“Married at First Sight” sees couples say, “I do,” before they’ve even had a chance to ask each other, “How do you do?”
Rather than relying on looks, personal chemistry or even a single date to make a love connection, participants on the long-running Lifetime hit series are paired up courtesy of a group of experts — a sexologist/sociologist, a pastor/marriage counselor and a relationship/communication specialist — and they find out if their match works only after walking down the aisle.
In Season 17, the latest installment of the show, that approach failed to net one enduring union. But don’t judge the method by a single season. The fact is, when it comes to reality-TV matrimony, the blind-date approach to weddings made famous by “Married at First Sight” has resulted in more marital bliss than “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette” combined.
For proof, just look at the following 11 couples who were married at first sight and are still living out their happily-ever-afters.
Jamie Otis and Doug Hehner (Season 1)
Though two couples vowed to stay together at the end of the series’ debut season in 2014, only one of those pairings has stood the test of time. A decade after getting married on the small screen, Jamie Otis and Doug Hehner are not only still together, they’re thriving as the parents of two children — with two more on the way, according to a recent post on Instgram.
“They all laughed and mocked us when we said, ‘I do’ as complete strangers.🤷🏼♀️,” Otis wrote in a 2022 Instagram post. “Back then no one had ever done it before. (I literally didn’t even know my hubby’s name until our wedding day sooo maybe they had valid reason to call us cray cray!?!)🤪 lol!😂”
She added, “But that’s the thing about society norms — they can really hold ya back.💯 If I had listened to everyone’s criticism & never followed my heart I would’ve missed out on growing a love like I’ve never known.❤️”
Ashley Petta and Anthony D’Amico (Season 5)
To find the next duo with that kind of staying power, viewers had to wait until Season 5 of the series, when Chicago couple Ashley Petta and Anthony D’Amico walked down the aisle and decided to stay by each other’s side.
The pair, who wed in 2017, now share two daughters together, whom they often post about on Instagram.
Shawniece Jackson and Jephte Pierre (Season 6)
In Season 6, “Married at First Sight” played matchmaker to a group of Boston singles, and one pair to take the plunge — cosmetologist Shawniece Jackson and elementary schoolteacher Jephte Pierre — struggled, at first.
Though the couple separated after their wedding, they didn’t divorce. Instead, Jackson and Pierre, who now have a daughter, put in the work andhave remained together ever since.
Danielle Bergman and Bobby Dodd (Season 7)
Many couples face challenges after marrying complete strangers on the show, but that wasn’t the case for Danielle Bergman and Bobby Dodd, who seemed like a perfect fit from the start.
“We have such a strong foundation set that I have no doubt we will be celebrating 10, 20 and 50 years one day!” Bergman wrote in a 2023 anniversary post she shared on Instagram. “Marriage is definitely work and not every day is bliss but most days are and I think that’s what is important.”
Bergman and Dodd are parents to three children — with Dodd’s Instagram feed serving as an adorable family album.
Stephanie Sersen and AJ Vollmoeller (Season 8)
Stephanie Sersen and AJ Vollmoeller married and met on Season 8 of the series, which was set in Philadelphia. They’ve now celebrated five years of marriage.
“We always said, if we can survive this TV show, we can survive anything,” Sersen wrote of their relationship in a September 2023 post on Instagram. “And I love how we’re still holding true to that!”
Kristine Killingsworth and Keith Dewar (Season 8)
There must be something in the air in the City of Brotherly Love, because Season 8 produced another marriage that’s gone the distance.
Like Sersen and Vollmoeller, Kristine Killingsworth and Keith Dewar have been married for five years.
Deonna McNeill and Gregory Okotie (Season 9)
The wedding success story of Season 9 belongs to Deonna McNeill and Gregory Okotie. Based in North Carolina, the couple welcomed their first child in 2021, nearly two years after swapping vows.
In March of 2024, McNeill and Okotie went on a second honeymoon in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
“We had a time last week,” McNeill wrote in her Instagram post.
Jessica Studer and Austin Hurd (Season 10)
Season 10’s Jessica Studer and Austin Hurd said their “I do’s” in Washington, D.C.
“Wouldn’t change anything about this day or how we met!” Studer wrote alongside a photo from their wedding on Instagram.
The couple are now parents to two children.
Amani Smith and Woody Randall (Season 11)
Amani Smith and Woody Randall were a fan-favorite couple in Season 11, and they seemed a strong match from the start — at least until Decision Day, the day “MAFS” couples decide to either stay together or divorce.
Ratcheting up the tension, Smith dropped jaws when she said she wanted to divorce Randall.Shortly after, however, she copped to joking around and Randall surprised her with another ring.
Today, they’re still together and parents to two sons.
Briana Myles and VincentMorales (Season 12)
In Season 12, Atlanta’s Briana Myles and Vincent Morales found love, and they haven’t let go of it since.
The pair welcomed a daughter in 2023, according to People, and are expecting their “Little boo#2” this fall, per an Instagram post.
Nicole Lilienthal and Christopher Thielk (Season 16)
Season 16 aired in 2023, so it hasn’t been long since Nicole Lilienthal and Christopher Thielk started their life together. But, as Lilienthal noted on Instagram in a post celebrating the couple’s first anniversary, love isn’t about how long; it’s about how much.
“I always imagined walking down the aisle to marry my soulmate, but never could have imagined that the aisle would come before the soulmate part,” she wrote. “365 days ago I married a stranger at first sight. 365 days later and that stranger is now my soulmate—the love of my life.”
Ree Hines
Ree Hines is a freelance writer and editor who covers pop culture, lifestyle stories and trending news. She’s also a soul-music loving, coffee-obsessed member of both Team Cat and Team Dog. Ree lives in Tampa, Florida, and is a regular contributor to TODAY.com.