Online Dating - Free Vs Paid Internet Dating Sites - Which is Better?

Most online dating sites offer you some kind of free service. These freebies allow you try out site and check out what they offer. You can find out key information such as how many members, the quality of the site and what special features they offer. But there are restrictions. For instance, you may not be able to use their instant messenger, send or receive emails, or view photos. One way or another, you will not be able to connect with other members.

If you would like to find out if a site is worth joining, you can enter some basic info and join for Free in less than a minute. Some sites offer trial memberships. These are halfway between 'free' and 'paid'. You still may not have to pay, or they may require a nominal fee of a few dollars. Some offer full access and others have a restrictions such as the uploading a video profile. Trail memberships usually expire in a couple weeks, just enough time for you to fully explore the site.

Of course, for little or no cost, this is a great way to get all the benefits of mostly full access. Then you can decide whether it is worth your while to spend a few more bucks to increase your chances of finding the perfect mate. Who knows? You might find that one right person immediately and save yourself a membership fee.

Full membership plans vary considerably. They may be monthly, or bi-annually or yearly. If it is a monthly rate you are dealing with, it can easily be worthwhile to invest $20-$50 to see what results you get in few months. You should be cautious though of spending a few hundred dollars on hazy promises of instantly finding 'the perfect match'. Some Internet Dating scams do exist.

Some might argue though, why use a paid online dating service at all with free social networking sites like Facebook or MySpace around.

That's true. You can meet lots of people on those sites. But online dating services offer something that these networking sites do not - online dating services are for dating.

Social networking sites are the equivalent to going to the mall and running into strangers. Those people may be there for many reasons. The members of online dating sites are there for the specific purpose of finding someone to form a relationship with.

The most advanced Matchmaking sites offer sophisticated matching algorithms. These are based on decades of psychological research. These sites can save you a lot of time and grief by immediately targeting your best matches. A common complaint of non-matchmaking sites is that you comb through a high number of prospects and still not find the right one. A good online dating service can help solve this problem.

That can be worth a few extra bucks.