Online Dating

There are a wealth of online dating sites out there. They are mostly the same: browse profiles, send a message, maybe you keep messaging each other, maybe not. I've tested out a few, and what follows is the essential information about the most popular (and some lesser known) Internet dating sites.


OK Cupid : Ok Cupid is my favorite Internet dating site. It's not as well advertised as the others, but it's fun and it's free. In addition to a profile, a person can post journal entries and pitctures. What is best about OK Cupid (other than that it's free) is all the tests they have. Everyone is encouraged to answer as many random questions as they want that deal with all sorts of subjects. These are used to judge the compatibility between any two people. The more questions answered, the more exact the judgment. You decide how important a question is to you, and this is factored into the compatibility ratings. Some of the questions that are important to you are placed on your tests page so people can see what's important to you. Additionally, there are staff and user-created tests that cover all sorts of subjects. They can be very fun, and your results are viewable by everyone. There are also "personality awards" that are given based on your answers to the "improve matches" questions. These are posted in your profile, allowing people to get a general sense of you.

Perfect Match : You can set up a profile for free and see your "perfect matches" as well as send "ice breakers," but you have to pay if you want to send e-mails. The best deal is their buy two months, get two months free deal. Two months costs $64.95 (while one month is just five dollars less than that). The profiles aren't very personal. Basically, they have the general statistics on a person (location, ethnicity, age, etc.) and then their answers to the profile questions that a person is asked when creating a profile. There is a section for people to type a few paragraphs describing themselves by responding to open-ended getting-to-know-you questions, but you are not prompted to do that when creating a profile, and it is not the first thing people see when looking at your profile. Additionally, the questions that make up your profile have limited answers. For instance, when you are asked about your hobbies, you can only choose two. While this would prevent people from selecting everything just to try and get more people interested, this is frustrating for people who genuinely have many interests. The draw of Perfect Match is that they scientifically determine your matches and give you "perfect matches" so you don't have to sort through a lot of profiles if you don't want to.

eHarmony : They wouldn't let me create a profile. I got that "Unable to match you at this time" message that you hear about in the chemistry.com commercials. Apparently it happens to twenty percent of the people trying to create a profile (and that's according to the nicely-worded message that eHarmony gives you). And it did make me feel a little bad. Apparently if you do not fit into a nice little box, or "defined profile," they would rather not match you than give you a non-stellar match. If you do get to create a profile, only your matches can see your profile so you don't have the option of browsing through all sorts of profiles just so you can find someone who might be interesting. You can create your "personality profile" for free and browse your matches for free, but you have to pay if you want to talk to your matches. It's $59.95 a month, with less per month if you sign up for multiple months, but all billed in one installment. Something good about eHarmony: It is focused on compatibility and geared towards helping create long-lasting relationships for the people who make the cut.

Match : Match.com is apparently the largest dating site. The profile has your statistics and allows you to make a personal statement. It includes your answers to a few open-ended questions. You can browse profiles as well as be matched. Creating a profile is free as well as seeing other profiles and winking at people, but you have to pay to send e-mails. You also have to pay to read any e-mails sent to you. Match.com is unique in a few ways, though. It does reverse searches, which allows you to find profiles of people who are looking for people like you. The cost is $34.99 per month or $16.99 per month with a six-month subscription. If you do not find someone in six months, they will give you six months free. However, you have to send a message to at least five different people each month to qualify.

Chemistry : Chemistry.com is from the same people who do match.com. Like the commercial implies, it's like eHarmony.com in that they match you based on "scientific tests" and you can't browse through random profiles. However, you won't randomly be rejected by the matching service like on eHarmony.com. It is geared towards creating long-term relationships. It has an actual personality test, unlike eHarmony which asks a bunch of questions about your values and beliefs. While knowing about your values and beliefs is good, personality tests are a good way to gauge how well you'll get along with other people. Just because you have the same values doesn't necessarily mean you'll get along. You can fill out the personality profile for free and view five of your matches for free, but you have to pay to contact people. It costs $49.95 for one month or $26.65 a month for six months.

True Beginnings : A unique aspect of True Beginnings is that they check users for felony offenders and check to see if users are married. You can create a profile, take their compatibility test, and browse other profiles (including your matches) for free. However, you have to pay to e-mail people. It costs $49.99 for one month or $129.99 for six months. The profiles have the basic statistics on the person, and the users have the option of making a few personal statements in reference to general, open-ended questions. True does give you the option of searching based on which people are looking for users like you. And they have different types of matches, so instead of just finding people who are a general match to your compatibility test, you can search for people who are a match to your communication skills or personality or your interests.

Craig's List : Quality control may be an issue, but if you want a date now Craig'sList is the best online place to go. Anyone who wants to can post an ad, and there are more than a fair number of lewd ads. However, there is a specific section for "casual encounters," so most of the lewdness is in there and staying in the "seeking" part is a safe bet. Just be careful opening ads that say they have a picture, because it might be somebody's penis. After going through a bunch of ads (and again, this is mostly on the casual encounters section, although it will depend on the people in your town) you learn not to be surprised. The great thing about Craig's List is that it's a one-stop shop. You can find a date, find someone to fix your computer, and maybe find a new apartment all in one place.


If you're not stressing out about finding "the one" right now, then join a free Internet dating site. If you are worried about finding "the one" right now, try Chemistry.com. The problem with paid dating sites is that if you do find someone you like and you message them, it's very likely that they don't have a paid membership so they won't be able to message you back. And they claim to pair people up based on "scientific" tests, but when was the last time anyone has heard of love being scientifically verifiable? Of course, take the necessary precautions when meeting someone you found on the Internet.