Match.com Review

Pros

There has to be somebody right for you — Match is the largest dating website in the world in terms of sheer volume of users, so you’re almost certain to meet at least a few people whom you’re interested in. The easy-to-use search functions help with this.

Troublemakers need not apply — The website recently instituted a policy of performing background checks on people who sign up, so there is a much lower chance that you’ll meet someone who is just running a scam or is actually dangerous. The fact that you have to pay to use the service helps with this, too.

“Stir” events get you dating for real — The website has features and events that make it easy to get out from behind the computer and meet up with your matches — or just anyone whom you might be interested in — face-to-face in the real world.

Your “special someone” is guaranteed — If you initially sign up for a 6-month subscription and don’t find anyone whom you really click with during that time, you can use the website for another 6 months for free!

Cons

Be prepared to do some legwork — While the website’s search options are easy to use, Match isn’t as thorough as some other dating websites when it comes to helping you find and communicate with matches. It’s up to you to look into people whom you might be interested in and see if they’re worth contacting or not. It’s also up to you and your matches as to how frequently and in what ways you want to contact each other.

Love is pricey — While there is a free membership option, most of the website’s more useful features are unavailable unless you sign up for a paid subscription. And these subscriptions are expensive, costing between $15 and $25 a month, depending on which plan you choose.

Beware the red tape — The most common complaint about this website is that there are a lot of hidden or otherwise unclear “gotchas” concerning paying for subscriptions or redeeming the 6-month guarantee. For example, Match automatically renews whatever subscription you have when it expires, so if you want to change your plan or cancel your account, you have to contact them well in advance to avoid getting billed for a service that you aren’t using. Also, you have to have a certain level of activity on your account and explicitly tell Match before the 6-month guarantee has expired that you want to redeem it, in order to avoid just renewing a paid 6-month subscription.

The Bottom Line: 7.5/10

Match.com is definitely a website where you get out what you put in. With its large user base, easy-to-use search and communication tools, and events for meeting up with people in real life, it’s a great way to find a large number of possible dates and partners in a short amount of time. The downside is that it comes with a pretty steep cost, in terms of not only how much money you have to pay to keep your membership going, but also the amount of work that you have to do to get the most out of the website and its features.

The key to using this website is to be proactive in everything that you do. If you like it, use as many of its features as you can, as often as you can, in order to make sure that you’re getting your money’s worth. If you don’t like it, make sure you decide that early on, and act quickly to get out before you get stuck paying for a subscription that you’re not using.

If you think Match is a good fit for you, check out our next tutorial on how to sign up for Match. If you’re still unsure, you can read more details in the other articles of our free Match.com course before you commit to making an account.