Match.com vs eHarmony: Which is the Best Dating Service?
Published on March 27, 2010
Match.com vs eHarmony – is one significantly better than the other? In my previous articles I discussed Match.com in great detail and then I did the same with eHarmony. In this article I will look at Match.com vs eHarmony, comparing the two services and make recommendations on which would be the best based on certain situations. Match.com and eHarmony are obviously similar in their goal: to help you find a great relationship. However, they help you accomplish this with very different approaches. Both of these services are excellent choices but based on your particular situation, one of the two services will likely be a better choice.
First, let’s look at a quick comparison of the two services as discussed in the previous articles:
| Cost | $19.99 per month* | $39.95 per month* |
| Matching | A simplistic matching system. Mutual matching which is a method of browsing other members. The mutual matching score is based on basic settings of your profile. | Advanced matching system. Compatibility based system that gives you quality matches based on your profile |
| Profile | Straight forward profile with relatively standard fields. | Unique profile with specific questions that are quite different from the normal dating site |
| Popularity | 4,252,000 unique visitors per month | 3,379,000 unique visitors per month |
| Communication | Open communication: contact who you want, when you want, how you want. Communication can occur far more often although much of the communication may be considered of less quality | Controlled communication: eHarmony walks its users through a step-by-step process that introduces the singles over time. There is often less communication but many consider the quality to be much higher. |
| Extra Features | Match has many unique features many of which are free. Other features, such as matchTalk, are also great but come at an additional cost. | eHarmony has some additional features but they all have additional costs. |
Which Service is Best for Me?
Each service has very strong qualities in different areas and these differences should be taken into consideration when choosing your service. To determine the best service, you really need to take your own situation into account. Below, different situations are presented and the best service for that situation is given with reasoning why.
Services are recommended based on the following situations:
If You Are New to Online Dating
If You Live in a Low Population Area
If You Struggle with Shyness
If You Are Most Interested in Dating Many People
If You Are Looking for Marriage
If You Are Most Concerned with Cost
If Your Religion is Your Top Priority
Brand New to Online Dating
Recommended Site: eHarmony
If you are new to online dating and are nervous or unsure of how to approach it, eHarmony is a great choice. The communication process at eHarmony actually creates a situation where you really feel as if you’re getting to know the person you are communicating with. It takes much of the guess work out of the communication process which is a huge help in the beginning. Also, while you will likely have less people to contact at eHarmony, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing for those new to online dating who are interested in taking things a bit slower.
Singles Living in Low Population Areas
Recommended Site: Match.com
If you live in an area that has a lower population and you’re not willing to travel more than 30 miles to meet other singles, Match.com is the better choice of the two. Match’s open communication system will allow you to contact exactly who you want. eHarmony’s matching system is a great strength but in this situation the system will provide very few matches which results in very few opportunities.
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Shy Individuals Trying Online Dating
Recommended Site: eHarmony
If you’re a shy person, eHarmony is a great choice. It provides the structure that many shy people need to feel comfortable. If you’re a shy person and you sign up at Match.com, you may struggle to contact as many people as you should to have real success. With eHarmony, the communication process is controlled enough that it’s very simple even for the shyest among us to get the conversation started.
Interest in Dating as Many People as Possible
Recommended Site: Match.com
Match.com is the clear winner in this category. Not everyone is anxious to settle down but some are more interested in meeting other singles and are simply looking to enjoy a health dating life. Match.com provides everything these people would need with one of the largest pool of singles to choose from and the ability to communicate how you wish. As I’ll talk in the next point, eHarmony has a substantial number of singles looking for long-term relationships and if you’re not at that point in your life, Match is absolutely the better option.
Seriously Looking for Marriage or Long-Term Relationships
Recommended Site: eHarmony
If you are looking to settle down into a marriage, eHarmony is the best choice. The first reason is that this is exactly what the service was originally created for: creating long-term, successful relationships. Additionally, most singles know that eHarmony is aimed at creating marriages which in turn attracts more people who are looking for exactly that. This creates a service that is attracting more marriage-minded singles because…it’s attracting more marriage minded singles!
Those Looking to Save Some Money
Recommended Site: Match.com
Match.com is obviously cheaper but in the big picture, the pricing of the two services are comparable (especially if you take advantage of one of eHarmony’s promotions). However, Match.com offers far more additional features at no cost to its users where eHarmony only offers its service for the subscription price. When it comes to finding that special someone, I would encourage my reader to not allow the $20 extra per month to be the deciding factor. However, if the cost is the most important factor to you then you already had your answer in the table above!
Dating with Religion as the #1 Priority
Recommended Site: eHarmony
If religion is your number one priority, eHarmony is in most cases a better choice. The reason is that as a part of signing up, you tell eHarmony not only your religious affiliation, but how important your religion is to you. You then provide information on how important it is to you that your dates share your faith. At Match.com, people often pick religions based on what their parents believe or for other reasons without any real interest or following of the selected faith.
Note that your faith is one of the areas that you can go back and change later so if you’ve already signed up for eHarmony but wish you had been more or less strict with your religious matching just go to “My Settings” and then “Background and Beliefs”.
In the end, both eHarmony and Match are both great choices. If you don’t fit into either of the categories above you should try the free features of both services and decide for yourself. Some specific situations give one service an edge over the other but in most cases both provide plenty of opportunity for success with online dating.
Author: Brad
Brad initially struggled with online dating but over time became quite successful using it. He met his wife using online dating and has been giving advice and helping people improve their results since 2007. He has written a Free Online Dating Guide to help others find success with online dating. You can learn more about his personal experience using online dating and running this website here.
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