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Match.com     

Owning Company: InterActiveCorp (IAC)
Match.com

Editor Rating

 
 7.8
Very Good

Av. User Rating

Price:
$US 19.99 - 39.99/ month
depending on length of subscription
(See full details)

Editor review

Match.com 2012-02-21 19:02:53 Morgan Clear
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

"Still One of the Best"

Summary

The Good: Trusted, global brand; very large userbase in the tens of millions ; advertisements keep bringing in new members; good member quality and profile screening; easy sign-up; good matching tools; few fake profiles.
The Bad: Web interface quite outdated for 2012; some profiles are dormant/inactive
The Bottom Line: Match was the pioneer in the online dating space and is now one of the biggest sites out there. It is not the most innovative site anymore and its interface could do with a refresher, but it has so many members that it’s still a good bet for online daters.
Editor Rating
 
 7.8
Very Good
Member Choice 
 
9.0
Match & Search 
 
7.0
Ease of Use 
 
6.0
Privacy & Safety 
 
8.0
Help & Support 
 
8.0

Reviewed by:

Reviewed on:
February 21, 2012
Last updated:
March 01, 2012

Detailed Review

Member Quality & Choice:

Match.com is one of the biggest dating sites on the Internet and possibly the most famous. Founded in 1995, it’s also one of the oldest sites and was a pioneer in the online dating space.

Match's homepage


Match. com has both advantages and disadvantages due to its age, fame and size. With more than 20 million members, Match has one of the broadest reach online. The large userbase increases your chances of finding more quality matches in your area, and the regular TV ads also contribute to generate new members regularly, which is a plus.

However, you should note that some profiles are dormant or inactive – they belong to someone who hasn’t signed in for months and might never come back. We recommend that you pay attention to the “last signed in” date on each profile to avoid frustrations.

Sign-up is quick and easy

Match.com advertises itself as a site for people “serious about finding love”. From our tests, we can say that Match seems to have found a good balance in its screening process for profile quality. Some sites try to control too much, while some sites (especially free sites) control nothing at all and some profiles get a bit too “out there”. Match is somewhere in the middle.

Sign up is quick and easy, and there isn’t a super lenghtly questionaire taking too much of your time like on some other dating sites. Most of the pics you upload will easily be approved if they are not graphic, however, because the site has millions of members, the approval process can take up to a day.

Match sign-up questions


You can register for free and instantly browse members profiles. However only paid subscribers have the ability to email and respond to messages from other members, so your free profile really has a limited use. You need to try a subscription to be able to use the site.

Once registered, you can access Match's Personality Assessment, which is built automatically by the system from your answers. Reading it is interesting, and the results help a lot in matching with the right people.

Match


On Match.com, you can do the usual search where and see other members’ profile according to the criterias you’ve set. You can save your search criteria to reuse them again nex time. Profile display quickly,and a nice touch is that you can browse through all pictures of someone on the profile page itself (no need to load a separate page!).

Match.com search page


If you just want to sit back, Match has a feature called Daily 6 where which will automatically submit new profiles to you every day, based on its algorythm.

Good safety features

On the safety and usability side, it’s it quite straight forward to block users or remove them from earch results. You can also filter those who are able to contact you – prohibiting someone to message you if they are not in the right area, are too old/young for you, etc etc.

All other forms of communication between members on Match.com, such as instant messaging, video and audio also have built-in features that allow members to remain anonymous.

Match also has a robust mobile application for you to date on the go, available for most platforms eg iphone, Android, Blackbery, etc.

If you subscribe and can’t find a good match right away, you’ll be able to use the Match.com Guarantee. If you are still single after 6 months, Match gives you an additional 6 months free of charge.

Match's 6-month satisfaction guarantee


Our Conclusion

There is a reason why Match has stand the test of time. It has plenty of competition these days, but it's still one of the best bet for online daters.

Go to Match.com

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Stats on Match.com

Match.com is one of the largest, oldest and most popular online dating sites having nearly 20 years in operation (it was conceived by Internet entrepreneur Gary Kremen in 1993 and went live in 1995).

The company has a standard dating service which differentiates itself mostly via t...  See Full Summary
Match.com's
Accreditation
BBB

Membership Base Size

Active Members Estimate: 24,000,000

Male vs. Female Member Breakout: 48% men | 52% women

Geographic & Language Coverage:

North America:
  • U.S.A.
  • Canada
 Europe: United Kingdom (UK) Oceania: Australia
Language(s):
English

Relationship Type, Status and Needs Served:

Relationship Status(es): Single
Relationship Type(s): Straight
Looking For:
  • Penpals
  • Dating
  • Long Term/ Serious Relationship
  • Marriage
  • Hookup/ Casual Sex
(Learn how our estimates are created)
Last Updated: February 10, 2012

Free vs. Paid Access to Features

You can access 25% of the functionality on this site before payment is required.
(See feature breakout)

Basic Subscription Options

• 1 month subscription $39.99
• 3 month subscription $68.97 ($22.99/ month)
• 6 Month subscription $119.94 ($19.99/ month)

Premium Subscription Options

• 1 month subscription $22.99

Premium Upgrade Benefits and Pricing

The Gold Package is an upgrade of the basic subscription package. It is only sold as an option on the 6 month subscription package and offers one main advantage: You can send and receive messages from all members on the site (this means including Free members who can't message other standard package members).

Cost: $24.99 for 6 month subscription ($24.99 / month).

Accepted Payment Methods

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • American Express

Pricing Data Last Updated: February 18, 2012

Feature When You Can Access it
Free
Unregistered		 Free
Registered		 Paid
Basic		 Paid
Premium		 N/A
Match & Search
1. Search Profiles
2. Match Assessment/ Personality Test
Creating & Viewing Profiles
3. View Partial Profile
4. View Full Profile
5. Create Profile
Communication & Messaging
6. Send/ Receive Messages
(Restricted)
7. Send/ Receive Messages
(Unrestricted)
8. Send Icebreakers
(Flirt/ Winks/ Pokes/ Gifts)
9. Chat/ Instant Messaging
10. Video Chat
11. Forums/ Discussion Groups
Privacy & Safety
12. Block Other Members
13. View Who Visits Your Profile
14. Hide Visits to Others Profiles
Other Services
15. Dating Advice
16. People Nearby
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User reviews for Match.com

6 User Review(s)

Average User Rating

 
 7.9
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Match & Search*  
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Ease of Use*  
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Privacy & Safety*  
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Most Helpful User Reviews

 
Match.com 2012-02-25 10:34:45 McKinseyStefan
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
Male
 
8.8

"one of the good ones"

Reviewed by McKinseyStefan on February 25, 2012
I'm travelling nationwide 30+ weeks a year so I rely on dating online, maybe more than I would like but hey, what can you do....

I have an account and membership on a few sites, including this one. It's one of the good ones. You get what you put in though. Spend a while browsing and messaging every few days and in time, you'll get rewarded for your efforts. That's true of every site by the way in my experience.

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Match.com 2012-02-21 19:12:38 Joan
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
Female
 
8.1

"Enough members to make it happen!"

Reviewed by Joan on February 21, 2012
Last updated: February 24, 2012
I agree with the above review, Match's interface isn't the newest. But for me that's not the most important, the key is how many members there are in my area. For this it's hard to beat Match. It's just huge. I've tried to look for matches in my city (Miami) and in a more rural area (where I grew up) and both places had lots of matches. Seems everyone in on Match! For this alone I think it's worth a try.

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Match.com 2012-02-23 11:40:11 Richard
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
Male
 
8.0

"New members all the time"

Reviewed by Richard on February 23, 2012
Last updated: February 24, 2012
Match advertises a lot so you always have new members joining in your area. It keeps things fresh if like me you keep losing your girlfriend every few months ;)

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Match.com 2012-02-25 10:42:42 Ashley
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
Female
 
7.9

"Helpful"

Reviewed by Ashley on February 25, 2012
I've only tried Match so I can't really compared with other places, but the site works well and for me who isn't so good with computers the help guides and the help staff is good. They reply quickly and take good care of you if you are a paying customer (i'm not sure for free members). Like i just had a question this morning and I already got an answer by email.

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Match.com 2012-02-22 17:57:13 Zop-n
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
Female
 
7.5

"A good choice"

Reviewed by Zop-n on February 22, 2012
Last updated: February 24, 2012
After trying several sites, I find that Match is a pretty good choice; it's a big site and there is no stigma attached to it, like, everyone is on Match or knows someone who is. You can tell your friends or your exes about it and it's no big deal. Clean place for serious people.

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Match.com 2012-02-24 10:41:01 Lola
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful
Female
 
7.0

"Pretty good"

Reviewed by Lola on February 24, 2012
I've been avoiding online dating for years, but finally I gave in in early 2012. I went to match simply because I remembered the name from the ads over the years. Also a friend of mine used it to get a boyfriend like 2 years ago.

So far I'm satisfied with the experience. Many good guys with good jobs. Easy to use. I get matches in my inbox. It's like my little treat every day at lunchtime! Often I look at it with colleagues and we have a laugh. But every week I get one or two guys I like and I can wink at them. Most message back!

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