Why Pay Match.com When Dating's Free Sites Beckon?

Free dating sites such as PlentyofFish and OkCupid are gaining traffic at the expense of paid sites. Some credit goes to the recession

By Olga Kharif

Debbie Slowey used to look for love on paid online dating site Match.com. Then she discovered PlentyofFish.com, which provides similar services at no charge. "It was free, and there were more [people] to choose from," says Slowey, a 49-year-old Florida resident who got engaged to a chiropractor she met on PlentyofFish last summer. "If it's free, why would I go to Match?"

Singles around the country are asking the same question, creating a quandary for a whole slew of paid personals sites besides IAC Interactive's (IACI) Match.com. Among the most prominent are Singlesnet.com, Yahoo! Personals (YHOO), and eHarmony.com.

Sites that charge users to help them find companionship dominate the online dating market. But free services—including PlentyofFish.com, Adam4Adam.com, DateHookup.com, OkCupid.com, and Craigslist—are catching up quickly. In December, free sites accounted for about one-fourth of all traffic to the top 10 U.S. dating sites, from 15% a year ago, according to researcher Hitwise.

And while free sites have been around for several years, they're finally amassing large enough followings to give the paid sites a headache. At times during the second half of 2008, PlentyofFish was the most-trafficked dating Web site in the U.S., according to Hitwise. Last year, founder Markus Frind moved PlentyofFish's operations out of his apartment and into an office building in Vancouver, B.C., and hired six staffers. "We are going to double [our staff] this year," Frind says of the five-year-old site. "The economic downturn doesn't affect me."

Free Is the Right Price in a Recession

Paid sites, on the other hand, may well be hurt by the recession. Consumers who are out of work or struggling to make mortgage payments—but still looking for a date—are less inclined to fork over monthly subscription fees that can run as high as $60. OkCupid.com says growth picked up in September, as the economic decline accelerated. "We've grown in particular since the economy has gotten worse," says Sam Yagan, OkCupid.com co-founder. While the free site's number of daily searches typically rises 20% year over year, lately the growth has revved up to 50%—with no advertising. "This is the perfect storm for us," Yagan says. "People are [closing] their purses." Match.com costs as much as $35 for a one-month subscription, while eHarmony.com services go for as much as $60 a month.

Free sites are gaining traction just as social media services steal a march on paid dating services. More people are using free networks such as Facebook and News Corp.'s (NWS) MySpace to find companionship, romantic or otherwise. Ronald Lewis, a 29-year-old who in the past used Match.com and Yahoo Personals, now snags dates via social networks like Meetup.com. "The big seller is that it's free, so you'll find the community to be larger," says Lewis, a Denver resident.