At a glance
Contents
eHarmony– this is a dating site for individuals looking for a long-term and meaningful relationship and not just for fun as compared to Tinder. The site focuses at one’s personalities and not just the physical appearance and one is critically analyzed and an automatic matching is done depending on your personalities. It is not flooded and is good for people newbies to the numerous dating sites.
OkCupid–
it was launched in 2003 and it is the most popular dating site as it is free of
charge, and this means it will have very many users, right? Indeed, it does as
it has over 100 million monthly visits and therefore there are plenty of people
for you to connect with. With that being said, you can imagine the number of
users and the number of countries using this site. There are 32 million users
from all kinds of backgrounds and 200 countries with diverse languages.
How
to Choose a Dating Site
You need to understand that there over 1,000 dating sites and choosing the one that suits your interests and needs can be quite crazy, cumbersome and grueling but you need not worry because here is where we will narrow you down to one that woos and befits you.
Both eHarmony and OkCupid are legit and trustworthy and one does not need to worry about scam because they are used by real users. Both of these sites are popular and their being popular enables you to find interesting potential dates.
So, what kind of person are you? Are you into
romance and casual hangout or are you looking for a serious and meaningful
relationship?
If you are a serious person then the later one
would appeal you but if you are a person who is generally having fun then the
former would best fit you.
I can also advice you to do some research or just take my word for it and look at these two dating sites; I am a 100% sure – or let’s say 99.9% sure – you won’t regret it (the 0.01% is for the benefit of doubt) and besides it will save you lots of work, time and resources!
OkCupid
is a free app and it gives you the “try before you buy” formula for the
newbies. Since it is free, you won’t have to stress over paid membership plans.
It has a questionnaire but eHarmony is much more complex so if you want a
speedier process then OkCupid would be a better option.
The differences are quite many and therefore
we will play a game to see which one befits you best. This game is a
competition between the two dating sites and at the end I will declare the
winner. We will look at the pros and cons and pick out one that is perfect for
you. Ready? Let the games begin!
Availability
Both eHarmony and OkCupid are international
sites and are easily accessible. They are both long-standing dating sites that
started out small and later expanded their boundaries. The former is largely
available in over 190 countries which is pretty much the western region.
The later, on the other hand, is available in
almost all countries and continents. It is used in the following countries;
North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania and perhaps Antarctica.
The only counties where OkCupid is not available are countries that a US
company is not allowed to conduct legal business.
Therefore, in availability eHarmony wins in
this round.
Winner:
eHarmony
Popularity
It is not easy to decide on popularity as they
are both popular in their own unique ways. As we saw earlier, OkCupid is a free
dating site and hence it is much more popular to eHarmony so there you already
have a winner even without necessarily looking at the figures but to confirm
our theory, lets look at both their popularity in terms of figures.
eHarmony, registers around 5 million visits
per month while OkCupid boasts about 100 million visits each month. Wow, that’s
quite a huge difference and these figures speak volumes concerning the
popularity of these two dating sites.
Winner:
OkCupid
Sign-up Process
Both sites have a lengthy process of
application in terms of signing up but very manageable questions.
OkCupid
is quite interesting to sign-up as it impresses you with sleek graphics and a
classic questionnaire that is enhanced by cartoons and funny messages that
helps you fill your questionnaire with ease and less tension. It also takes
less than 15 minutes to sign up since the questions are just basic information
about yourself.
Basically, you are asked about your
relationship goals, personality and what you looking for in a partner. Easy
right? Then once you have filled the information needed you can play fun games
like “hot or not” or scroll through profiles and find your perfect match.
eHarmony unlike OkCupid is lengthier, it has
around 150 questions about hobbies, goals, likes, dislikes, deal-breakers, and
many more. This because eHarmony has 29 Dimensions of Compatibility matching
systems which help the site determine who you match with.
While the questions are fun and engaging, it
can be mentally frustrating and exhausting but once you are through with the
sign-up, you can be sure to start enjoying the service and connecting with your
match. It actually takes you around 30-60 minutes to sign up but if you are
looking for a serious partner then an hour is not that long to wait.
Winner:
OkCupid
Features
Both platforms are popular however, they are
different in terms of features. eHarmony controls you as they offer a guided
online dating experience therefore you have inexistent control over who to
strike a conversation with. Actually, the only control you have is the answers
you will provide in the questionnaire the rest is guided by the site.
OkCupid is a truly functional dating site and
has no elaborate features to brag about. Unlike most dating sites, OkCupid is not
centered on connections and romances. One can choose to look for hookups or
friends and these options add interesting dimensions to your search.
A feature that strikes your attention on
OkCupid, is the ability to make notes on profiles and refer to them at a later
date or time. Joining the site, browsing and chatting is free for all members
but a paid membership option adds new features, increases your attractiveness
rating or have your messages prioritized.
Lastly the A-List premium membership also
allows you to search by criteria such as personality and body type.
Winner:
eHarmony
Quality of Matches
Once you visit a dating site, your main goal
should be to find a suitable date, right? Therefore, you must be ready to chat
with people who are genuinely interested in dating and romance. And you realize that since OkCupid is a free
dating site, it is likely to have scammers or individuals who have a fake
profile unlike eHarmony where the site guides you depending on your
experiences. So here you realize eHarmony has an upper hand.
However, OkCupid is not centered on romance
and dating and is open to anyone who wants friendship and hookups. One thing
you need to learn is that people are quite open and honest about their
intentions, surprised? Fakers and scammers are easily detected and therefore
there is accuracy of profiles and member quality.
According to Harris Interactive, it was
deduced that eHarmony is responsible for over 500 marriages on a daily basis in
the US. Beautiful! The guided communication in the site leads to marriages
rather than long-term dating. It limits your matches and interaction and
therefore casual daters and people with fake profiles ward off easing your way
into finding your soul mate.
Here again am rooting for eHarmony if you want
a site leading to marriage but if you want casual hookup and friends then
OkCupid will suit you best.
Winner: Tie
Aesthetics and Interface
Visual impact is useful to any site and when
it comes to beauty and attractiveness, am not sure I mean beauty lies in the
eyes of the beholder. A site that is over designed can be quite overwhelming
but a simple yet attractive site is just amazing.
OkCupid is very basic or pretty basic. It has
a very simple design and interface designed with cartoons and robots during the
sign-in stage and robot comments while interacting with the site. It is not
ugly but then again it lacks the wow factor.
eHarmony on the other hand, has minimal layout
and few visual flounce and beguilements. The initial impact is that of a very
ancient or traditional site and if you don’t know already you may as well skip
it.
OkCupid being basic doesn’t mean it’s ugly in
fact it is an attractive site but since eHarmony has a good layout, it is easy
to say that it wins this point.
Winner:
Tie
Pricing
When it comes to cost, there is nothing much
to talk about when it’s clear that OkCupid is mostly free of charge whereas
eHarmony is a paid website.
Here OkCupid wins automatically although there
is where you pay if you want your features improved like the A-List subscription
requires to paid for.
eHarmony has a long-term subscription of a 6-
or 12-month subscription. The range is from $13- $36.
Here it all comes down to your preference
because if you are looking for a long-term relationship then the subscription
will not stress you as such but if you looking for friends and nothing more,
then OkCupid will do.
| eHarmony | Subscription length | Price/month | okCupid | Subscription length | Price/month |
| Read review | Three months | $32.95 | Read review | One month | $19.95 |
| Six months | $16.99 | Three months | $14.95 | ||
| 12 months | $15.99 | Six months | $9.95 |
Winner:
OkCupid
Who is it for?
Both eHarmony and OkCupid cater for single men
and women but eHarmony has more mature whereas OkCupid is for the young and
fresh and is more relaxed. It is also for open-minded people who are looking
for fun in general.
OkCupid has a lot of options and here any one
can join regardless of your sexual orientation. This site is open to all
whether queer, asexual, non-binary, cisgender, or if you identify with a
different sexual group. It is very LGBT-friendly compared to e-Harmony.
eHarmony is mostly for straight people so if
you happen to be either gay, lesbian, or non-binary, this site may not suit
you. A member of LGBT may not feel very comfortable in this site as it is more
heterosexual.
Once again, we come back to tastes and
preferences and one’s sexual orientation as we can’t really say from a
subjective point of view who the winner is. However, for the LGBT OkCupid will
be best for you but if you are straight then both platforms will work for you.
From an objective point of view, I would root
for OkCupid since it is more open to join and everyone is welcomed to join
regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation. Therefore, it is more
versatile thus it wins on this point.
Winner:
OkCupid
And the Winner is…
In most times I would declare a winner in
these head-to-head competitions but am happy to announce that both dating sites
are good as we have compared and contrasted them although it is not fair to
compare a free and a paid dating site. Both platforms give access to a huge
user pool and higher chances of finding compatible partners.
OkCupid won over eHarmony 4-2 and they tied in
the quality matches and aesthetics and interface categories. This is to say
that they are both excellent options in finding your other half.
OkCupid is has a plus when it comes to the
fact that is open for all and also the fact that it is free and how it makes
interaction easy. This site is much more popular than eHarmony and is literally
available worldwide.
The only downside of OkCupid is that most
members want a short-term relationship or friendship and therefore it is not
convenient for marriage.
eHarmony stands out due to it’s guided online
dating process. It would appeal a laid back, mature individual who has passed
the stage of “trial and error”, who doesn’t have time to scroll on very many
profiles just to find the one.
Although it is complex, eHarmony gives you a
platform to get in touch with people you share the same opinions and similar
interests and with whom you have a higher chance of building a strong
relationship with.
Source link: hernorm.com