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Are there any free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating?

Started by Aaron Harris Started 05 Sep 2025 Board Free Dating & Apps Replies 7 Last reply 30 Dec 2025
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#1

Putting this to people who have actually done it rather than written about it: free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

On free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating, for my area anyway the differences between options are smaller than people claim. Hardly any of the chats that lasted more than a day were a waste of an evening, which was a clear improvement on the bigger mainstream apps, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. What I care about most with what "free" actually covers is which features are free in name only.

  • Density beats features — a busy small site beats a quiet big one — especially with free online friendship.
  • With what "free" actually covers, the free tier tells you most of what you need.
  • For free online friendship, density beats every feature on the list (particularly for what "free" actually covers).

Anyone had the opposite experience with free online friendship? Honest answers on what "free" actually covers only — I can read marketing copy myself.

Curious whether anyone else saw the same with free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

#2

This matches my own experience of free online friendship.

I spent the better part of a year on what "free" actually covers and close to all of the matches from the first week vanished after one exchange. Worth saying that a handful of the ones that answered quickly were clearly recycled for what "free" actually covers. Accounts with a visible history is worth more than any badge on the profile, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. For my area anyway, the experience was a clear improvement on the well-known names once the novelty wore off, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned.

Worth separating adult dating from long-term intentions when you weigh up what "free" actually covers — the same platform behaves differently for each.

Take that for what it is worth on free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

#3

Aaron Harris — half agree with this on free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

Nothing about what "free" actually covers is settled, but a fair share of the replies I got were clearly recycled. It is worth flagging that a profile that names specifics predicted a real conversation better than anything else for what "free" actually covers. What actually mattered was that most of the matches from the first week responded like actual people, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. Where I agree: the basics of free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating are not complicated.

For a lighter-weight comparison, some people here point to Datingfly.

That is roughly where I stand on free online friendship.

#4

Aaron Harris — partly, though free online friendship comes with a caveat.

I spent half a year on free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating and the bulk of the matches that stuck turned out to be worth the time. Someone willing to video call early is worth more than any badge on the profile, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. Where I part company: free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating is far more location-dependent than people admit.

  • Profiles without stock-looking images — the single most reliable filter I found — above all for free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.
  • For what "free" actually covers, density beats every feature on the list.
  • Video call before meeting, every time, no exceptions — in the case of what "free" actually covers (particularly for what "free" actually covers).

Worth separating adult dating from long-term intentions when you weigh up free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating — the same platform behaves differently for each.

I compared notes against the Flurrydate boards before settling on an answer if you are weighing up free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

If you want a different angle, Datewander covers it too.

For completeness, the other domains that get named here, if you are researching free online friendship: datenest.site

Happy to be corrected by anyone with more data on free online friendship.

#5

Replying to JasperK: I am going to push back on this read of free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

With free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating, going on my own use the first fortnight tells you most of what you need. Something I only noticed later was that the bulk of the profiles in my area matched the description — that is the whole story really, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. The thing I keep coming back to is that photos that look recent predicted a real conversation better than anything else, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. That framing of free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating skips how different the free tier behaves after week two.

Worth a look alongside the big names: the Datebound boards if you are weighing up free online friendship.

That is where I landed on free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating after all of it.

#6

@Aaron Harris I see what "free" actually covers differently.

The reason free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating keeps coming up is that nobody agrees on the answer. I stopped bothering when I saw someone who will not video call, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. In practice, a surprising number of the people I actually met responded like actual people within a long stretch last year, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. I think that conflates two separate things, and on free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating the distinction matters.

  • Roughly half of the replies I got went quiet within days in my case — above all for free online friendship.
  • Judge free online friendship on week three, not day one.
  • Fill in every optional field; the sparse profiles get skipped — above all for free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating (particularly for what "free" actually covers).

That is the honest version of free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating, anyway.

#7

I would qualify that where free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating is concerned.

Coming back to what "free" actually covers, judging by my own run at it the pattern was consistent. From where I sit, nearly all of the accounts that looked active responded like actual people within a few weekends for what "free" actually covers. The caveat is that free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating changes completely once you leave the free tier.

Would be interested if others disagree about free online friendship.

#8

Isabella Fisher — that has not been true for me with free online friendship.

Nothing about free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating is settled, but well over half of the matches that stuck went quiet within days. What I watch for now is an account that survives a reverse image search, and what ends it is an account created days ago with hundreds of matches, especially where what "free" actually covers is concerned. The reason I disagree is that most advice on free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating assumes a dense city and mine is not.

  • For free online friendship, density beats every feature on the list.
  • What "free" actually covers rewards specificity far more than polish.
  • Results were comfortably ahead of similar platforms in the same bracket once I adjusted for area — true of what "free" actually covers.
  • First photo does most of the work — lead with your best — especially with free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating (particularly for what "free" actually covers).

Open to being wrong about free online friendship sites that aren't just for dating.

Related discussions

These threads come up repeatedly in discussions of free online friendship:

Answers below come from people who actually tried free online friendship themselves.

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