BookOfMatches Review

Pros and Cons

Online dating is an enormous market that is worth over $3 billion with a “B”. Considering such a huge and lucrative niche, almost everybody wants a piece of it, and so, many websites and applications strive to serve as the best online dating service out there. But like most other good things, they all come with a price (almost). Some charge more and some charge less, but very few of them are actually free. That’s where BookOfMatches came in 2002 with their 100% free service.

It sounds too good to be true, but BookOfMatches actually provides an online dating platform that, at no point in its use, asks for money for any membership, add-ons or extra perks. Such free service sets it apart from other platforms in the market. However, being completely free of cost, it naturally has certain shortcomings. It might be unappealing to most users today. But still, there’s no denying that it offers more features than most of its expensive peers in the same niche.

How does it work?

BookOfMatches is an online dating site that works for free. Anyone can register on this website for free and start using the search tool right after. Search filters will allow people to search and find their perfect match according to their preferences. It is important to mention that BookOfMatches is intended purely at match-making and all the elements that surround it. It bears no intention of providing other services. They claim to be “one of the (if not only) truly free & clean dating sites on the Internet.” And to keep up to that claim, BookOfMatches does not allow any nudity to be posted on their platform. Keeping that in mind, the rest of BookOfmatches works like a regular dating website with some elements borrowed from social media platforms. It is completely free, and it maintains a wholesome environment overall.

Sign-Up & Login Process

The registration process at BookOfMatches is one of the lengthiest you’ll ever see. Compared to other sites that typically make it mandatory to fill in a 6-8 field form and a couple of others that are optional, BookOfMatches prompts newly joining users to fill in a very elaborate form of 18 fields. There’s no way to bypass it. It might be a tedious task to fill in such a long form for a dating website, but on the bright side, this keeps away scammers and bots from opening multiple fake accounts.

This site will ask for your basic information (name, gender, username, password, etc.) along with other personal details (physique, smoking and drinking behavior, etc.). Even after all these, you can provide answers to 12 other questions, such as:

• what are you looking for in your partner?
• your perfect date experience?
• etc.

So, people can get to know you by only viewing your profile. You can also add a couple of pictures of yourself. Such a long registration form can take up to 15-20 minutes to be filled completely. Make yourself some time if you want to get on BookOfMatches.

Profile interface

The long list of personal data you provide during BookOfMatches’ sign-up process is all displayed on other member’s profiles. BookOfMatches intends on keeping it clean and elaborate. So, you will find all you need to know about a person before you hit them up. Everything is available in a listed manner.

And if members opt for it, then their profile will also display how they have answered some questions related to their personality and preference. Pictures can also be uploaded to one’s profile as a “scrapbook” which remains open or hidden to other members as per user’s privacy choices. Apart from these, there’s a special BookOfMatches “user quality certification” that gives a score based on a user’s conduct and behavior on this platform. This is a score on a scale of 0 to 100, which can be seen by other users. So, they know what kind of person they might be looking at.

Though it is true that BookOfMatches’ profile interface is very organized and convenient, it, however, lacks aesthetics. In fact, most of this site’s elements are unappealing and ancient. This might be a turn-down for many. But to someone who is more about the content than the presentation, this is more than enough.

Matches/Communication

Despite being free and outdated, this site is loaded with interactive features. Communication options on BookOfMatches surpass even today’s most popular dating platforms. This website’s operation and design can compare to that of a regular social media platform. You can use their search tool, filtering your results to your preference. You can then browse through and find people you like and interact with them through many methods this site has to offer. You can choose to send them a message, start an instant chat, and even video call — a feature that very few sites can offer. Aside from that, you can:

• send winks,
• add members to your friends’ or crush’s list,
• comment,
• give shout outs,
• share videos & pictures,
• play flash games,
• write blogs,
• take part in community forums, etc.

All of these perks make up for a very dynamic and interactive dating platform.

Members structure and activities

BookOfMatches is a very old website, so there is little official data on its exact user structure. However, most traffic on BookOfMatches is drawn from the US, UK, and Canada. The number of profiles on BookOfMatches can be estimated at between 250000 to 550000. All users are above 18 years of age, and both male and female subscribers can be found in equal numbers. People mostly come here for dates, casual encounters, friendships, or relationships. The overall ecosystem on BookOfMatches is rather wholesome and cozy than on most other sites in the same niche. This website strictly prohibits the sharing of NSFW content of any sort. It’s a friendly and clean place for making both real and virtual relationships work out.

Users age

All users must be at least 18 years of age to sign up on this website. Other than that, there are no age limits to be considered. Most users on BookOfMatches are between 25 and 35 years old. Considering that this site is intended for casual fun, and is very old, one can also see plenty of mature users on this service.

Sexual preferences

This site provides a platform for both straight and gay users. Population distribution here is more or less equal to both genders. So, you’ll find one of your preferences easily. One can select either of the two genders and select their preference from the same options. The site allows such relations, but sexual promiscuity is prohibited. Meaning, you can’t share nudes.

Race And Ethnicity

Since most users on BookOfMatches are from the US, UK, and Canada, it is expected to see a variety of Caucasians, Africans, Hispanics, and so on. There is no bias towards a specific race or ethnicity on BookOfMatches.

Religious Orientation

Again, just as there is no bias towards any religion on BookOfMatches. Everyone is welcome as long as they have the religion of love and humanity at heart.

BookOfMatches dating website features

Apart from being very old-fashioned and unappealing, BookOfMatches is actually loaded with features. Despite being a product of 2002, it managed to pull off a plethora of interactive and exciting features that many websites still cannot accommodate. BookOfMatches was way ahead of its time. For starters, one can do all the basic stuff you do on a dating platform; this includes:

• registering an account,
• profile customization,
• using a search tool & its filters to find someone you may be interested in,
• browsing through 550000 user profiles,
• adding members to your friends’ & crush’s list, etc.

In addition to these features, you can:

• send messages to users,
• mail them,
• engage in instant chat,
• share your opinions on 22 different forums with over 35000 messages,
• read through blog posts,
• send flirts & winks at users to spark conversations,
• send and receive pictures and videos,
• engage in live video calls,
• play from a collection of over 60 Flash games.

There’s also a BoM user quality benchmarking feature that is displayed on one’s profile, telling how good or bad their behavior on the site is. This unique and convenient tool tells you whom to engage with and whom to avoid. Feature-wise, BookOfMatches was unparalleled at that time. If it hadn’t been for the poor web design and lack of advertising, then BookOfMatches would have easily been a successful competitor in the dating platform & social media market. And not to mention that it all comes at a total price of $0.

Safety & Security

BookOfMatches can be specially praised for its excellent safety and security features. First of all, the tedious registration process automatically keeps away all kinds of bots, scammers, and fake accounts. The number of users might be low, but they are all genuine flesh-to-bone people. Second, they have an active security support team to whom you can report any unusual activity. In addition to these, there are security and privacy features like:

• blocking mail,
• turning off instant chat,
• hiding your profile while browsing,
• getting notified when someone views your profile, sends a message, or comments on something about you,
• keeping strangers off from sliding into your inbox,
• filtering who can reach you based on gender, age-range, and other criteria.

All messages are sent through SSL connections to ensure that no third-party party can intercept your conversations on this site. All these free security features seamlessly work together to ensure the safest and most secure experience for BookOfMatches’ users.

Is BookOfMatches legit or scam service?

With over 550000 members from the US, UK, and Canada, it is a legitimate online dating service, established and run by Internet Initiative Partners, LLC. since 2002. It is 100% genuine and not a scam.

Subscription types and price

All the features on BookOfMatches are free of cost. There are no additional charges, hidden charges, add ons, subscriptions, credits, features, or any other premiums you need to pay for. At no point while using this site, will you encounter the need to pay. So, there are no subscription types or payment schemes. This really makes BookOfMatches stand out from other platforms. It’s curious how they run it all for free!

Free membership

As you’ve read earlier, everything from top to bottom, all features and services provided by BookOfMatches are completely free. So, you get full access to all their features, including:

• matching with members,
• searching with additional filters,
• sending messages,
• instant chat,
• access to community forums & blogs,
• using quirky features like winking and liking,
• adding members to friends and crush lists,
• communicating and seeing members via live video chat,
• playing from a collection of over 60 adobe flash games that are available on the site.

This is the full extent of what you can get with a free membership. And it is ALL you can get. It makes you wonder what $0 can buy sometimes.

Website design and usability

Speaking of aesthetics, BookOfMatches actually lags behind. In fact, it lags behind too much. Many people aren’t using this site only because of its poor design. A quick look over their homepage alone will explain why. It is ancient in terms of design and looks, stuck in the 2000s. However, in terms of usability, BookOfMatches is very far-fetched in delivering a very userfriendly and convenient website. All the buttons and tabs and sidebars are intuitively placed. One can hardly get confused about what this site is about. It is unappealing yet very easy to navigate.

Mobile application

It doesn’t have any functioning Android or iOS applications at the moment. But its mobile browser optimized website can be accessed with a mobile device anytime to keep you connected on the go.

Contact information

Company: Internet Initiative Partners, LLC.

Address: 196 BENNETT DRIVE, CAROL STREAM, IL 60188

Phone: N/A

E-mail: N/A

Conclusion

Well, very rarely do we find something so good and full for free. It is too good to be true. An online dating platform that stands out from all others by their long-standing free of cost service. It is curious how it is still up and running since 2002 without taking any money. Do the ads support it? Can it make a profit? BookOfMatches even supports video chatting, which was and still is a very unpopular feature among the top websites in the online dating niche. If its web design was a little bit modern and if they invested a little bit into advertising, they could rival the top players in the game, boasting a long list of interesting features. But still, you shouldn’t complain about something that is already free. If you’re looking for a partner online but don’t have a big budget for that, then BookOfMatches is there to help you find the ideal one.