In the world of dating, and in life, quality often comes with a price.  But are professional dating services REALLY worth the additional investment vs. cheaper options such as online dating? Here are 4 things to consider when deciding whether a professional dating service is for you:

• Screening:
  • Professional Dating Services: meet, interview and screen matches before selecting them for you.
  • Online dating: no screening or 3rd party verification of personal details provided.
• Safety:
  • Professional Dating Services: do not share your personal contact details or post your photos online.  You get to meet someone they have selected for you in a casual setting before deciding whether to share your contact details or not.
  • Online dating: you typically share your contact details and/or post your photo online before meeting someone.
• Compatibility of matches:
  • Professional Dating Services: a matchmaker will select someone for you that has the qualities you are looking for, and vice versa.
  • Online dating: you can review someone's profile but its not always an accurate description of who they are.  You typically compensate for this by going on more dates and accepting the fact that relatively few will be 'good matches'.
• Time savings:
  • Professional Dating Services: typically take care of all the date arrangements for you.  This is one reason why such services are popular for 'busy singles and professionals'.
  • Online dating: you arrange the dates yourself once you have exchanged contact details with your 'match'.