Make a date with success
DATING in Manchester can be tough.
Last year, eHarmony revealed almost half of all single Mancunians felt overwhelmed by the fastpaced, casual nature of modern dating, and 51 per cent have been without a partner for 10 years or more.
With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, we have rounded up ten of the biggest dating websites in the UK to see how they measure up.
1. Match.com UK members: 3 million. Top features: Advanced ‘smart search’ which allows you to filter matches by location and personality traits. Price per month: £29.99. Website: www.match.com
2. eHarmony UK members: 3.5 million. Top features: Their ‘Compatibility matching system’ focuses on helping you find people you’ll match emotionally with. Price per month: £12.95. Website: www.eharmony.co.uk
3. Match Affinity UK members: 3 million. Top features: Complete their free affinity questionnaire and you’ll be matched with compatible and likeminded members. Price per month: £44.95, or £11.95 for a 12-month membership. Website: www.matchaffinity.com
4. Plenty of Fish UK members: 3 million. Top features: Chemistry test tool to help you find matches based on your personality and emotional needs. Price per month: Free. Website: www.uk.pof.com
5. Elite Singles UK members: 475,000. Top features: Personality profile based on the ‘Big Five’ personality models – gender, age, residence, profession and level of education – to help create long term relationships. Price per month: £89.95, or £29.95 a month when you subscribe for 12 months. Website: www.elitesingles.co.uk
6. Lovestruck UK members: 370,000. Top features: Lovestruck.com’s behavioural recommendation engine assesses your search history, like page views, winks and favourites to help you find what you’re actually looking for - and not what you say you’re looking for. Price per month: £39 a month, or £11.58 when you subscribe for 12 months. Website: www. lovestruck.com/uk
7. DatingDirect.com UK members: 3 million. Top features: Location tracker to help you find singles in your area. Price per month: £29.99. Website: www.datingdirect.com
8. mysinglefriend.com UK members: 200,000. Top features: They believe that your friends know you best - so, like a virtual wingman, they write your profile for you! Price per month: £28. Website: Mysinglefriend.com UK members: 10,000. Top features: 24/7 live chat support and superhigh security. Inbuilt personalised location features and weekly dating tips to help you find that special someone. Price per month: £14.95, or £9.98 when you subscribe for 3 months. Website: www.mirrordating.co.uk
10. Zoosk Members: 27 million. Top features: Inbuilt behavioural matchmaking engine which learns as you click to pair you with singles you’re likely to be mutually attracted to. Price per month: £22.74. Website: www. zoosk.com