Match.Com Vs. EHarmony: Choosing the Best Internet Dating Site for You

If you are in your 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's, and possibly even your 60's you may have considered using an Internet dating service to help you on your journey to meet that special someone. There are quite a few sites to choose from, with two of the most popular and well-known sites being Match.com and eHarmony.

Having firsthand experience with both sites I'd like to offer a bit of advice to help you choose the service that is right for you. Match.com and eHarmony both charge fees to use their service, though Match will allow you to search available singles without paying to join. Fees for eHarmony higher than those charged at Match, but eHarmony uses their very detailed questionnaires to help find the most compatible members for you to communicate with.

Match.com allows the user to determine who they will communicate with by providing you with profiles to view that include pictures and lists of likes, dislikes, turn-ons, and turn-offs. You are able to filter the profiles through searches based on age, male/female, and location. As previously mentioned eHarmony asks that you answer extensive questionnaires before they provide you with compatible matches in your search area.

eHarmony leads you through what they call "Guided Communication," by having you choose a certain number of questions from a list they provide you with. The questions that they ask you to choose from are questions that require thoughtful answers. Questions range from, "What is your idea of a romantic evening?" or "Where do you see yourself in five years?" These types of questions allow you to get a sense of whether the person you are communicating with is someone you actually share life's goals with.

Match.com allows you to set the pace for your communication with the singles you are interested in. They allow you to send "winks" to members you would like to communicate with, as well as allowing you to send messages to them as well. At Match, you decide when to provide your personal contact information to the other person, which can be the first day if you are so inclined. I highly suggest that for safety reasons you wait a while before exchanging telephone numbers or personal email addresses with anyone on-line.

After completing your eHarmony profile they will send you emails advising you that they have a possible match for you. You are given the option of whether or not to communicate with the individual or not. This is the time that you will answer the five or so predetermined questions chosen by your match. After answering these questions you will then be able to ask five of your own. You will have the choice of when your match sees your picture. You can choose to have it shown to all of your matches, after two sets of "guided communication" questions, or not until open communication. During open communication you may choose to communicate through the eHarmony website, or you may exchange personal email addresses or telephone numbers. Again, I caution you to use your best judgment before giving out your personal information on-line.

After having used both Match.com and eHarmony I believe that both serve their purpose. For singles who like to see who they are communicating with from the get go, Match.com is the place for you. For singles who are more interested in sharing life's goals with someone eHarmony would be the choice for you. Based on personal experience I found that the men on eHarmony were more interested in serious relationships, than those on Match.com.

If you are considering using an Internet dating site give either Match.com or eHarmony a try. They are both great alternatives to meeting potential relationship partners in a bar. Also, keep in mind that while eHarmony charges higher fees for their services, they do more of the searching for you and provide you with more compatible matches based on your ideals and beliefs. Match.com leaves you to choose who you would like to communicate with based mostly on pictures and brief profile descriptions. No matter which site you choose please make sure that you are ready to be rejected, because you will be rejected at least once or twice for a multitude of reasons.

So, if you want to be matched with someone based more on your goals in life choose eHarmony, and if you want to be matched with someone based on their profile choose Match.com. I found that eHarmony worked best for me, in fact, I met my boyfriend of two years on eHarmony.