Polyamory vs Monogamy in Romantic Relationships

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Alan Schin
Updated on December 17, 2025 | 8 min read
Polyamory vs Monogamy in Romantic Relationships

When you have multiple partners in intimate relationships or have more than one person in your exclusive relationship, most people presume you’re cheating. Well, these people haven’t heard of polyamorous relationships!

We’re going to be looking at the difference between polyamorous relationships and monogamous relationships, as well as the best dating sites to explore if you’re looking for an exclusive relationship with more than one partner.

It’s time to avoid relationship anarchy and build a healthy relationship with either one romantic partner or multiple romantic relationships!

What are Polyamorous Relationships?

First of all, what are non monogamous relationships, and what is polyamory? Well, a non monogamous relationship doesn’t automatically mean someone is polyamorous. They might choose to have an open relationship, or they may even be cheating!

Polyamory is where you have a relationship style that involves more than one partner. You might have a single partner for a while and introduce a second or even third partner over time, or you might come into a relationship with polyamorous people who are already dating multiple people.

Either way, poly relationships are different to other relationships as there are often more people involved, meaning polyam folks need to be on the same page about every aspect of the relationship, otherwise it’ll lead to relationship anarchy!

Polyamory makes a lot of people think you get more freedom when, in reality, you need to respect the people involved in the same way you would if the relationship had just one person.

The biggest difference polyamorous humans face is that polyamory can mean some people are involved with three or more people within the relationship or marriage. Ultimately, being polyamorous can feel different depending on the people involved in the polyamorous relationships.

Some might have multiple relationships within the romantic relationship, whereas others may not engage with multiple partners. There will always be more than one person involved, but depending on the romantic and sexual relationships of the people involved, some people might have just one partner.

It’s also important to note that polyamorous relationships are not a sexual orientation. Polyamorous people just prefer a specific relationship style with other human beings, much like how some people are in an open relationship, or others prefer just one partner. In some polyamorous relationships, multiple partners may be on the LGBTQ+ spectrum, whereas others may only have straight sexual relationships. Non-monogamy doesn’t really affect sexuality!

What are Monogamous Relationships?

A monogamous relationship is really the opposite of a polyamorous relationship. In a monogamous relationship, someone will have one partner, possibly for their entire life, and that person is the only person they have sex with or feel romantic feelings for.

Of course, not all monogamous commitments stay monogamous, as you hear of people cheating or having other desires that don’t align with a monogamous relationship. However, on the whole, the expectations of a monogamous partnership is that you’ll be with one person and one person only.

Ultimately, the biggest difference that many polyamorous people struggle with is that monogamous families can get married. It’s often a sore spot in polyamory that marriage is off the table and even illegal in some parts of the world for any kind of polyamory, whereas one of the biggest benefits of monogamy is that marriage is allowed and encouraged by society.

How are Monogamy and Polyamory Different?

In some sense, polyamory and monogamy are very similar. Life is the same in the sense that we are humans with feelings that matter to the partners involved in the relationship. You’ll have some form of sex life, get to know someone else personally, make some form of commitment, discuss things like children and jealousy and expectations, whilst finding the best ways to communicate with each other.

However, when you discuss differences, a lot of them come down to how you communicate within the relationships. For example, when living in polyamory, you might express desires to date someone you’re interested in to your partner. If you were to try this style of communication in a monogamous relationship, you might find your partner feels jealousy at you being interested in someone else, as this goes against the idea of commitment in monogamy.

Of course, this is just one example of the benefits of polyamory, as you have certain expectations to communicate everything from desires and jealousy to feelings about sex, sexual ideas, and even whether your friends fit into your life. Sometimes humans don’t feel like the small things matter, especially if they don’t matter to them personally. Yet in polyamory, if your partner expresses any concerns about any aspect of life, they are to be discussed by the partners involved.

Obviously, as non monogamy is about dating more than one person, you also need to know how to talk to one partner about something without it turning into a dig at any other partners involved. This is definitely a problem you don’t get in monogamy, and where personal growth becomes a huge part of polyamory.

Myths About Polyamory

When you’re dating more than one person, you’ll hear a lot of myths, normally from people practising monogamy. If you’re in a non monogamous relationship, then prepare to hear these myths about you and your partners!

Polyamory is Just Cheating

Nope. The whole point of polyamory and a non monogamous relationship is that all the humans involved feel happy with the life they’re living. If one person involved goes and has sex with someone outside of the relationship without permission from every partner in the relationship, then that is still an affair! Yes, it is entirely possible for someone practising non monogamy to cheat on their partner!

People Practising Non Monogamy Have Commitment Issues

Society loves a label, and if you’re not getting married and having children, society says you have a commitment issue! Well, that idea is utter nonsense! If you have any friends who are polyamorous, then you’ll quickly learn that most polyamorous folks are fighting for polyamorous marriage. It’s far from an issue with committing to one person, especially as many polyamorous men and women have more than one partner they would like to spend the rest of their life with!

Polyamorous People Are Obsessed With Sex

Again, not true! In fact, polyamorous people have a totally normal amount of sex for the life they want to live. Some polyamorous relationships have at least one person who is asexual and has no desire for sex at all. Humans love to gossip and spread wild theories, and sadly, anyone polyamorous or in the LGBTQ+ community is often portrayed as some kind of sexual deviant when in reality, they’re just trying to live a normal life.

Polyamorous Relationships Are Bad For Kids

There is zero evidence that having non monogamous parents is harmful to kids. In fact, many non monogamous parents welcome having multiple people in the relationship to lessen the burden of having a child in the house! Non monogamy is no more harmful to a child’s life than monogamy is.

Taimi Comes Out Top for Non Monogamy

Whether you want monogamy, casual sex, a partner for life, or polyamory, Taimi comes out on top! It’s free to join, and you’ll find yourself having the time of your life as you explore all the different people who make up the user base. Join for free today and start exploring polyamory now!

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Alan Schin

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