions tracker.
  • Third parties build tools on its data, e.g. GitHub datasets.
  • Blog covers funding, applications, and test prep.

Cons

  • Suffered a data breach in February 2023.
  • Results are crowd-sourced and self-reported; accuracy varies.
  • Known XSS vulnerability disclosed via Open Bug Bounty.
  • Users report compulsive checking and admission anxiety.
  • Ownership changed hands in 2018, unsettling longtime users.

Sources & method

- 15 sources - Breached February 26, 2023; a separate XSS disclosure exists; no security page found.

official x3review x7security x4news x1
  • TheGradCafe Data Breach (February 2023), The site suffered a data breach on February 26, 2023, confirmed by Have I Been Pwned and Mozilla Monitor.
  • Cross-Site Scripting vulnerability report, A security researcher disclosed an XSS vulnerability on via Open Bug Bounty.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 5/5

    Rating

  • Not disclosed

    Starting price

  • 15

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 5/5. Free; core results and forums cost nothing.
  • Ease of use: 3/5. Dated site; users request updates and alternatives.
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Deep results history plus active forums and blog.
  • Support quality. No evidence of official support channels.
  • Security posture: 1/5. 2023 breach, XSS report, no security page.
  • $0 Cost Free community site
  • 2006–2026 Results history Self-reported admit data
  • Feb 2023 Data breach Confirmed by Have I Been Pwned
  • Changed hands 2018 Ownership Announced June 18, 2018

Pricing

Free tier: Yes

Security

Breached February 26, 2023; a separate XSS disclosure exists; no security page found.

  • TheGradCafe Data Breach (February 2023)The site suffered a data breach on February 26, 2023, confirmed by Have I Been Pwned and Mozilla Monitor.⁶
  • Cross-Site Scripting vulnerability reportA security researcher disclosed an XSS vulnerability on via Open Bug Bounty.⁸

What users say

Users treat GradCafe as the default grad-admissions results tracker, but describe anxious compulsive checking and shaken trust after the 2023 breach.

“Gradcafe is the worst, but I can't help but check”
Reddit, r/gradadmissions
“IMPORTANT: TheGradCafe was breached.”
Reddit, r/gradadmissions
“PSA: theGradCafe Changing Hands”
Reddit, r/gradadmissions

Alternatives

Compare Thegradcafe with each alternative.

  • Program-specific applicant spreadsheets

    Community-built sheets with deadlines, fees, and results.

Full analysis

Based on 20+ public sources: site pages, Reddit threads, breach databases, and academic references.

Free crowd-sourced grad admissions results and forums — useful signal, but unverified data and a 2023 breach. Use a burner email.

Methodology

Based on 20+ public sources: site pages, Reddit threads, breach databases, and academic references.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. Grad School Admissions Results for 2006–2026thegradcafe.com
    official
  2. The GradCafethegradcafe.com
    official
  3. Gradcafe is the worst, but I can't help but checkreddit.com
    review
  4. PSA: The GradCafe Forums is a community where ...reddit.com
    review
  5. PSA: theGradCafe Changing Handsreddit.com
    news
  6. TheGradCafe Data Breach — Have I Been Pwnedhaveibeenpwned.com
    security
  7. TheGradCafe Data Breach — Mozilla Monitormonitor.mozilla.org
    security
  8. thegradcafe.com Cross Site Scripting vulnerabilityopenbugbounty.org
    security
  9. IMPORTANT: TheGradCafe was breached.reddit.com
    security
  10. What are the best forums about graduate school?quora.com
    review
  11. Student Experience Applying to Graduate School (ASHA)pubs.asha.org
    review
  12. A Service that Compiles Admission Statistics from GradCafereddit.com
    review
  13. gradcafe-admissions-data on GitHubgithub.com
    official
  14. A better alternative to thegradcafe.com?urch.com
    review
  15. what is with the gradcafe's intrusive questionsforum.thegradcafe.com
    review

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