Terry R.

I'm a slightly above-average-looking, physically fit and well-groomed, middle-aged male with a better-than-average career. I'm single and looking for a female partner or a dating companion. I became a member of Match.com for 3 months; put up a decent profile with good photos and engaging text; and then proceeded to browse potential matches.

After sending out 40 or more messages and getting 0 responses, I spent some more money to "ensure that my messages can be read". This pricey little "add-on" allowed me to see if my messages were being delivered and then read (or not). Sadly, I discovered that less than 10% of the messages that I was sending were actually being read; 90% were "delivered" but were NOT being read. This tells me that Match.com has many active profiles with NO active owners. In other words, if you become a member of this dating site, you will find MANY potential matches who might as well be ghosts because the vast bulk of your messages will go unread.

Perhaps these profiles were once active, but the owners have long since left the site. In fact, I'm certain that my profile is being used without my permission to lure unsuspecting women into purchasing a membership. I've deactivated it, but they said they will "keep it on file for a year in case I returned", which is how they get to use my profile without my permission in a dishonest attempt to make their site look like it has more members than it actually has.

After 3 months of daily use, I had sent out nearly 300 messages and received only 2 responses, which resulted in 0 dates and a disappointing experience overall.