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Online dating services like eHarmony and Match have long touted the science behind their matching process, claiming that specially designed algorithms hold the secret to lasting love. But how accurate is this claim? That is, are people who join online dating sites finding long-term relationships easier to come by?

Not according to a recent study by a group of researchers from five different universities in the Midwest, South, East Cost, and West Coast. The authors found that online dating sites offer a different experience and more opportunities compared to conventional dating, but the success of these sites is not clear – namely, the matching algorithms haven’t proven their anticipated success.

“There is one fundamental problem with all of these algorithms,” Eli Finkel, a psychologist at Northwestern University who was one of the researchers for the study, told the San Francisco Chronicle. “They have set themselves up with an impossible task: They assume that they can take information from two people who are totally unaware of each other’s existence and determine whether they are compatible. That is completely false.”

According to the study, the algorithms are misleading, because research has found both similarity and “complementarity” – the basic tenants of online match-making – have little impact on relationship quality overall. Not to mention, people are confused about what they actually want. For instance, in some studies of speed dating, the participants’ ideas of the perfect match often don’t align with who they end up being attracted to in person.

This conflicts with a 2013 study from researchers at the University of Chicago, who found that online couples have happier, longer marriages - assumingly because of the matching process.

Online dating has been around for over two decades, but until recently (thanks to the soaring popularity of apps like Tinder) – was not something the majority of singles pursued. Now, the tables have turned. According to Match, 40 million Americans have used an online dating service. On top of that, a study in 2013 (funded by eHarmony) showed that almost a third of marriages were made through online dating. So why are researchers poking holes in the science now?

“He is debunking a problem no one believes exists,” OkCupid coFounder Christian Rudder told The San Francisco Chronicle. “We’re there to get you that first date. We do use math and we do get people dates.”

Real connection however, according to Finkel, happens with face-to-face interactions, or virtual ones, through Skype of Facetime – which aren’t part of the online matching process. Tinder for instance, doesn’t claim to make good matches, but it does the job of getting people more dates.

The study was conducted by Eli J. Finkel (Northwestern University), Paul W. Eastwick (Texas A & M University), Benjamin R. Karney (UCLA), Harry T. Reis (University of Rochester), and Susan Sprecher (Illinois State University).

eHarmony has weathered more than a few storms in its fourteen-year history, and has recently shared its trials and tribulations with The Wall Street Journal. The company has redefined itself as a “matchmaking site” as opposed to an online dating site, putting the emphasis back into long-term relationships.

The strategy seems to have worked – according to figures revealed by eHarmony founder Neil Clark Warren and COO Armen Avedissian, the company has more subscribers than ever before – 778,000 – and they make up to 15 million matches per day. But this is after the company almost collapsed. In 2012, after a few ousted CEOs and some advice from a board member, Dr. Warren made the decision to take back the reigns of the company and get it back on track. He came out of retirement at 78 years old to reclaim his spot as CEO and turn the company around – about the time when Tinder hit the market.

Before Warren took over, eHarmony was struggling to figure out its market, delving into new technology instead of focusing on its branding, leaving it vulnerable to the explosion of new dating sites and apps that came along. As Dr. Warren told the Wall Street Journal, “I think under CEO Greg Waldorf, users started seeing us more like the other dating sites Match and Zoosk, when we’re really a social science site. We were never meant to be a dating site. We were meant to be a matchmaking site. I think our leadership lost sight of that, too. We want good technology, but what we’re really, really interested in is long-term relationships.”

For its rebranding campaign, Dr. Warren returned to the television commercials, emphasizing the long-term matchmaking aspect of the technology. The company has also focused on its mobile app, something that has become a necessity for traditional dating sites since Tinder hit the market. When asked about Tinder, Dr. Warren emphasized that the app is actually helping bring more awareness and acceptance of online dating as a whole, which has been good for all online dating sites. According to Warren, eHarmony’s marketshare has stayed even despite the competition – Tinder claims to match about 22 million people a day.

Not to mention, Tinder’s reputation for being a hook-up app has helped differentiate more “serious” dating websites like eHarmony.

Warren told The Wall Street Journal: “People who are eHarmony customers probably aren’t going to be lured away by Tinder. We’re a serious bunch when it comes to matching for long-term relationships. We’re really not interested in short-term relationships.”

Tinder hasn’t been the only thorn in eHarmony’s side. The company came under fire when it didn’t include gay and lesbian relationships in their matching services – only creating “Compatible Partners” after a high-profile lawsuit. And now, eHarmony plans to launch a whole new matchmaking service called “Elevated Careers” – which will match job candidates with potential employers, based on factors like company culture and personality profiles in addition to skill sets. The new service will be available in June.

For more on this matchmaking service you can read our review of eHarmony.

I am a little late in getting this news out (sorry about that!) but eHarmony is have a free communication event this weekend. It started Thursday March 12th and runs to Monday, March 16th on the eve of St. Patrick’s day.

If you are looking for a long-term relationship then eHarmony with their match matching algorithm is the ideal dating service to use. You can access the service from a number of devices including their website and dating apps (which run on Android and iOS platforms including both phones and tablets).

With this free eHarmony event you can create a profile, fill out the personality test, receive matches, and communicate with those matches via email for no cost. You can expect the eHarmony service to be extra busy this weekend so it is the ideal time to try it out and to find the single’s in your neighbourhood. As always Free Communication does not include viewing of profile photos, secure call over the phone, or skipping the guided communication process to go straight to sending Email. For this you will need to purchase a membership.

Our eHarmony review is a great place to check out to find more information on this popular online dating site.

More than one in ten Americans have used a dating app or online dating service of some kind, according to a recent study from Pew Research. And dating apps are only increasing in popularity.

But despite peoples’ love of technology, online daters don’t seem to be finding what they want, and are not so satisfied with the dating app experience. No matter how many new apps hit the market, it seems the inherent problems with online dating (lying, old photos, bad behavior) – are still lingering, and affecting the overall user experience.

People tend to be more critical of dating apps than any other type of app, according to a recent report from Applause, which aggregates app ratings.

According to their report, dating apps consistently rank lower than almost any other kind of app available in stores to download. According to MarketWatch, “while the average app quality score in the U.S. is 67 out of 100 points across all categories, for dating apps, that number is 42 out of 100 — the lowest average score across categories.” The study looked at 53 different dating apps, all of which had more than 1,000 reviews.

While many people may blame apps for their poor online dating experience, the fact that the overall market is leaving people unsatisfied is telling. Online dating is a business, but one that involves people – who can be unpredictable and emotional, especially when it comes to dating.

For one thing, the currency of dating apps are people, so these apps must have a large database with a variety of choices to even compete with some of the major players like Tinder. If people receive the same matches over and over, or somehow “run out of options,” the dating app can be perceived as less valuable than other dating apps. Also, if a dating app user doesn’t like his matches, he’s likely to give it a lower rating, as opposed to others who have a good or even mediocre experience.

Of course, there are other things to consider when it comes to why dating apps aren’t faring so well among users. Some are annoyed with having to pay for special features, or when in-app advertising interrupts the service itself.

Surprisingly, Hinge and eHarmony – two online dating apps that emphasize the quality of their matches – scored low on overall user satisfaction, at least according to their ratings. They both earned an average score of 22 out of 100, and ranked as two of the 10 worst dating apps. OkCupid however, earned 62 points out of 100, putting it in the top 10 category with Skout and Let’s Date. Tinder ranked in the top 20, despite the many complaints and its reputation for being a “hook-up” app.

So what does this mean for online daters?  I guess we’ll have to see how dating apps evolve.

Recipient of Gold
Match.com

Recipient of Silver
eHarmony

Recipient of Bronze
Zoosk

We launched the 2014 Dating Sites Reviews Single's Choice Award poll in September of 2014 and we closed the poll to voting during the first week of January, 2015. After running for about 4 months we had 359 voters participate. The first question of the poll is about which dating service you believe deserves to win our top 2014 Dating Sites Reviews Single's Choice Award. The top spot for this award receives Gold, followed by Silver and then Bronze. For this question we listed the top 7 dating services you can cast one vote for.

The recipient of the Gold 2014 Single's Choice Award is Match.com. Match.com grew in popularity this year and received almost 5% more votes than last year. For 2014 Match received 24.3% of the vote which works out to 87 voters. The silver award winner received 5% less votes.

The recipient of the Silver 2014 Single's Choice Award is eHarmony. It was a huge year for eHarmony. After Dr. Neil Clarke Warren came back as CEO, eHarmony was able to grow their membership base by an astonishing 54%. This year eHarmony received 71 votes by our visitors which is 19.83% of the total votes cast.

The recipient of the Bronze 2014 Single's Choice Award is Zoosk. For 2014 Zoosk received 54 votes. This is 15.08% of all the votes. It was a tight race for Bronze as we saw the dating service Are You Interested receive 49 votes which is just 5 less than Zoosk.

Here are this year's standings for the Single's Choice award for all dating sites in the poll.

1. Match.com
2. eHarmony
3. Zoosk
4. Are You Interested
5. Christian Mingle
6. How About We
7. Badoo

We would like to thank everyone who cast a vote this year for our Single’s Choice Award. The results of this award help guide our visitors to choose the best dating service for them as each of the winning services receives an award badge for the year which designates them as a winner. All award winners are also added to the 2014 Award category.

Valentine’s Day is almost upon us and eHarmony has decided to have a free communication weekend to celebrate the lovers holiday. The event runs from Thursday February 12th to the end of day on Monday February 16th.

Valentine’s Day is dreaded by some and welcomed by others. It doesn’t matter which of the categories you fall into as we are in the internet age, so finding a potential partner has never been easier. Dating services like eHarmony are just a few clicks away on your laptop and thanks to smart phones you can now join these services via dating apps wherever you happen to be.

eHarmony specializes in long-term relationships. With their advanced matching system and in-depth research eHarmony is in a unique position to offer member’s very high quality matches. Thanks to their commitment to finding what makes love tick, on average 438 marriages happen every day in the United States because of matches made by eHarmony.

To join all you need to do is sign up as a free member (no credit card is required). From there you need to take the eHarmony personality test which includes multiple choice questions designed to help the matching system to determine who your ideal matches might be. Doing these 2 steps requires about 45 minutes of your time but it is well worth it. Once completed you then will receive your first batch of matches. You can then review your candidates to figure out which ones you would like to communicate with. With free communication events the following features are not included: secure call (a phone service), profile photos, and skipping the guided communication process to go straight to email .

For more information on this service and how the dating site and app work, please read our review of eHarmony.