Match.com is a popular dating site that was started in April 1995. This makes it the pioneer in the online dating industry, as it was the first such site. Love is universal, so Match.com did not take much time in expanding worldwide. The dating platform now services 24 countries and territories and hosts Web sites in 15 different languages.
Match.com has a large member base. Thus, you can hop to Match.com, and with a click of the mouse, you can instantly view singles in your area or beyond.
Like many of the dating sites out there, to use Match.com, you’ll have to create a profile. The profile will include a self-written summary of yourself, selected preferences regarding the person you are searching for, and some photos. Match.com will use your profile preference to match you with potential singles. However, you can also use their advanced search tool to find your matches yourself.
The website says it will help you find that special someone. Should you believe that? Well, it also says that it has led to more dates, relationships and marriages than any other site.
Match.com advertises that it “create romantic opportunities so singles are more likely to find someone special”.
It is not news that most singles want to meet that special someone who they can have a happy long-term relationship with. Neither is it news that there are many dating sites in the market claiming to help singles find that “special someone”. However, most often than not, the journey that these dating sites take their users through is a frustrating one.
Yes, Match.com legit. It is not a scam dating site because they render their services when you subscribe without a problem. And they will never steal your credit card details or money.
Thus, the big question is whether Match.com will lead you to that “special someone”, or whether it will take you through a frustrating journey. In the first place, is Match.com profiles fake?
This Match.com review will examine Match.com in order to provide the information that will help you answer these questions and more.
An ideal dating site should have a good membership pool. It’s not hard science that a large member base means more prospects. As it is said; with more fishes in a pond, you’re more likely to catch a fish. Match.com ticks the box in this regard. Though it is not the industry leader in terms of members, the dating site ranks among the largest in this regards. At the time of writing this review, Match.com had over 21 million members worldwide, with more than half of its members residing in the US.
Match.com is legit. It is not a scam dating site. The fear of being ripped off is one reason why people take the effort to determine that an online platform is legit before using it, especially when it requires that money be sent. With dating sites, the danger of not using a legit site is not limited to financial loses, but also emotional and psychological damage. Thus, the big question is whether Match.com is legit.
The short answer is a resounding yes. Match.com ticks all our legitimacy boxes. Our first check of legitimacy is usually legality. Because, most often than not, legit sites are 100% legal, and recognized and permitted to operate by legal jurisdiction. Match.com ticks this box, as the site is operated by a company (Match Group, LLC) which is duly registered in Texas, USA. In the least, this means that Match.com is 100% legal.
Our second check of legitimacy is recognition and visibility. This is because the scam sites operate only virtually, with no physical trace. On the other hand, Match.com is one of the most visible dating sites in the industry. Apart from their registered office in Dallas, they are about the only dating sites that organize group events where their members can meet each other in person. Match.com has also received praise from industry watchers for innovative features such as Smart Search, Date Spark, and more. Suffice it to say that a scam site will neither innovate to improve its service offering nor get recognition of industry watchers.
Another test of legitimacy is the test of time. This means that in the course of time, a scam site will be found out, called out, and consequently disappear. Match.com has towed the opposite lane. It is almost two and a half decades since it opens its virtual doors as the first dating site in 1995, yet it remains as one of the best dating sites in the market.
Our last check of legitimacy is fit for purpose. That is whether Match.com can actually help you find that special someone. Only the statistics can answer this. In this regard, Match.com says that the site has led to more dates, relationships and marriages than any other site. While there are some disgruntled users in independent review platforms, you’ll also find users with success stories. Thus, it’s safe to say that Match.com does help users find their special someone.
That said; for being a 100% legal company, for being visible and gaining the endorsement of many industry watchers, for having almost two and a half decade of seamless operation, and for having helped a lot of users find their “special someone”, there is no doubt that Match.com is legit.
Match.com is also safe. And Safety in this regard is the ability of the platform to prevent the sensitive information that you share with it from falling into the wrong hands. To have success when using a dating site, you’ll have to give up a lot of information about yourself. You’ll definitely not want your personal information leaking out, not when identity thieves and other bad elements are all too eager. Also, you’ll give up credit card details when making payment; and if such is not well guarded, other online fraudsters will be all too eager to intercept it and defraud you. Thus, the ideal dating site must not only be legit but also safe.
Match.com ticks that box. The company says in its privacy policy that users’ privacy is important to them. The company adds that it uses physical, technical, and organizational security measures to ensure the protection of users’ data. Also, their systems are monitored for possible vulnerabilities and attacks, and when necessary their security measures are updated.
We’ll like the details of these security measures to bolster our confidence in them. However, it should be said that Match.com has openly acknowledged that the site is constantly under attack by hackers who are after its data. That the site has weathered these attacks when many other sites have leaked, gives confidence. Thus, it is safe to say that Match.com is safe
Match.com advertises that it create romantic opportunities so singles can meet their “special someone”. So the site serves singles. To use Match.com you have to be unmarried; and if you have been married, you have to be divorced or widowed. When registering to join Match.com, you’ll find that when filling your relationship status, there is no option for members who are already in a relationship.
Also, Match.com is for you whether you are seeking a heterosexual or homosexual relationship. When making your relationship selection to register with match.com, there are four options:
Also, Match.com is skewed towards long-time relationships and marriages. The website says that their success couples from all over the world are of love stories, invitations to weddings, and the births of new babies. That tells you that the site is for seekers of the long commitments; and not the short term flings or hookups.
You get started in Match.com by signing up. The signup process is relatively easy. You’ll only need to submit your zip code, email address, birthday, and relationship preference (your sex and the sex you are seeking). Then you’ll be directed to the profile builder page.
When it comes to dating sites, the profile is very important. It’s so important that there are a lot of “How-tos” online about writing dating profiles. Profiles introduce you to your prospective matches, and most times the profiles can be the inspiration for starting a conversation. Thus, you’ll want a dating site profile that allows you to focus on things that really matter. Match.com ticks the box in this regards.
The profile of match.com is very detailed; and most importantly, focuses on your interests and lifestyle. Unlike, some dating sites that prioritize superficial things like salary range, Match.com put your interests at the fore.
The profile consists of three main parts. One part of the profile is where you are to give your details. You’ll submit general information about yourself such as your gender, location, birthday, relationship status, profession and more. You’ll have to describe your appearance (height, body build, etc), ethnicity, and values (such as faith and ethics). You’ll also have to describe the type of person you are seeking; you can include everything from the person’s age range, appearance, smoking and drinking preference, to the person’s search radius from your location.
Another part of the profile highlights your interest/ lifestyle. There, you can indicate what you like doing such as volunteering, sports, playing cards, etc. One thing here is that Match.com gives you a list of pre-determined interests to pick from. Though the list is pretty long, it’s very likely that there could be something that interests you that is not included. That is where the third part of the profile comes in. It is an open-ended section where you use your own words to further describe your yourself; and or summarize your profile. You’ll add photos to complete the profile. Match.com allows you to add up to 26 pictures.
The profiles that will be displayed will consist of the self-written profile summary, a list of your answers to the profile building questions, and a gallery of uploaded pictures. While the profile of Match.com is very detailed, the profile building process is a relatively easy and straight forward step-by-step process. Some dating sites that sell “swift profile creation” give half-assed profiles that tell you little of the individuals, which is a classic case of sacrificing the profile to deliver a fast process. Also, many dating sites that sell “detailed profiles” have lengthy and somewhat cumbersome profile creation, which is a classic case of sacrificing profile creation to deliver a detailed profile.
Match.com serves both worlds by delivering a relatively easy profile creation process that produces detailed profiles.
Making a connection in Match.com can be done in two ways – you can either have Match.com do it for you, or you can do it yourself.
To go with the first (that is, having Match.com do it for you), you only have to go to the “Matches” tab in the website. There, you’ll find a list of suggested profiles. Match .com will use your profile preference to select these profiles and suggest them to you. If you like any of the profiles, there is a “Like” button that you can hit, and the profile owner will be notified. If you do like a profile, you’ll simply skip it and another profile will be shown.
To find matches yourself, Match.com has a “Discover” tab that you can use. This is simply a search tool. Match.com has arguably the most advanced search tool in the online dating world. Apart from the basic search filters such as age and location; you can also search matches by criteria such as looks, interests, and lifestyle. There is even a “Match Words” feature that allows you to search by keyword (more on Match Words later). Not only do you have extensive search filters; you can save your search queries to refer back to them later, and you can also customize how the search result will be displayed.
It’s good to have the options of getting match suggestions from Match.com as well as finding matches yourself. If you do not have confidence in your choices, you can simply go with the former, by going to the “Matches” tab and checking the suggested profiles. Clicking on the “Matches” tab will also be the way to go if you don’t have the time or simply do not want to go through searching for profiles.
However, going through only profiles that are suggested to you can easily become restrictive. Even if quality matches are suggested, there are many users who will want to find out what is outside those suggestions. If you’ll want to have a say in your prospective matches, then you’ll have to click on the “Discover” tab and search the Match.com member base using a variety of filters.
When you like what you see in a profile and you initiate communication, you do not have to worry about privacy. This is because all communication between members on the platform happens through an “anonymous” email network.
Making a connection – overview
This is one of the advanced search tools that Match.com offers. It allows you to search the Match.com member pool for compatible individuals using certain keywords. For example, if you’ll want to spend your spare time re-watching Game of Thrones, you can key in “Game of Thrones” as your search words, and the system will bring up profiles that have Game of Thrones. Talk about finding profiles that share your interests; the Match Words feature just made that simpler.
After sending a message to a match, if you’ll want to know the very moment the person reads the message, the Email Read Notification is the answer. It alerts you anytime your message to a perspective is read. However, this feature is only accessible on the paid plans.
This feature uses Match.com uses your profile preferences to identify profiles that are compatible with you. Thus, many of these persons will share the same interests as you and are more likely to like you.
Reverse Matches is another fine feature that can increase the possibility of your finding that “special someone”. Typically, the “Matches” tab shows profiles of persons that best fits the description of who you are looking for.
However, there is a saying that “you do not know what you need until you have found it”. If you find any truth in that saying, you’ll want to look at the “Reverse Match” list of Match.com. It is a list of individuals who are searching for persons like you; though, you might not be searching for persons like them.
It can easily be frustrating if you are making your own search, and profiles that you have seen before keep coming up. However, this is something you should expect in almost every dating site. With the membership of Match.com very large, you could be checking a profile without knowing that it’s one that you have checked before which was a no-no.
The New User Highlights feature help prevents wasting time on past no-no profiles. The feature highlights all new users so you can easily find new prospects.
One way of getting noticed is by appearing in the suggested profiles that Match.com sends to another user as compatible – meeting their profile preferences. What about appearing first on that list?
The Match Me feature puts you on top of the list of another user’s Match suggestion list. If in your search of the user base, you find someone you like; you can simply hit that person up, or take the route of clicking “Match Me”, and Match.com will put you on the list of profiles recommended to that person as compatible. However, you’ll need to be compatible with the person else you cannot access the “Match Me” button to request being put as number one on the persons Match suggestions.
This is another add-on feature of Match.com. The Boost feature creates visibility for your profile for a limited period of time, usually one hour. If you buy the add-on, your profile will be the top suggestion on “Matches” and “Discover”. This is like an advancement over the “Match Me” feature. In Match Me, you can only request to be put on top of the Match list of particular persons. But with Boost, your profile will be put on top of the suggested Match list of every compatible person; your profile will also be first in search results when users search the membership pool themselves for compatible profiles. So for one full hour, your profile will get unrivalled visibility.
While phone communication with perspective is essential, you will not want an invasion of privacy. Thus, you’ll want to be able to have phone communication with prospective anonymously. The Match Phone feature provides anonymous calls between matches.
Match.com will assign you a customs number; on your match’s phone, it is the customs number that is displayed as the caller ID anything you do voice call. You can use this custom number until a time when you feel comfortable to reveal your real phone number.
Date Spark is another of Match.com innovative features to bring together persons that are highly compatible. You only need to propose a date idea (place, setting, etc); and then watch the responses of the member base. From these, you’ll be able to sieve out persons who have the same interest and preferences like you.
Match.com goes out of their way to create ways for matches to interact and bond. While the interacting resources of traditional dating sites are limited to chats, emails, and phone communication, Match.com has a whole lot more. One of such is their short games.
Match.com have 7 games, which typically last between 1 – 5 minutes. Matches can catch some fun while they get to know each other better by playing such games with titles as Best and Worst, Drawn Together, Food Critic, If I Could and Gut Reaction, Name That Dance, and Romance Rip Off.
Match.com takes its innovative “interacting resources” to a whole new level with their “Stir Events”. These are group events organized where their users can get to meet up each other face to face. Needless to say, this feature is available only to premium users. Users get invited to events in their locality. These events range from cocktail parties to outdoor activities like hiking.
When it comes to paying money for anything product or service, you’ll not want to pay more than is reasonable. Thus, the ideal service providers should have prices that are reasonable, or as low as possible. Match.com does relatively well in this regards.
So, how much does it take to use Match.com? You can actually use match.com free of charge because they have a free plan that does not expire. However, the dating site also has paid plans, which means that its free plan will have some limitations. How much limitations?
With the free plan of Match.com, you can create your profile, add photos, browse on member search to see all potential users on the platform, and send “winks” and likes. And that’s where it stops. If you’ll want to contact other singles, send or receive email messages, see who has viewed your profile, and more, you’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan.
Match.com has two different paid plans – the Standard plan, and the Value Plan. Each plan has different packages different only in the billing period. For example, the Standard plan has four packages – a 1-month package, a 3 months package, a 6 months package, and a 12 months package. Subscribers to the packages of the Standard plan will have access to the same features; the only difference will be the duration of time the service can be accessed. The 1-month package cost $35.99, the 3 months package works out to $19.99 per month; the 6 months package works out to $17.99 per month; while the 12 months package works out to $15.99 per month.
The Value Plan has all the features of the Standard plan, such as contacting singles, and sending or receiving email messages; but it includes other special features such as “Email read notifications”. The Value Plan have different packages as well; its three months package works out to $23.99 per month, while its 6 months package works out to $19.99 per month.
One question that needs to be answered here is whether Match.com is expensive. The pricing of the dating site as listed above puts them in the middle of the pack in the industry. The prices are not by any means the highest in the industry, but they also cannot be considered cheap.
As with almost every other paid service in the market, the longer your subscription, the more cost savings you will get because the longer term packages are discounted. That said; one month is really not enough to meet that “special someone” for a long-term commitment. Thus, the one-month packages are not popular choices; making the 3 months and 6 month packages the more popular packages.
However, we are not fans of having different paid service plans. This is because special features will be reserved in higher priced plans, and knowing that one is missing out on some features despite being a paid subscriber is (in our opinion) not a good feeling.
You can access the full range of features of Match.com free of charge. This is because Match.com gives a time-limited free trial of any of the paid plans. The trial is for a three days trial of either the Standard Plan or the Value Plan. If you choose to try the Standard Plan, you can access all the features of the plan free of charge. At the end of the free trial, you will be automatically subscribed to the plan you tried. However, since you will automatically be moved to the plan after the trial period; if you are not satisfied with the service, you should do well to cancel, else you’ll be charged.
We like service providers that stand behind their service. Match.com is in the business of helping you find love, and they back their ability at doing that with a 6 months guarantee.
Match.com guarantees that if after 6 months of using the service as a paid member, you do not find that “special someone”, you will get an additional 6 months free access to the service. However, to be eligible for the guarantee, you have to subscribe to at least the 6 months package. You also need to have been active in the platform. For example, you’ll need to have a profile with a photo which is visible to the public; and you’ll also need to have responded to or initiated email communication with at least 5 unique users on a monthly basis.
We understand that finding long term relationships should not be hurried. However, 6 months will be a long time to test the waters of any service. Thus, we find the 6 months subscription requirement of the guarantee as too long. Some of the other competing dating sites in the market offer a 3 months guarantee with a 3 months subscription requirement.
Also, it should be said that the guarantee is not a money back guarantee. Match.com states it clearly in their Terms of Use that “all purchases are nonrefundable”. Thus, if you do not get an ideal match in 6 months with the services of the dating site; you cannot request to get your money back. What the Match Guarantee will give you are an additional 6 months to use the service free of charge.
If you look at the independent online review platforms, you’ll find that one of the biggest complaints that users have about Match.com is that of recurring charges. That is, users who have stopped using the service are charged.
It should be said that Match.com states it in their “Terms of Use” that “if you purchase a subscription, it will automatically renew—and you will be charged—until you cancel”. With that Match.com can be excused. However, some have countered that the auto-renewal statement is hidden away in the fine prints, such that many times the users are not aware of it. Also, some users have reported being charged even after cancelling their subscription.
Another complaint about Match.com that is prominent if you check the independent online review platforms is that many profiles seem to be inactive. That is, when some users search and reach out to prospective matches, they do not get responses. This has led many persons to reason that many of the profiles on the site are inactive.
To this, we can only say that it is impossible for a dating site to weed out every inactive profile, so there are definitely inactive profiles in Match.com. However, it doesn’t mean that a sign of their large member pool is inactive. There are definitely many active members in Match.com. One explanation for the inactivity is that when users cancel their subscription, Match.com is obliged to let the existing subscription run out; and in that time, will continue to display the user’s profile, even though the user may have quit visiting the site.
There is no way to tell that a user is a non-paying member (that is, using the limited free plan). Thus, when you search and reach out to such users, there is no way they can read your messages or respond. Thus, this could be another explanation for the high number of unresponsive users. It doesn’t just stop at profiles you get yourself; Mach.com includes these non-paying members in the list of suggested Matches.
Match.com is a legitimate dating site. Almost two and a half decade later, the site still remains as one of the go-to destinations for singles wanting to meet their “special someone”. This tells you that Match.com is doing something right.
Yes, it is. Match.com has one of the largest user bases of dating sites which means that you are more likely to find a viable match in the site. Registration is relatively easy. The profile creation process of Match.com is easy, profiles in the site are relatively detailed, and does a very good job of introducing a user to prospects.
Match.com has a free account, but that is limited. You can access the full features of Match.com free of charge with its 3 days trial, but even the most optimistic user should know that finding the “special someone” in 3 days is a tall dream. Thus, you’ll have to subscribe to the paid plans of Match.com, which by the way are not the most expensive in the industry.
That is when you’ll have the magical experience of Match.com. The dating site trumps many dating sites out there with its advanced search tool, which allows users to search and filter profiles using different criteria. It also gives users a curated list of compatible matches. In Match.com, you’ll find the special features of top dating sites such as anonymous email messaging and phone call, and more; but Match.com also offers unique features such as games, special events, and more.
Match.com may be the oldest, but innovations over the years give it the glossy feel of any new dating site. In addition to this feel and innovative features, there are the success stories, which shows that Match.com has a track record of actually helping people find long term relationships. Also, since the website accept both straight and gay singles, there are many reasons why your online dating site should be Match.com.
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