Hierarchical polyamory — an approach in which relationships differ by level of priority: there is a main (primary) partner and secondary connections.
What it means
In this model, the primary partner usually shares more of daily life, commitments and joint decisions — housing, finances, plans for the future. Other connections take up less space in everyday life, though they can still be emotionally important. The opposite is non-hierarchical polyamory, where partners are deliberately not ranked. Neither option is “more correct” than the other: what matters is that the terms are transparent and accepted by everyone involved. Critics of hierarchy note that secondary partners can feel hurt by that status, so honesty about which commitments a person is really ready to take on — and which they are not — is especially important here.
Example
Oleg has a wife with whom he shares a household and raises children, and another partner whose relationship they both consciously consider secondary. All three understand these agreements and discuss them openly.
Related terms
Polyamory, Solo polyamory, Nesting partner
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