Ask a concierge matchmaking service what it costs and you will generally be invited to a consultation. The fee will be discussed there, after an assessment of your requirements, and it will depend on the package.

This is not an oversight and it is not unique to this industry. It is a well-understood pricing strategy, and members of the public are entitled to recognise it as one.

What withholding price achieves

It prevents comparison. A prospective client who cannot see two prices side by side cannot evaluate either. In a sector where the service is intangible and outcomes are unguaranteeable, comparison is the main discipline available to a buyer, and removing it is valuable to the seller.

It permits differential pricing. Where price is set after an assessment of the client, it can be set according to what that client appears able to pay. Whether that is objectionable depends on one’s view of price discrimination generally; either way, the client cannot know it is happening.

It converts price into a relationship question. By the time the fee is named, the prospective client has invested time, described their personal circumstances, and been told they are a promising candidate. Declining then costs more than declining a number on a web page — which is the point of sequencing it that way.

What we do about it

Our practice on this site is straightforward. Where a provider publishes prices, we report them with the date and note that terms change. Where a provider does not publish prices, we say so plainly in the review, and we treat that as a material fact about the service rather than an omission on our part.

We do not report figures that clients have mentioned to us or that circulate informally, because we cannot verify them and an unverifiable price is worse than no price.

What a prospective client can do

Ask for the fee range in writing before the consultation, and treat a refusal as informative. Ask what the fee covers — number of introductions, over what period, and what happens if none are made. Ask what is refundable and under what conditions.

A service confident in its value can answer those questions in an email. Several will. Those are the ones worth the consultation.

For adults (18+) only. Prices and terms change frequently; confirm current terms directly with any provider before committing.