In short
Marital Affair is a real, paid dating service for married and attached adults, run by Ambervine Inc, a Delaware company. The domain dates from 2004 and the site was relaunched under new ownership in 2020. Joining and browsing are free, reading and replying to messages needs a paid membership, and checkout shows the billing name before you pay.
| Operator | Ambervine Inc, Delaware, USA |
|---|---|
| Domain registered | 6 April 2004 |
| Relaunched | 2020, under new ownership |
| Statement name | The billing name shown at checkout |
| Cancel | Settings > Billing, at any time |
| Minimum age | 18 (21 in Alabama, Mississippi, Nebraska and Wyoming) |
"Legit" usually means three things: is there a real company behind it, will it charge me what it says, and are the people on it who they claim to be? The first two have clear answers. The third has an honest one.
Who runs Marital Affair?
Marital Affair is run by Ambervine Inc, a Delaware company, 131 Continental Drive, Suite 305, Newark, DE 19713, USA. Membership is governed by the member terms, which apply Delaware law and include an arbitration clause and a waiver of class actions. It is worth reading those clauses before you pay, as you would with any online subscription.
An arbitration clause means disputes go to a private arbitrator rather than a court; a class-action waiver means you agree not to join a group claim. Both are common in US consumer terms. They are not a sign of a scam, but you should know they are there.
Account, billing and safety questions go to the members help centre. There is more on the company on our about page, and a one-page summary on Marital Affair at a glance.
How long has it been around?
The maritalaffair.com domain was registered on 6 April 2004, and the site has carried married-dating content since at least 2012. It was relaunched under new ownership in 2020.
We are careful about how we put this. The domain is old; the current operator is not. So we say the domain dates from 2004, not that the same business has been running since then. If you see a dating site claim decades of unbroken trust, it is worth asking whether that is the business or just the web address.
What you pay, and how you're billed
Joining, building a profile and browsing are free. Reading and replying to messages needs a paid membership; the current options are on the prices page. Memberships renew automatically until you cancel in Settings > Billing.
Checkout shows the billing name that will appear on your card statement. At the time of writing, the member terms allow a pro-rata refund only where at least 40% of the paid period is unused, so the best protection against an unwanted renewal is cancelling early. Our guide to what affair sites cost goes into renewals, trials and extras.
What is checked, and what isn't
Photos are checked; what members write about themselves is not.
- Photos: every photo is reviewed. Nude and lingerie photos are not allowed.
- What members write: not verified. Age, location, marital status and intentions are whatever the member typed.
- Identity: there is an optional ID badge, which a member can buy by passing an ID document and selfie check run by LEM Verify. It is compulsory only in some cases, for example when someone signs up through a VPN or an account has been flagged.
The network's member terms also say that profiles and interactions may not always be what they seem. We would rather you read that here than discover it later.
The things people don't always realise
Profiles are shared. Marital Affair shares its member database with partner sites in the same network. Members who joined through those sites can see your profile and message you, and you them. A profile shows which site its owner joined through.
Renewal is automatic. Most complaints about subscription sites come from renewals people forgot about. Set a reminder.
Billing is never invisible. Whatever name checkout shows, the charge and the amount are on your statement. Our discretion page explains exactly what the site shows and sends.
Legit site or scam site: how to tell
A legitimate dating site and a scam site can look alike on the surface. The differences show up in the details:
| Check | A legitimate service | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|
| Operator | A named company and address in the terms | No company name, or only a brand |
| Price | Shown before you pay, with the renewal terms | Hidden until after card details, or "free" with a surprise charge |
| Cancelling | A clear route in your account | Only by email or phone, or no route at all |
| Profiles | Honest about what is and isn't checked | Claims every member is verified or "real" |
| Payments to members | Never needed | Members asking you for money, gift cards or crypto |
| Terms | Readable before you join | Missing, or mention fictional or operator-run profiles |
On Marital Affair, the operator, the free-to-browse model, the price at checkout and the Settings > Billing cancel route are all set out before you pay. The last row is the one to watch on any site: a request for money from another member is the clearest scam signal there is, whoever runs the platform.
What reviews can and can't tell you
Reviews of any dating site are worth reading for patterns, not star ratings. People mostly write one after something has gone wrong, often a renewal they didn't expect, so a site's reviews tend to lean negative whatever the service is like.
Read them for answers to specific questions:
- Do people describe being able to cancel easily, or struggling to?
- Do complaints mention charges that weren't explained at checkout?
- Do reviewers mention being asked for money by other members?
What reviews can't tell you is who is on the site near you, or whether you will find anyone you like. Browsing free answers that better than any review.
If a charge looks wrong
- Compare it with the billing name that checkout showed when you paid, and the date you joined.
- Check whether it is a renewal. Memberships renew automatically until cancelled.
- Cancel in Settings > Billing if you don't want the next period.
- Contact the members help centre with the date, amount and the email address on the account.
- Speak to your card provider if you don't recognise the charge at all, or cannot resolve it with the help centre.
Cancelling or deleting your account walks through both steps in order.
How to judge it for yourself
- Join free and browse before you pay anything.
- Read the member terms, especially renewal, refunds and arbitration.
- If you pay and only want one period, cancel soon after paying so it doesn't renew.
- Treat every new contact as unverified until you have spoken on video and met in public.
- Never send money to anyone you meet, and never pay a blackmailer.
Our guide to scams and blackmail and the safety page explain how to spot trouble and where to report it.
Questions people ask
Is Marital Affair a scam?
No. It is a paid dating service run by Ambervine Inc, a Delaware company. You can join and browse free before deciding whether to pay, checkout shows the price and billing name before you commit, and you can cancel in Settings > Billing at any time. The real risks are the ones on every dating site: unverified strangers and forgotten renewals.
Are the profiles real?
Every photo is reviewed, but nobody verifies what members write about themselves, and the member terms warn that profiles and interactions may not always be what they seem. Some members carry an optional ID badge after an ID and selfie check. Treat everyone else as unverified until you have spoken on video, and never send anyone money.
What name will appear on my statement?
The billing name shown at checkout, before you pay, so check it there and keep a note of it. It will not hide the amount or date of the charge. If a charge appears that you don't recognise, compare it with that name first, then contact the members help centre with the date and amount.
Can I get a refund?
At the time of writing, the member terms allow a pro-rata refund only where at least 40% of the paid period is unused. That makes cancelling early the most reliable protection against an unwanted renewal. Cancelling stops the next payment; it does not end the period you have already paid for. Check the current terms before you buy.
Who do I contact with a problem?
The members help centre handles account, billing and safety questions, including reporting a profile. For a problem with this information website itself, such as a mistake on a page, the same help centre is the place to tell us. Our contact page explains which route suits which problem.
Keep reading
- Thinking about an affair? Questions to ask yourself firstWhat you want, what you could lose, who else is affected: questions worth asking before an affair, and where to get support.
- Scams, blackmail and fake profiles on affair sitesRomance fraud, sextortion and fake profiles: the warning signs, what to do and where to report it.
- What affair dating sites cost, and how billing worksMemberships, credits, trials and extras: what affair sites cost, how renewal works and what your statement shows.
- Setting boundaries with someone you're seeingContact, privacy, exclusivity, health, money and stopping: the ground rules worth agreeing early, with an example to adapt.