10 Rules You Didn’t Know the Love Is Blind Contestants Have to Follow

Love Is Blind has taken going on a blind date to a new level — and viewers can’t get enough.

The Netflix reality show has skyrocketed in popularity since it first premiered in 2020. Fans collectively watched more than 6 billion minutes of the show following the season 6 premiere in February 2024, according to Forbes, and the streaming service could see even higher numbers for season 7, which premiered in October 2024.

The premise of Love Is Blind is fairly simple. 30 eligible singles — 15 men and 15 women — spend 10 days going on pod dates where they can’t see or touch the person they’re talking to. Based entirely on the conversations they’ve shared in the pods, the couples who have forged strong connections decide if they’re ready to get engaged. Then, and only then, are they allowed to meet face-to-face.

Following the proposal, the couples — who have been living in sorority and fraternity-esque housing facilities — enjoy a honeymoon-like vacation before moving in together and planning a wedding. If they make it to the altar, it’s there that they decide to say “I do” or “I don’t.”

Here are 10 of the Love Is Blind rules, including the guidelines for their televised weddings.

Cast members can’t choose who their first pod date is with

Producers kick off the show with speed dating. Cast members get roughly 15 minutes with each person of the opposite sex. From there, the participants are allowed to request who their subsequent dates are with.

“They were allowed to talk to anyone at any time,” Love Is Blind executive producer Chris Coelen told E! News in 2020. “Ultimately, they could talk as long as they wanted.”

Some couples even choose to sleep in the pods to remain close to the person they are falling in love with.

Cast members are not allowed to use their phones while in the pods

Love Is Blind cast members unplug while filming the show. They have no access to their phones, TV or Wi-Fi.

“We took away their devices so there wouldn’t be distractions,” Coelen explained to Oprah Daily in 2020.

Pod date activities must be approved by production 

While they can’t “Netflix and chill” together, production does allow the couples to bring books and board games into the pods. The crew also provides special food or drinks based on a couple’s conversations.

“Lauren and I bonded over our love of Hennessy at one point. We went into the pod one day and then there was Hennessy in there for both of us. [The producers] listened,” Cameron Hamilton from season 1 told Refinery29 in 2020.

Couples only get to meet after getting engaged

The marriage proposal takes place while couples are still in the pods. Once the proposal has been accepted, production arranges for the pair to meet face-to-face for the first time.

This is when the man presents his soon-to-be bride with the ring he’s chosen and some, like Cameron, choose to do so down on one knee.

The men can bring their own ring or choose from a selection provided by production 

Bridal Rings Company is to Love Is Blind what Neil Lane is to The Bachelor franchise. All of the show’s engagement rings from seasons 4, 5 and 6 were sourced from the Los Angeles-based jeweler, and according to Coelen, the men get to choose from dozens of different rings in various styles and colors.

“Whatever they choose, we pay for. Whatever we pay for, they keep, regardless of engagement ending,” a representative from the show’s production company, Kinetic, told Popsugar in 2024.

Meanwhile, some cast members choose to propose with an heirloom. During season 2, Kyle Abrams presented his mom’s ring to Shaina Hurley.

Couples can’t tell their families they’re engaged until after their post-pod vacation

Immediately following the proposals, all the soon-to-be-wed couples are whisked away to a tropical paradise for a brief vacation. However, they remain relatively disconnected from the outside world — unable to call their families and reveal what took place in the pods.

The news is ultimately revealed on camera when the couples meet their future in-laws for the first time.

Producers usually determine who speaks first at the altar

The Love Is Blind weddings are semi-orchestrated by the production team. In an interview with Variety in 2023, Coelen shared that the crew often decides who will reveal their decision first at the altar.

“We put our finger into the wind and see which way it’s blowing,” he said. “I go see them on the day of their wedding and I don’t even ask them what they’re going to say. I do not want to know. I always tell them, from a cynical producer’s point of view, I literally do not care whether they say, ‘I do’ or ‘I don’t.’ The only thing that matters to me is that each person makes the right decision for themselves.”

The weddings must be under 100 guests and adhere to a budget 

Netflix pays for the Love Is Blind weddings … up to point. The weddings are planned by celebrity event stylist Slomique Hawrylo and adhere to a strict budget.

“I don’t get to meet my cast at all. What I’m doing is looking at what they write on a piece of paper, and getting the feelings and emotions from that. It’s capturing their style, what they want, a certain color,” she told Tudum in 2023. “Just know that as I’m designing these weddings, I am also blind.”

Cast members are allowed to invite up to 100 guests and only take on the costs of special requests, such as particular nail artists, photographers or custom details like monograms.

“100% of the time, the cast doesn’t know they have a celebrity event planner designing their wedding,” Hawrylo added. “They just think it’s a random person on the production team. I design the same type of weddings I would do for celebrity clients. I don’t pull back [thinking], ‘Oh, they’re just everyday people.’ “

Couples are strongly encouraged not to spoil the show

In 2022, Coelen told the Los Angeles Times that there was “no mandate” or legal clause that prevented cast members from revealing their relationships on social media before their season premiered. But it was strongly encouraged to not spoil the ending for viewers.

“There are no requirements. But there’s a strong suggestion that we would love to have people enjoy watching them go through this experience,” he said. “I know we’re in a culture where we broadcast everything to the world and do whatever; part of this experiment is about not doing that. I think people buy into the idea that this is something they do not want to spoil for the audience.”

The production team also asks couples not to wear their rings before the season premieres.

Cast members are encouraged to attend therapy after the show

The Love Is Blind production company recommends that each cast member attend therapy after the show has finished filming — and they’ll cover the cost.

“We consistently reiterate to people at the end of their time in the experiment, ‘We really urge you to seek aftercare,’ ” Coelen explained to Variety in 2023. “Even for people who don’t feel like they ‘need it,’ I encourage it, because I think you’ve spent a lot of time here talking about your feelings, and to all of a sudden just stop talking about your feelings, to me, would not be the best course of action.”

After season 2 cast member Jeremy Hartwell started a class action suit against Love Is Blind producers for alleged labor law violations in 2022, a story in Business Insider alleged that the show enforces a $50,000 fine if someone decides to leave the experiment early. Coelen addressed the claims in his 2023 interview with Variety.

“We never have enforced it. We’ve never threatened to enforce it,” the executive producer said, adding that the exit clause was removed from contracts after the first few seasons. Hartwell and Netflix settled his lawsuit in May 2024 for $1.4 million dollars, to be divided among attorneys and 144 former cast and crew members.