This post is 2 of 4 in a series exploring the most commonly used online dating sites and/or apps. Post 1 focused on eHarmony, and if you have ever been curious about if eHarmony is right for you, I suggest reading it.
Before I bore you with an into you probably don’t care about, please read on about match.com!
match
About: Similar to eHarmony is reputation and general awareness, Match has been around for years and we all know who they are. Match’s current marketing campaign or slogan is that they are the site that leads to “more first dates, more relationships, and more marriages than any other site”. They do cater to a younger crowd and over time Match has become increasingly popular with the 20-something crowd. Unlike eHarmony, Match is open to all more open to same-sex relationships and will let you register on on their site and match you with other gays, lesbians, or straights. Please note that match allows you to search for partners for Straight, Gay, or Lesbian relationships, they do not include a search feature for bi-sexuals. Match runs on the idea that they want to help you find love and will provide you the platform to make that possible by presenting you with basically all available options.
Subscription Fees: When signing up the site will suggest you sign up for a 6 month subscription at a discounted rate, which also includes the match.com guarantee. This guarantee states that if you do not find a meaningful relationship in the first 6 months, they will give you 6 months free to try again. When I signed up for a Match account, I did select to go with the 6 month subscription because it is the best offer. They advertise it as a monthly rate of about $28, but what you will soon realize is that you are not charged per month, you are charged in one installment of roughly, $127. You can also opt for either a 3 month or 1 month subscription as well. Similar to eHarmony, Match will cost you about $60 for a single month subscription.
If you ever see an ad for a 7 day free trial, be advised that you can get 7 days for free, but will need to provide a credit card to redeem your trial. As soon as they 7 days are up, Match will charge you for a 6 month subscription unless you cancel your trial on day 7. If you do not intend to pay for a subscription DO NOT FORGET TO CANCEL YOUR TRIAL. They will charge you and refunds are nearly impossible to receive.
Do I need a subscription?: YES. Even though you can make a profile without a subscription and upload a photo, your access to the site pretty much ends there. You can review your matches for free, which is something they advertise about, however when reviewing you will see an abbreviated version of their profile. Without a subscription you will not be able to send or receive messages from other members and you will not be able to see who has viewed your profile. You will be able to “wink” at members and “like” photos, but unless if they are a premium paid account holder, you will not be able to communicate with each other. Premium account holders can communicate with ANY member, regardless of that members subscription level.
Aside from the standard subscription, there are a handful of additional features you can subscribe to once actually in the site. These include letting you know when a message has been read, having your profile highlighted and show up in more results, and boosting your profile to a top result to other members for 1 hour. These all are additional fees.
Communicating: Communicating on Match is much more open ended than on eHarmony. Match lets you message, wink, like, and instant message other members. The instant message feature, if you turn it on, will allow other members to see that you are online and available to chat. Members are also able to message you over and over and over again, even if you do not respond or tell them you are not interested. You can block members and can report them to the site if they are exhibiting behavior that borders on harassment.
On member profiles, there are now features to verify your profile, which include linking to your Facebook page, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. Members do not have instant access to your social media pages, it is just a means of reassuring members that you are “verified” as who you say you are and are not out there cat fishing. Thanks MTV for making that a real thing we need to be concerned about.
Am I going to actually find matches?: Most likely, yes. Match has thousands upon thousands of members. Unlike eHarmony, Match does allow open/free searching. You can narrow matches by different qualifying criteria and will be shown all relevant matches. You have the ability to truly browse hundreds of people. People also tend to be pretty willing to communicate on Match. During my time on the site I communicated with people via the Instant Message feature as well as the traditional messages. Within 10 minutes of being on the site I was chatting with a really nice guy about our shared love of Seinfeld. We even had set up a date pretty quickly, but I never made it to the date due to scheduling conflicts with work, oops. You will find people that are looking for all types of relationships, which ranges from Friends to Long Term Dating. Most profiles will state what they are looking for, but never be afraid to ask someone what their intentions are.
What else do I need to know?:That match.com guarantee mentioned in subscription costs, THERE ARE REQUIREMENTS TO IT. In order to qualify for this “guarantee offer”, over the 6 months of your subscription you MUST have used the site actively (profile must be visible, with a profile picture), logging in multiple times a week, and actively communicate with members while on the site. You also must be communicating with at least 5 different members each month, so if in January you message Steve A, and in February you message Steve B, then in March message Steve A again, in March you have not communicated with a different member because you were already in contact with Steve A. This communication MUST be messages and cannot be any of the “passive” means of communication on the site (winks, photo likes, etc.). Finally, in order to get the 6 free months, after your initial 6 month period, you need to submit a request to Match for the “guarantee”. If you browse the Better Business Bureau website, there are literally THOUSANDS of complaints against match.com about this guarantee and how it is not entirely clear when signing up that there these requirements in place and that it is up to you to request the 6 months free. If you do not request it, you will not receive it and instead will be charged an automatic renewal of your subscription.
When you sign up for a subscription, you are also signing up for automatic renewal of said subscription. This means that unless if you go into your setting and turn that option OFF, your subscription will automatically renew and charge the card you have on file for another subscription cycle when the current one is up.
Final Thoughts: Match, like eHarmony has a pretty solid reputation. Where eHarmony tends to attract the 30 & up a little bit more, Match has a really strong presence for the 20-something crowd. With Match you do have the freedom to search through soooo many matches and are presented with a TON upon logging into the site. I personally felt a little bit overwhelmed by this, and the site felt a bit disorganized to me, which left me feeling more overwhelmed. I know a handful of people that do use Match and love the freedom and all the options, and for them paying for a subscription feels like they are getting a better value for online dating.
Match is one that I would reccomend, even for someone that is just starting their adventure in online dating. Their mobile app is pretty easy to use, and with the eagerness that members do have to engage with each other, you can anticipate at least opening the lines of communication with other members.
Guide on eHarmony can be found here.
This post will be updated with links to the remaining reviews as they are posted.
I'd Rather be Single. 