Match.com is by far the largest online dating site in the US. This alone may be enough to recommend it. Unless you have fairly fringe tastes, it’s likely that you’ll find at least some of what you’re looking for on this site. In fact, although I count myself as having less-mainstream tastes, I’ve still made some wonderful connections through it. Match.com is a paid site, which means that the its users tend to be serious about their online dating.
Let’s look at Match.com one detail at a time…
It’s huge!
With well over a million active users, Match.com is more than twice as large as the next biggest sites. Critical mass is of users is key in any online endeavour – people want to use the site that everyone else is using. There is often only one winner in this game – Facebook, YouTube, Google, eBay … and Match.com. Match.com is easily the winner for mainstream online daters in the US. Wherever you are in the US, Match.com will have a selection of dating options for you. This is really the secret to Match.com’s success. In most ways it’s a very standard online dating site; it follows the basic formula, and does it well. However it has reached a position of dominance, and so has become the default site for most e-daters. Other US sites can only compete by catering to more specific demographics.
It’s a paid site
The subscription fee is ~$20 per month, as long as you’re willing to commit to at least 3 months. Otherwise it’s ~$40 per month. With the basic package you can send as many messages or winks as you like. Without the basic subscription you can’t even view messages sent to you, let alone respond to them. At the same time, an unpaid profile still appears in searches, but there’s no indication of subscription status. This is a little annoying because it’s impossible to tell whether the person you email is even able to open your message.
The paid nature of the site means that it attracts people who are pretty serious about meeting somebody. This means that you’ll probably find fewer flakes than on a free site like OkCupid or PlentyofFish. Anyone with a membership on Match.com is unlikely to be there “just for a lark”. Match.com users have taken a proactive step towards finding a partner, which may be good or bad, depending on what you’re looking for. If you’d rather come to the dating table with fewer expectations, then some of the Match.com demographic may be too relationship-focused for your tastes. On the other hand, if you’re willing to pay the fee then you’re probably in the same place as the rest of the Match crowd.
There are many options for upgrading your membership. You can pay separately to have your profile highlighted, or to have your profile emailed more often to new members, or to access Match.com from your cell phone (for complete addicts), or even to see when people open your messages (for the neurotic).
Although Match.com is a paid service, it still has ads. It even has annoying pop-ups, although these are related to the site itself.
Detailed profiling
When you fill out your Match.com profile, you are presented with a long series of multiple choice options to describe yourself. These cover everything from appearance to lifestyle to background and values. And in case you feel that you don’t fit in those little check boxes, never fear – most sections allow you to add your own text to describe what a unique snowflake you really are. You also get to pidgeonhole your ideal date — from your preferred hair color to ethnicity to field of employment. You can also search for people based on this huge range of criteria. So if all you really want is a heavyset, blonde sagitarrius who’s into body piercings and owns gerbils … well, you probably won’t find one, but you sure can search.
The Demographic
As the biggest online dating site in the US, Match.com naturally has a fairly broad user base, covering the full spectrum of age groups, nationalities, and socio-economic levels. It could be said that Match.com users tend towards the mainstream; scan through 50 profiles and you will see a lot of repetition. However there are so many people on Match.com that you’ll eventually find that special spark. As mentioned, its users shell out around $20 a month for the service, so they’re more likely to be looking for relationships.
Functionality
The site is very well established, and everything works… as long as you’ve paid your subscription. If not, the site is designed to be simultaneously tantalizing and annoying, and you’ll find yourself being redirected to the subscription page again and again.
The search function works well, and you can search based on a staggering array of criteria. Privacy options aren’t bad, but could be better – you can block individual users from sending you emails, but not from seeing your profile. The instant messaging system works well, and you can switch it off if you find IMs annoying.
Is it for you?
It’s free to search Match.com, so go browse through some profiles and see what you think. There are so many people on the site that it’s likely you’ll find one or two who take your fancy. However it might take you a while; the search criteria are extensive, but in a way superficial, so you may have to trawl through a lot of profiles before you find someone to connect with. If you have specific tastes, it might be more efficient to find a more specialized site, but if you want the broadest range of options, then Match.com is probably the site for you.
The Lowdown
Pros:
- enormous user base
- broad range of users
- easy to use
- users typically serious about meeting someone
Cons:
- it’ll cost you
- you don’t know whether the person you message can read it or respond
- ads, even though it’s a paid site
- can’t block people from seeing your profile