Ashley Madison Review
Editor’s note: When we asked Brad to review of Ashley Madison to include in our collection of online dating and social media sites, we were not aware of the infidelity niche aspect (In Boston, AshleyMadison.com’s ad campaign promoted the site with the motto: Life is short. Have an affair). Let’s just say it’s not the kind of site that you and your significant other can sit down and browse together. We don’t endorse it and recommend looking at some of the other online matching sites such as our reviews of eHarmony, which I like a lot better. Make your own decision. Thanks for educating us Brad.
Ashley Madison kind of sounds like a porn star name, and this online dating service actually does lean more that direction than many of the others. It specializes in affairs for married or attached people, which has gotten the attention of numerous publications. While plenty of people think this kind of service is unethical, there’s no denying the popularity of such practices. Rest assured, reader, that my first-hand knowledge that follows was done entirely for your benefit. I don’t wish to get in trouble with my “attachment.”
There are over 1.7 million members at Ashley Madison, and almost all of them are there to date outside of the relationship. The service makes it absolutely clear that it exists for just that reason. Still, you will find a few singles looking for relationships with other singles, but who would want to hook up with them, since it’s obvious they can’t follow directions?
Signing up can be extremely quick, since you only have to fill out about ten questions related to your location, physical characteristics, and relationship information. However, you have the option of filling out a more detailed profile that includes descriptions of your interests, your perfect match, and your “intimate interests.” You have the capability to add a profile photo, but you’ll find that the nature of this matching service makes profiles with photos fairly rare. It all adds up to Ashley Madison functioning like the Yahoo Personals of the polyamorous.
Members can get quite specific in their profiles with an interest checklist of over fifty preferences ranging from scented candles to tattoos. Some members also have a “private showcase” that may include photos you wouldn’t want your grandma to see. Other members must be invited to view them.
Ashley Madison offers a lot of help for members who want to make discretion a high priority. Members can turn off their profiles at any time, and they can also set things up so they appear offline even when they are actually online. In case you are about to get caught with your hand in the cookie jar, there is a panic button that will whisk you away to a movie trailer website. Good luck hitting it in time, though, as the button is awfully tiny.
Mischief and discretion come at a premium with Ashley Madison, so expect to pay two or three times the cost of cheaper online dating sites like Date.com or Perfectmatch.com. There is no monthly subscription price; instead members pay for credits, with the cheapest option being 100 credits for $55. That will buy you 5 hours of instant messaging time or 20 emails to new matches. The ultimate package costs $360 and covers six months of unlimited emailing and 750 credits (which equates to more than 37 hours of instant messaging time). Members can also choose to transfer credits to other members.
Other features you’ll find on the site include a tips section, where Ashley Madison offers advice for successful encounters. The online matchmaker seems to have thought of everything a new member could want in the way of help, even providing a “Dictionary of Acronyms & Emoticons” and a chart listing the most popular days and times for members to be on the site.
Ashley Madison also includes some cost-cutting features such as the ability to respond to a paid member’s email for free. There is also the unique option to send a collect instant message.
Be sure to thoroughly understand the consequences that can come from using the Ashley Madison online matching service. It can’t be emphasized enough that this is not just another online personals site. That being said, if some excitement outside of your current relationship doesn’t clash with your values, Ashley Madison can offer you a well-organized center for finding just what you’re looking for.
July 30th, 2009
Ashley Madison is a glorified chat room at best and probably run and operated by chatters. Women looking for men are swamped with e-mails almost immediately. If your a good chatter you can rise above the ranks and chat with a lonely women posting 10 year old pictures of herself when she was 30 lbs thinner. Some genus ex chatter came up with the idea of how to get chatters to pay for chatting, the men get to bid for the attention of women and the women get to be pedistlised and dotted upon by groveling males and both parties get to pay for it…..pure genus
August 16th, 2009
Ashley Madison is pretty much a pipe dream for men who are hoping they can find an alternative to the obvious rules of nature.
you will realize this truth quickly.
Most of the women’s ads on AM are false profiles wich serve as bait for the man who wants to believe there are millions of married women dying to have sex with him.
False ads account for about 95+% of the ads.
Of the remaining less than 10% that are not false ads, about half are from professional escorts.
The remaining legitimate ads are from real wives who are fat, old, unsightly. no wonder they need to pay a website to find someone who would want to touch them.
the simple fact of life is that a a hot woman that you would want, doesn’t need hlep finding a man. an attractive woman is offered free sex everyday of her life.
the point is the website works hard to get your money. all those fake ads are constantly hitting you up for chat, try to get you engage in email exchange, and send collect emails all of which will run through your credits pretty quickly as you are charged for contact, not by the month.
a pretty good scam that preys on men’s fatal weakness.
LET THE BUYER BEWARE!
August 18th, 2009
I tried out this website about 6 months ago and it did not work at all. Its not worth paying 55 bucks for something you can burn through credits in a one weeks time. If you decide to go through with it anyway, you will waste your money. Your better off going about it the old fashion way.
August 20th, 2009
This site is a waste of time more than it is a waste of money. The ratio of men to women is way too high, most of the women are unattractive and half the women are just browsing and get cold feet. The only difference with Craigslist? CL is free!
November 2nd, 2009
This is the most disturbing website I’ve ever heard of. I’m watching this couple on the Tyra show and am wondering, what is our society coming to when there’s a website devoted to helping people cheat on their spouses? This is disgusting and people need to respect the marriages they enter into. No wonder our country’s divorce rates are through the roof.
November 23rd, 2009
I think its ridiculous! Its for spouses to get online because, their not happy with their home lives. If you want something more, Be honest with your spouse rather than go behind their back and have an affair. Its peoples emotions you all are playing with. I find it discusting! Its like, you obviously are too big of a jerk to be honest so, you go about it the other way. People that get on here, dont care about no one else but themselves. They dont think about the families that can be broken. I wonder what ever happened to “Death do us part”? I think the people are sick and should be honest!
Think about what your doing!
January 13th, 2010
The AM website works. I’ve patronized several dating sites and it is the only one that led to successful relationships. Even so, it can be rough. Dating is about rejection. Moving the venue from a bar to a website doesn’t make it easier. In fact, if you’re the kind of person who is better in person, or isn’t comfortable writing, e-dating could put you at a distinct disadvantage. In the problematic morass of relationship websites, AM is far better than most.
February 27th, 2010
Website grabs as much money as they can every step of the way. Accepting collect message is different from sending a message to that same contact,so you pay twice. Watch out when sending a message, it is marked as priority by default so you’ll pay double unless you turn it off each time. After granting private key to show case, you have no record because history of sent messages is only 20, so you need to purchase the history to know to which contact you granted the keys. Don’t waste your money, start going out and meeting women in person, it costs nothing. If you are afraid of rejection, go to the next town, be a gentleman and start talking to women. If you get rejected, no big deal, you know that you probably won’t meet them ever again. So what’s the big deal.
March 16th, 2010
ITS A SCAM! For men especially! Don’t join –they’ll take your money and string your around with NO RESULTS. Spend that same money on women you meet on business trips, much (much!) better results. Think about it: the people making these comments aren’t pushing to another site –we’re pointing out that this website is just bad (I’d be much more suspicious of its anonymous online defenders!). Don’t let yourself think “oh, maybe they’re wrong and I’ll be lucky”… how do you think they get their money? When guys let their junk think for them (which we’re often waaay too guilty of, myself included). You’ve been warned.
March 26th, 2010
OK – If there is one thing that I have over all of you offering perspective on Ashley Madison it is this. I have lived enough years to know the cost and pain of marriage break ups due to cheating spouses. I have lived with and married a woman that I was absolutely 100% faithful to during our time together. I also know that no life is lived when a persons sex life is not alive with lust, love and passion. Here is the answer to the problem – Be open and honest with your partner about your needs. If these do not exist in your marriage and your partner will not respond in a manner that is producing the desired outcome then seek assistance with there knowledge. You do not have to be specific a to whom your seeing or where or how just that you are. Swinging has become a very open way in which to keep your sex lives charged and your home life in tact.
Really does anyone have sex with the same person for a lifetime and feel the same fireworks they had when the first met? I think not! Live your life without regrets.
April 19th, 2010
Ashley Madison does work for a woman. I am an attractive educated woman who was looking to spice up my life. I got to have that fantasy guy that I always dreamed of with NSA.
From a woman’s point of view it is not a scam. I had recieved numerous hits from tons of men. If it did not work for a guy maybe they need to look in the mirror and be honest and say “gee am I as handsome as I make myself out to be?” maybe that is why it does not work for alot of guys.
April 29th, 2010
A SCAM . Period. Double the price to send a message. You pay to be able to open up your mail. You pay to see photos that have been send to you and that are showing a woman doing the dishes!!! And you never get back a reply from any one, from any winks etc…. Most women on the sites are too good to be true. In my opinion they are false nicks that have been put online to attract gullible guys. And you don’t get very far with your first nearly $100 of credits!..PLEASE avoid at all cost. And never count on their online help to answer any questions you might have. You will receive an emaila confriming that AM has recieve your message, but you will never hear back from them again! A SCAM….The guy who founded this must be laughing his way to the bank!!! And don’t belive the occassional male or female who pretends it does work. They are probably affiliated with AM
May 2nd, 2010
The site is a scam. Wake up and don’t waste your money. They got me – very misleading… employees pose as women, etc. don’t be a sucker.
May 4th, 2010
Wow, surprised at the negative reaction on this site. First, I experienced no scam on Ashley Madison, I did find a great mistress that I’ve been seeing for a few months now. The Traveling Man feature works…used it a few times before visiting a new city and had a “successful encounter” each time. I have now deleted my account since I have a “regular” mistress who has the ability to travel with me, but will sign back up in a heartbeat if things go sour!
July 5th, 2010
AM is a total ripoff for guys. They have fake profiles and also females who are paid to create profiles and generate traffic on the site. Of course it will work for females. Any guy who has ever sat down at a bar knows how that dynamic works in favor of the female. I personally have sent out over 400 messages and receeived one positive reply and that one didn’t turn out to be anything sucessful. Save your money and go have a beer. You will have better luck.
July 18th, 2010
Thought I would add a little to the pile of reviews. For a woman, this site is golden. Sign up and you will instantly be smacked by a tidal wave of men, all itching to get it on with you. A girlfriend of mine recommended this site to me (one that I used to hook up with a long time ago). On her first weekend of having her profile up (with no profile pic and no description whatsoever), she was bombarded with over 400 winks, picture keys and emails!
For the guys….I wouldn’t go anywhere near this site! First, you can see what you’re up against. For a woman to find you, she has to wade through a of shit, and I do mean a TON. The ratio of men to women is severely lopsided to the point where I bet you would win the Powerball before you have any chance of developing a relationship with a married woman. Spam and fake profiles run rampant as well (say no to the “receive collect messages” option!).
This site is just like any hook up sites out there….Fling, Adult Friend Finder….all the same. Don’t bother! Pour all your time, money and energy into improving yourself….learn to play an instrument….women love that;)….spend some more time in the gym. If that’s not your thing, try your luck on Craigslist or Plentyoffish.com. At least they’re free.