ABC
No. 34: Aaron and Helene
The franchise’s first-ever engaged couple called it quits mere weeks after filming ended, with the news getting out even before the season finished airing in 2003.
“I’ll be relieved to the have the status of the relationship out there, sure,” Aaron said at the time of going public with their split. “I have nothing bad to say about her and I don’t want different accounts of my story turning into rumors. Do it one time on national TV, and everybody will know it’s cut and dry, and what was said and what wasn’t said.”
But in an interview, Helene revealed Matt broke up with her at a Starbucks.
“It felt like a bomb dropped,” she recalled to People. “I said, ‘I feel very deceived by you. You’ve told me every single day that you love me, and now this is it?”‘
The former couple sat down for an ABC special, titled The Bachelor: Aaron and Helene Tell All, after the finale aired.
ABC
No. 33: Travis and Sarah
Another Bachelor blink-and-you’d-miss-their-entire-relationship couple that fizzled soon after cameras stopped rolling, with the couple confirming they split just one week after their finale to their season, which filmed in Paris, aired.
“You’re in Paris and you’re part of this incredible experience, this fantasy world, and then suddenly you come back to Nashville, and living in the same city I think we thought was going to be a great thing,” The Doctors star explained to his local newspaper in a joint interview with Sarah.
The pair, who had broken up while the season was airing, admitted keeping their romance a secret was something they struggled with, despite both living in Nashville. “You’re forced to pretend you don’t know someone, for essentially the last four months,” adding they were afraid to breach their contracts.
No. 32: Matt and Shayne
The franchise’s trip across the bond didn’t result in true love, as The Bachelor: London Calling‘s couple called it quits after being engaged for around two months (though rumors were swirling even before they filmed the After the Final Rose special).
“We tried hard to make it work but we realized that we were both heading in different directions,” Matt and Shayne said in a joint statement in 2008. “We truly care about each other and will remain close friends.”
(Narrator: they did not remain close friends.)
ABC
No. 31: Jesse and Jessica
Don’t remember this pair? That’s understandable considering they dated for just one month after the show, with the former NFL quarterback-turned-TV host choosing not to propose, but presenting Jessica with an airline ticket to visit him in New York City.
Years later, Jesse admitted to E! News he felt pressure to end the show with someone.
“You want to make people at home happy, but at the end of the day, you have to really listen to what your heart is telling you, which can be very difficult to do,” he said.
ABC
No. 30: Bob and Estella
LOL, as if anyone was exactly shocked by this breakup, considering Bob didn’t exactly seem like one of the most commitment-ready Bachelors.
Bob broke up with Estella over the phone after just one month, and she didn’t hold any punches when addressing their split in an interview.
“He’s not the person I thought he was. I don’t see any reason to ever have a conversation with him,” she told People, adding he was more interested in pursuing a music career than marriage. “The path that I’m taking is different from Bob’s. He’s a big-time star now! He’s big-time, so my life doesn’t compare to that.”
In his interview with the mag, Bob admitted the split was his fault, saying, “I’ve been pulled in so many directions, and the one that I don’t think got enough of my time was our relationship. For that, I feel awful.”
ABC
No. 29: Lorenzo and Jennifer
The franchise’s “Italian prince” and the eighth grade teacher who received his final rose split less than three months after their season aired, with Lorenzo going on to date his runner-up Sadie Murray for a few months shortly after.
It all made sense when Lorenzo admitted to reporters shortly after his finale aired, “I decided about two hours before the final Rose Ceremony and it was obviously a very difficult decision because I had strong feelings for both Jen and Sadie…I felt a little stronger with Jen just because I thought we had more chemistry. I was trying to find faults with both of them and it was almost impossible but I knew I had to make a decision and it was just that I felt a little closer to Jen and that’s why I went with what I was feeling at the time.”
The beginning of an epic love story it was not. (If only his season, set in Rome, was as interesting as the off-screen drama.)
ABC/Nicole Kohl
No. 28: Chris and Whitney
Farmer Chris failed to grow a lasting crop after his time as the Bachelor, as he and fiancée Whitney called off their engagement after just two months.
“Whitney Bischoff and Chris Soules have mutually and amicably decided to end their engagement,” the couple said in a statement. “They part with nothing but respect and admiration for one another and will continue to be supportive friends. They wish to thank everyone who has supported them through this journey.”
Mark Wessels/ABC via Getty Images
No. 27: Brad and Emily
At least he found someone, even temporarily?
After becoming one of the most loathed men in America when he decided not to be with either of his final two women in season 11, Brad ended his second tenure as the Bachelor four years later on one knee, proposing to the fan-favorite single mom.
But their engagement ended after just three rocky months, with Emily revealing in her 2016 book I Said Yes that Brad even tried to break up with her in an e-mail he sent to producers ahead of the After the Final Rose taping. “Sorry but things didn’t work out with Emily and I. It wasn’t the fairy tale I thought it would be,” she claimed he wrote.
And their split wasn’t entirely shocking, as they couple released a statement after their finale aired, admitting to People magazine, “Though we are madly in love, it has been a bumpy couple of months for us and our priority right now is to focus on our relationship.”
Watching their season play out proved difficult for Emily, who told the publication, “He had a tendency to say the same thing to a couple girls. So I felt less and less special. I get that it’s a show. But it’s still hard. You’re not sure what’s real and what’s reality TV.”
ABC/MATT KLITSCHER
No. 26: Jake and Vienna
Though they were engaged for only three months, it was clearly a very tumultuous time, as as former couple infamously sat down for a joint breakup interview with Chris Harrison in 2010. And they both came away looking pretty petty and juvenile.
“What guy in America would ever want to be intimate with someone who undermines him, emasculates and doesn’t respect him?” Jake asked, claiming Vienna sold stories about him to tabloids.
Vienna then accused her former fiancé of being “a famewhore,” claiming he ignored her when the cameras were no longer around. “When we were at home [it was] lonely,” she said.
No. 25: Nick and Vanessa
Sadly, the fourth time wasn’t the charm for Nick, who became the Bachelor for its 21st season after making it to the final two of The Bachelorette seasons starring Andi Dorfman and Kaitlyn Bristowe and a fan-favorite turn on Bachelor in Paradise.
After proposing to Vanessa at the end of his time as the lead, the couple announced just five months later that they were breaking up, though they tried to make it work by splitting time between Los Angeles, where Nick lived, and Montreal, Vanessa’s hometown.
“It’s with a great amount of heartbreak for the both us as we have decided to end our engagement,” they told E! News in a statement at the time. “We gave this relationship our all and we are saddened that we did not get the fairytale ending we hoped for. We will continue to be there for each other no matter what. This hasn’t been an easy decision, however, as we part ways, we do so with lots of love and admiration for each other.”
No. 24: Andi and Josh
Consider this one of the messier breakups in the franchise’s history.
Just one day after making a joint appearance during a live premiere special for Chris Soules’ season of The Bachelor, Andi and Josh announced the end of their engagement after just five months. Fans were shocked and even Chris Harrison was shocked.
But the shock completely wore off by 2016 after Andi released her tell-all book, It’s Not Okay: Turning Heartbreak Into Happily Never After, alleging that Josh was jealous, controlling, and called her a lot of names. On Bachelor in Paradise‘s third season, he shot down the allegations and recently compared her to the devil earlier this year.
ABC
No. 23: Andy and Tessa
So season 10’s couple technically had two breakups as they called off their engagement but continued dating after just one month.
“When the fantasy wore off and the reality set in, we both realized we weren’t ready to be engaged,” Andy, whose season was subtitled Officer and a Gentleman, told In Touch Weekly. “We’re taking things much slower.”
Six months later, they called it quits for good.
ABC
No. 22: Emily and Jef
Proving opposites do attract, Southern single mom Emily chose Jef, a hipster entrepreneur before they were a dime-a-dozen in the franchise, at the end of her season, later admitting in her tell-all book that she fell for his bad boy ways.
“I wasn’t bored any minute of the time we spent together,” she wrote, using an example of her former fiancé stealing a pair of surfboards from a dock as an example. “The better part of my nature thought it was rude and disrespectful, but another part of me, the former Emily who had a thing for bad boys, thought it was amusing.”
After six months of drama (Facebook status updates, cryptic tweets, cheating allegations, etc.), Emily and one-F Jef were dunzo.
At the time, Emily confirmed the split, saying in a statement, “It was a very difficult and heartbreaking decision.”
ABC
No. 21: Alex and Amanda
Fun fact: The inaugural season of the entire franchise didn’t end with a proposal, as Alex picked Amanda over Trista (who went on to become the first female lead) in the final rose ceremony.
Turns out, Alex never proposed because he still had feelings for Trista, with Amanda eventually discovering this and breaking up with Alex after less than a year of dating.
Amanda told Inside Edition she was “disappointed because I invested a lot of time in trying to make this relationship work.”
As for Alex, he said, “We shared so much of our personal, romantic lives with America and everyone was so supportive and seemed to think I’d picked the right one and everything. But there came a time we had to be private.”
ABC
No. 20: Andrew and Jen
The Firestone Tire heir (and let’s be honest, the first Bachelor people genuinely cared about/bother remembering) and Jen lasted a solid nine months before calling off their engagement, with Jen even moving to San Francisco in an attempt to make their romance last.
“This is a decision we made together through long and thoughtful discussion,” the couple said in a statement at the time. “It is totally amicable and, though we care for each other deeply, we have come to realize that our future goals are different.”
Jen eventually went on to become the star of The Bachelorette‘s third season, and, in a refreshing surprise, rejected both proposals by season’s end.
ABC/NICK RAY
No. 19: Ben and Courtney
Surprising no one, Ben and the villain of his season weren’t even technically together at the time of their After the Final Rose special taping. “It hasn’t been an easy ride,” Ben said that night. “I want to apologize to her, in front of everyone, for not standing by you throughout this entire journey…I messed up in that regard…I feel I should have stayed with you the entire way instead of taking steps back and taking time apart.
Though they reconciled and said they were “taking it slow,” Ben and Courtney split for good nine months later.
“After meeting over a year ago, we have decided to end our romantic relationship,” the pair said in a joint statement. “The ups and downs weighed heavily on us both, and ultimately we started to grow apart because of the distance, time apart, and our need to focus on our respective careers.”
After their breakup, Courtney was immediately linked to Ben’s friend and eventual Bachelor Arie Luyendyk Jr.
David Livingston/Getty Images
No. 18: DeAnna and Jesse
Though they had set a wedding date, Deanna called off her engagement to the professional snowboarder after six months, with Jesse breaking the news himself on the then-couple’s shared web site.
“It’s our responsibility to tell you we’re not together anymore,” he said, before going on to reveal how DeAnna broke up with him: “‘I love you, but I’m not in love with you,.’ She’s a great person but she wasn’t willing to try anymore…That’s a lot to swallow no matter who you are when you’re in love and you put yourself out there.”
DeAnna still managed to find love through the Bachelor franchise, as she married Stephen Stagliano, the twin brother of alum Michael Stagliano, in 2011, and the couple has welcomed two children.
ABC/Rick Rowell
No. 17: Juan Pablo and Nikki
For arguably the most hated Bachelor of all-time, JP actually did “OK” when it came to this ranking.
Despite JP not proposing or even saying “I love you” to his final pick, the season 18 couple actually lasted almost a year, which included a stint on VH1’s Couples Therapy. Alas, the distance and other factors proved to be too much to overcome.
“It didn’t end because we didn’t love each other or [over] a lack of communication,” Nikki told Chris Harrison during the season 19 premiere special. “It just ended because of a difference of lifestyle. There was a point we said we love each other, like in a normal relationship.”
ABC/MARIO PEREZ
No. 16: Jillian and Ed
The Canadian Bachelorette’s fairy tale romance ended in heartbreak when it was revealed Ed has been unfaithful during their engagement, which he basically admitted to on Bachelor Pad, saying, “I’m not an angel. There was certainly some truth to what was in the tabloids.”
The couple lasted for just under one year before calling it quits, with Jillian later admitting she was “devastated.”
ABC
No. 15: Meredith and Ian
Listen, the first season of The Bachelorette was a tough act to follow, and it proved too much for Meredith and Ian, a former investment banker, who split after almost one year of dating. While they never set a wedding date, the couple had been living together prior to their breakup.
“Our relationship began with great expectations for a happy ending, but unfortunately things didn’t work out as we had hoped,” the pair said in a statement issued to Extra at the time. “What we experienced together was incredible and we are both sad to see it end. We thank you for your support.”
No. 14: Becca and Garrett (still together)
One year into their engagement, the couple seems happier than ever, recently moving into an apartment in San Diego together.
“From the pool to the pier, so much has happened in 1 year. @gy_yrigoyen, we have spent 365 days around the sun, and I can’t wait for thousands more to come,” the Bachelorette wrote. “Who would have thought that one soccer ball-smelling mini van and a single impression rose would change our lifetimes? You had my heart since the very beginning, and I love and value you so much. Thank you for this past year, thank you for simply being you. Now let’s get a puppy for that mini van already!”
Rick Rowell/ABC via Getty Images
No. 13: Ben and Lauren
Maybe it was the title of their Freeform spinoff series—Ben & Lauren: Happily Ever After?—that cursed them, but fans were shocked when the couple, who got engaged at the end of season 20, announced they were ending their year-long engagement in may 2017. In fact, it was the most Googled celebrity break-up that year.
“We feel fortunate for the time we had together, and will remain friends with much love and respect for one another,” a joint statement at the time read. “We wish nothing but the best for each other, and ask for your support and understanding at this time.”
Still arguably one of the most popular Bachelors of all-time, Ben took the breakup especially hard, struggling to move on and breaking down during The Bachelor Winter Games. “To be honest, I’m still emotionally dealing with the loss of that relationship,” he said on the show, which aired in January 2018, adding the public’s interest in the split was something he struggled with.
“When something so real to you then seems so small to everybody else—and not just friends and family, millions of people—it breaks you every day, and that’s what sucks, because as much as I’ve moved on—and I have—it still hurts, even though we’re months past it.”
Since then, Ben has entered his first serious relationship, officially introducing his new girlfriend, Jessica Clarke, to the world in February 2019. Lauren, meanwhile, is dating country singer Chris Lane, recently relocating to Nashville to live with him.
The Venetian Resort Las Vegas
No. 12: Arie and Lauren (still together)
And they lived happily ever after…after enduring one epic scandal and infamous on-camera breakup.
After proposing to Becca Kufrin at the end of his season, a conflicted Arie, who appeared on Emily Maynard’s season five years prior, realized he had made a mistake and was in love with his runner-up. So he did what anyone else would do: He blindsided Becca, breaking up with her in a raw, unedited scene before asking Lauren for another chance, proposing during the After the Final Rose special.
“I have made some bad decisions, but the best decision was running back to you. I can’t imagine a life without you. You have shown me a love that is patient, a love that is kind, and I truly believe you are my soul mate,” Arie told Lauren during his televised proposal. “I’m ready to face this life with you and all that comes with it. Good and bad. I love you so much.”
But the drama was all worth it, as the couple officially became Mr. and Mrs. Luyendyk in January 2019 and are accepting their first child in June.
ABC/MATT KLITSCHER
No. 11: Ali and Roberto
While the couple seemed so solid that ABC was planning on televising their wedding, Ali and Roberto, who got engaged at the end of The Bachelorette‘s sixth season, announced their breakup after 18 months together.
“It’s not necessarily a bad thing if a couple decides to go different ways. It could be the best thing for them,” she said on Love Buzz in 2017. “[About] The Bachelor and Bachelorette, people are always like, ‘Oh, your relationship from The Bachelor didn’t work out—it was a failed relationship.’ And I said, ‘Actually, I think it was the most successful relationship of my life because I learned so much about myself.'”
She added, “We actually ended up splitting ways because we weren’t right for each other. You’re not right for someone, and you split ways—isn’t that a success? Yeah, I believe it is. What the real failure is, and the real sad thing, would be to stay with someone you’re not meant for, you’re not right for, and be miserable.”
Grizz Lee
No. 10: Rachel and Bryan (still together)
Here comes the bride…soon!
Rachel and Bryan are set to exchange vows this summer in the Caribbean after getting engaged in the summer of 2017, though it’s not going to air on ABC.
“I have to confess that I was very much so an eager beaver when everything started because that’s what I wanted,” Rachel told E! News of the wedding planning process. “I wanted to marry Bryan at the end of 2018. That was all very real, but that’s also when I thought that we were going to get an ABC wedding and that’s not looking like it’s happening.”
As for how they make their relationship work in their post-show life, Rachel said, “I think it’s the communication and it’s the intimacy that we have and that we bring out the best in each other. Bryan can bring out a side of me that nobody else has seen and it’s crazy that I met this person on TV and he can do that for me.”
No. 9: JoJo and Jordan (still together)
Though they got engaged at the end of her season back in the summer of 2016, the couple is in no rush to walk down the aisle. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t happy.
They admitted their first year together was “hard,” especially dealing with the intense scrutiny on their relationship and his family drama post-show, with Jordan telling E! News, “You meet each other in a very different environment and then you get to reality and you’re merging your lives together. There was a lot of work that was involved in getting to know each other.”
After getting through their initial struggles, JoJo said, “I think the reason why our engagement is long is because we’re enjoying this really great place that we’re in and loving life together.”
The couple lives together in Dallas and are getting their own house-flipping show on CNBC, which will premiere in the fall.
No. 8: Kaitlyn and Shawn
Oof, this one still stings.
After three years together, the beloved Bachelor Nation pair confirmed they were ending their engagement in November 2018, with the former Bachelorette later explaining “there were some important fundamental values that weren’t lining up.”
“I want to reiterate to people, what you saw on social media was real and what we had was real love,” Kaitlyn said on her Off the Vine podcast. “But when it comes to roadblocks, and those fundamental values and getting through thing together, I just don’t think we were on the same page—and it’s painful to admit that. But you need that foundation and you need that partnership if it’s going to last forever.”
Kaitlyn has since moved on, finding love within the franchise with Jason Tartick, one of Becca Kufrin’s final three suitors.
Soon after the news of their new romance was made public, an emotional Shawn broke his silence on Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti’s Almost Famous: In Depth podcast, breaking down several times during the interview.
“Not only were we engaged, but it’s like, man, I lost my best friend, too,” the Booth Camp gym founder said. “It just feels like everything is just completely gone, like that Kaitlyn and Shawn gone.”
ABC
No. 7: Byron and Mary
The franchise’s oldest Bachelor at 45, Byron got engaged at the end of his journey in 2004, but the couple made their way back into the headlines in 2007 when Mary was arrested for allegedly assaulting her fiancee the night after they filmed an appearance for a Bachelor special.
Despite that incident, the couple remained together for two more years.
In 2016, Mary revealed to ABC Action News that she struggled with depression. “There was a big pressure to have a successful relationship for the sake of TV and the show,” the former NFL cheerleader, who was also arrested for DUI, said.
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
No. 6: Charlie and Sarah
The actor (and Jerry O’Connell’s little brother) and his fiance actually dated for five years after falling in love on the show though he didn’t propose.
“I think it was a mutual break-up,” he said of their 2010 split. “The thing is that we dated for five years…and were just arguing over the same things and stuff like that. And then eventually you’ve got to go your separate ways.”
ABC/Francisco Roman
No. 5: Desiree and Chris (still together)
Brooks who?
Despite a pretty dramatic ending to her time on The Bachelorette, Desiree found true love with Chris, with the couple exchanging vows in a 2015 ceremony after an almost two-year engagement (with ABC ultimately choosing not to do a special).
“I feel our relationship started very naturally, and to be honest, we are each other’s best friends,” Des once told Ryan Seacrest of their relationship. “I truly believe, regardless of the show, or if we met at a coffee shop, we’d still be together.”
In January 2019, Desiree and Chris welcomed their second son, Zander, who joins big brother Asher, 3.
Todd Wawrychuk/ABC
No. 4: Sean and Catherine (still together)
Leave it to one of (if not the most) beloved Bachelors of all-time to be the only Bachelor to actually marry the woman he offered his final rose to!
In January 2019, Sean and Catherine celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary, with the reality star sharing a snap from his 2014 televised wedding.
“Five years with my best friend today!” Sean wrote alongside a photo of himself taking off Catherine’s garter at their nuptials. “I’m a blessed man.” Catherine also shared a photo, writing, “Five years of laughing with this husband of mine.”
Since swapping vows, the couple have welcomed of two boys: Samuel (2) and Isaiah (10 months).
So how have they managed to avoid the Bachelor “curse”?
“We love being a normal family, doing our normal day jobs at home,” he told E! News. “We get to do some really fun and exciting stuff like this, but we just like being a normal family. We love our lives in Dallas and so, it’s easy for us.”
No. 3: Ashley and J.P. (still together)
In 2011, fans watched as J.P. proposed to Ashley at the end of her season of The Bachelorette, and less than two years later, the couple exchanged vows in Pasadena, Calif., with ABC televising their nuptials in December 2012.
After welcoming two children, five years of marriage and a stint on Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars, J.P. and Ashley renewed their vows in Aruba in 2018.
“Renewed and it feels so good!” Ashley wrote on Instagram, with J.P. taking to Twitter to write, “Thanks to our vow renewal, we are good for at least another 5 years!”
ABC/MATT KLITSCHER
No. 2: Jason and Molly (still together)
Talk about beating the odds.
Though Jason initially (and infamously) chose another woman to give his final rose and an engagement ring to at the end of their season in 2009, he just couldn’t stop thinking about Molly immediately after. And risked becoming the most hated man in America when he broke up with Melissa Rycroft during his After the Final Rose special to ask Molly for a second chance. It wasn’t easy, but it paid off (and also became one of the most “monumental” moments in The Bachelor’s and reality TV’s history).
Jason and Molly married on February 27, 2010, landing their own wedding special, which drew 17 million viewers. In 2013, the couple along with Ty, Jason’s son from his first marriage, welcomed a daughter, Riley, with the family residing in Seattle, where Jason works in real estate and Molly hosts a morning radio show.
After nine years of marriage, Jason and Molly are better than ever, surviving one of the franchise’s biggest scandals. “We have a really good balance and hang on life right now,” Molly recently told E! News. “Honestly, I think we’re in the best place we’ve ever been in our lives.”
No. 1: Trista and Ryan (still together)
After meeting during filming of the inaugural season of The Bachelorette in 2002, the Sutters have become one of the franchise’s most beloved couples ever and the ultimate sign of proof that the process can work.
The season ended with Ryan, a quiet but romantic firefighter, proposing to Trista, telling her, “I see a white dress, and I see it with you. You stepped out of my dreams and into my world.”
ABC then chronicled their journey to the altar in a three-episode special series called Trista & Ryan’s Wedding in 2003, and the move paid off: 26 million people tuned in.
The couple officially exchanged vows on December 6, 2003, and have welcomed two children, Maxwell Alston Sutter, born in 2007, and Blakesley Grace Sutte, born in 2009.
The family of four lives in Vail, Colorado, and Trista and Ryan recently celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary. So what’s the secret? “I think forgiveness is a big one because no one’s perfect,” she told Good Morning America in 2017. “Neither of us are perfect.” And yes, Ryan still has the final rose Trista offered him way back in 2002, with Trista telling GMA they keep it “in the closet upstairs.”
In 2017, Trista suffered a terrifying seizure while on a family vacation, with the scary experience bringing the couple even closer together. “My knight in shining armor,” the “godmother” of the franchise captioned a selfie of the couple she posted just one week after her seizure.