Dating Sites HQ is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
In the world of dating sites, eHarmony is one of the grand-daddies that have set the bar for all the rest.
They aren’t a dating site so much as they are an electronic matchmaking service. You can’t browse, you have who eHarmony decides you like shown to you. That isn’t as bad as it sounds; they are selected based on an extensive interaction between you and their profile questionnaire. If you answered honestly and fully, chances are you will find someone who at least has a real chance. You can find eHarmony.com reviews on Reddit and Quora. Most of them are positive but some are negative.
First Impressions
Slick! That is about what sums up the first impression of eHarmony. The second word you would use is – serious. You don’t get to browse around here, you are asked to complete a 400 question profile so that eHarmony can work its wonders. This is the proprietary profile matchmaking formula developed for the site that has gotten so much attention in the media. Does it work? There are a lot of testimonials about people finding their partners using it. That doesn’t mean that it will work for you. This is a site that is only for heterosexuals looking for lasting relationships/marriage.
How does it compare in the real world?
According to Alexa, eHarmony is holding its own well in the world. Popular in the US, and slightly popular in Canada it has a global rank of 3,221 with a total annual loss of ranking of 318 spaces. In the US, it is ranked 773. One of the most interesting things about the performance of eHarmony is how stable it is. For a dating site as “old” as eHarmony, it is holding its place well in dating choices.
- There are more women than men on the site.
- Most members are college educated.
- The mean demographic age is mid 30 to early 40s; the prime career marriage ages.
The site also has a respectable showing for how long members are on the site each time they visit and how many visits they get per day. This statistic is a little unfair to eHarmony as how they structure their features is much different from other dating sites that may lead them to score deceptively lower in this category.
Features
Unlike other dating sites where you have an option where you can pay attention to their suggestions or just search for yourself, eHarmony does not allow you to browse member profiles. Their whole site is based upon the use of their matchmaking program. Here are some of the other features you will find.
- No open profile searching
- Chat and forum options, plus in site messaging.
- Fully realized mobile applications.
- Enhanced matchmaking options.
Not being able to search for yourself has its advantages and disadvantages. Their profile assessment is remarkably thorough and as you reject their suggestions you are allowed to enhance your profile to give them more feedback in what you are looking for. This site is about finding lasting relationships and heavily emphasizes marriage – it is not for someone looking for a casual hookup.
Price and membership
This is one of the most expensive dating sites around. A one-month membership comes in at just under $60, but you may also be charged taxes and fees. There are some ways to bring the cost down by agreeing to pay upfront for a large block of time – you can bring the monthly cost down to around $20 if you are willing to pay almost $300 for a 12 month membership. There are lots of complaints about wrong charges posted by former members, but they all boil down to the members not carefully reading the terms and conditions and understanding the process and timeframes for cancellation.
Conclusion
There is a reason why eHarmony is still considered one of the best ways to find a serious relationship; there are more accounts of people finding someone through the service than any other. Their unique approach to matching people works in today’s world where you really don’t have the time to be looking at profiles, or looking at them in enough depth to really get a feel for the person. The drawback for many is the price. You are paying for a matchmaker, not account access and it shows.
