Matchmaker Contract Checklist

Print this before your first sales call

Okay so here’s the thing. The sales call is built to make you feel chosen. The contract is where you find out what you actually bought. Print this list, keep it next to you, and tick each line only when you find it in writing.

Matchmaker contract checklist

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1. 1. The total price in dollars, with tax and any add-ons
2. 2. When each payment is due, and whether any of it is financed
3. 3. A start date and an end date
4. 4. How many introductions you get, and by when
5. 5. What counts as an introduction (a profile by email, a call, or a real date)
6. 6. Where the matches come from (paying clients, a database, or people they recruit)
7. 7. Your age range, distance and deal-breakers, written in
8. 8. The word 'refund', and when you get one
9. 9. What 'substitution', 'credit' or 'extension' means if you don't get a refund
10. 10. How many days you have to cancel, and the address or email to send it to
11. 11. What happens if you move, get sick or need a pause
12. 12. Whether it renews on its own, at what price, and how to stop it
13. 13. Who sees your photos, notes and background check, and when they're deleted
14. 14. Your matchmaker's name, and what happens if that person leaves
15. 15. A full copy of what you signed, given to you the same day

From Dating Coach Online · datingcoachonline.com · By Maya, Dating Coach

If you’re still deciding whether to hire one at all, read is a matchmaker worth it first.

What should a matchmaking contract say?

Each clause below has a fair version and a warning sign. A warning sign means you ask a question before you pay, not that the company is crooked.

To judge the price line, the professional matchmaker cost guide has the public numbers we could find, with sources.

What is the most expensive line in the contract?

My vote goes to the substitution clause.

She said I could share it. Nothing in that story was illegal. It was all in the contract. “Substitution” means they swap a bad or cancelled introduction for a new one. “Extension” means more time. “Credit” means a future service. None of those is money back.

Ask this, by email: “If an introduction cancels or doesn’t fit my written criteria, do I get a refund, a substitute, or nothing?”

How many introductions should a contract promise?

It should promise a number, ideally per month. “Up to” is not a number.

New York is strict here. If a social referral contract costs more than $25, it has to promise a set number of referrals each month. If the service misses them for two months in a row, you can cancel and get your money back, minus a cancellation fee (15% of the price or a pro-rated share, whichever is more) NY GBL § 394-c · checked Oct 15, 2026. Search-based online dating apps are treated differently.

A number matters even when your state has no rule like that. In 2016, ABC7 Chicago reported on a retired teacher who paid nearly $4,000. Her contract said “one to two matches each month.” She got none for several months, was refused a refund, sued in small claims court and won ABC7 Chicago, 2016 · checked Oct 15, 2026. She could win because the number was in writing. (When the story ran, she still hadn’t been paid.)

Also pin down what counts. If a profile sent by email counts as an introduction, four introductions can mean four emails. The guide on what to expect from a matchmaker walks through the usual steps from intake to first date, so you can see where an “introduction” should land.

Can you cancel a matchmaker contract after you sign?

Sometimes, and the clock is short.

• New York: 3 business days after you receive your copy of the contract, with no cancellation fee. The contract must say so in bold type near your signature, and the seller must hand you a separate “Dating Service Consumer Bill of Rights” NY GBL § 394-c · checked Oct 15, 2026.
• California: until midnight of the third business day after you sign. Your money is due back within 10 days of your notice Cal. Civ. Code § 1694.1 · checked Oct 15, 2026. A contract that doesn’t follow the state’s rules is void Cal. Civ. Code § 1694.4 · checked Oct 15, 2026.
• A hotel, convention or “event” sale: the federal Cooling-Off Rule can give you until midnight of the third business day for sales of $130 or more at a temporary location. Sales made fully online, by phone or at the seller’s own office aren’t covered FTC · checked Oct 15, 2026.

Other states have their own rules, or none. The full state table, with links to each law, is in dating service contract cancellation rights.

What should you ask before you sign?

Ask by email, so the answers live in writing. Then compare the answers to the contract. If they don’t match, the contract wins.

1. Can you send me the full contract to read at home before I decide?
2. What is the total price, and is any of it refundable?
3. How many introductions will I get, and by what date?
4. What counts as an introduction?
5. How many of your current clients are in my age range and city?
6. If an introduction cancels, what do I get?
7. Can I talk to two past clients?
8. How do I cancel, and where do I send the notice?

This is why I’d ask question 5.

If you want the full list of first-call questions, the questions to ask a dating coach checklist works for matchmakers too, with small changes.

What if you paid by card and they didn’t deliver?

Keep every email and every introduction record. If you paid by credit card and the service wasn’t “delivered as agreed,” that can count as a billing error. Your written dispute has to reach the card issuer within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you FTC · checked Oct 15, 2026. Send it to the billing inquiries address, not the payment address.

This is one more reason to pay in steps, not all at once. A big upfront payment can be long past 60 days before you know the service didn’t work.

Where do you complain if a matchmaker won’t refund?

Start with a calm email to the company that quotes the clause you’re relying on. If that goes nowhere:

• Your state attorney general. The National Association of Attorneys General keeps a list of every state’s AG NAAG · checked Oct 15, 2026.
• Your state consumer protection office, listed by USAGov USAGov · checked Oct 15, 2026.
• Small claims court, if the amount fits your state’s limit.

How does this compare to hiring a coach?

A coach usually sells sessions, not introductions, so the contract is simpler: price, number of sessions, how to reschedule, and the refund rule. If the matchmaker contract feels like too much risk, read matchmaker vs dating coach and the list of free matchmaking services before you sign anything.

When you’re ready to compare real options, go back to matchmaking services near me or browse matchmakers and dating coaches by city. Or tell me what you’re looking for and book a free consultation. Bring this checklist either way.