Best Apps to Make Friends in 2026: 12 Honest Picks

The best apps to make friends in 2026 are Rimeso for a small online circle with a daily question, Meetup for regular in-person groups, Timeleft for a table of strangers booked on your behalf, Bumble BFF for one-to-one matching and Slowly for pen pals. The right one depends on your phone, your town and how you feel about walking into a room alone.

We make Rimeso, so we're not neutral about it. We've tried to be fair about what each app is good at, including where others are the better choice.

We checked every app below in November 2026. These apps change quickly, so look at the store page before you commit to anything.

How we chose

There are hundreds of friend making apps, and a lot of them look identical in the store. We read each one's own website or store listing and kept the ones that passed four tests.

1. Friendship is the main purpose. We dropped dating apps with a friends tab, and apps whose real product is paid chat.
2. It can bring you back to the same people. This matters most. Communication researcher Jeffrey Hall estimated that it takes about 50 hours together to become casual friends, about 90 to become friends and more than 200 to become close friends (Hall, 2018). Hanging out counted. Working side by side counted for much less (University of Kansas, 2018). No app hands you 50 hours, so the useful ones give you a reason to come back.
3. It's still being looked after. We wanted a recent update and a clear answer on where it works. Apps whose current state we couldn't confirm stayed out, and so did apps that skew very young.
4. The cost is clear. That means money, and also your photo, your address or your Thursday evenings.

We did not run a formal test, and we can't tell you how busy any app is in your town. That varies more than most reviews admit. A plain app with a lively group nearby beats a clever one with nobody around.

The best apps to make friends at a glance

The 12 friendship apps, one by one

1. Rimeso: a small online circle and one question a day

We make this one, so weigh that. Rimeso matches you into a small private circle based on your interests, language, age group and country. Each day everyone gets one thoughtful question. You can see who has answered, but you can't read what they said until you've posted your own answer, so everyone shares first and reads second. Then you react, comment and chat one-to-one. There's no public feed, no follower count and no ads, and it takes about four minutes a day. It's free, for ages 16 and over.

The limits, in the same breath: it's Android only, with no iPhone version yet. Conversation happens in English or Hindi. It's online only, circles aren't based on your city, and we don't arrange meetups. It's also a young app, so some circles are quiet, especially in smaller countries.

2. Meetup: the default for in-person groups

Meetup is the old reliable here: local groups and events for hiking, board games, languages, coding and most things in between. It has apps for iPhone and Android and a website, and membership is free. Organisers pay to run groups, and some groups charge dues or a fee per event. A paid Meetup+ tier adds extras, which have included direct messaging between members, so swap numbers in person if you click with someone.

Quality swings with the organiser. A group with a big member count on paper may be a handful of people in a pub. Pick one that meets at least twice a month, and go three times before you judge it.

3. Bumble BFF: swipe for friends, then join a group

You build a profile, swipe through people nearby and chat when you match. In the US, Bumble's friendship app was relaunched in September 2025 as BFF, rebuilt on the Geneva community platform, with Groups that add chat rooms, event planning and a calendar (TechCrunch, 2025). Its App Store listing says every match has passed a selfie check and that every feature is free. It's for ages 18 and over.

Availability is the messy part. When we checked Apple's stores in November 2026, the new app was listed in the US, Canada, Mexico and Australia, and missing from the UK, Ireland, Germany and India, where you're likely to find Bumble's older friendship options. One-to-one chats can also go quiet after a few messages, as they do on any swipe app, so suggest something specific early. Our guide to Bumble BFF alternatives goes further.

4. Timeleft: a table of strangers, booked for you

Timeleft started in France and now runs in more than 200 cities across 52 countries, by its own count. You take a quiz, pick a night and a format (dinner, drinks, coffee or a walk) and it places you with a small group of strangers. The venue appears shortly before the event. You need a paid membership to book, and you pay for your own food and drinks. It's for ages 18 and over, on iPhone and Android.

It takes away the planning and the first awkward message, and that's worth a lot on a tired Wednesday. The weakness is that the next table is a new set of strangers, so nothing carries over unless someone asks for a number. Be that someone. If it isn't in your city, try our list of Timeleft alternatives.

5. 222: an outing picked by a personality test

222 is iPhone only. You take a personality test and get invited to group outings at public places such as wine bars and comedy clubs, with no profiles, direct messages or swiping. It's a paid service, you can bring a plus-one, and that helps if walking in alone is the hard part (TechCrunch, 2026). Check the app for your city.

One thing to know before you sign up: its App Store page says it is neither a dating app nor a friend-making service, and Global Dating Insights reported in March 2026 that its users split roughly evenly between people seeking friends and people open to romance. Go for the evening and treat friendship as a bonus.

6. Pie: local plans in a few US cities

Pie began as an events app in Chicago. Its App Store page now names Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Austin, with more to come. Members host plans such as run clubs, supper clubs and watch parties, you turn up, and you keep in touch through the app. In August 2026 it added Community Homes, permanent pages for groups that meet regularly (Startup Researcher, 2026). The app is free to download, for ages 18 and over, on iPhone and Android.

In those cities it's a quick way to find something happening this week. Elsewhere there's little point downloading it yet.

7. Slowly: letters that take their time

Slowly is a pen-pal app. You write a letter, and it takes anything from a few hours to a few days to arrive, depending on how far away the reader lives. You appear as an avatar with no photo or real name, and you collect stamps from around the world. Letters are free, with optional paid extras (App Store).

The wait sounds like a flaw and turns out to be the appeal. Nobody expects a reply in four minutes, so people write more than "hey". The downside is plain enough: your new friend lives in Lisbon and won't be helping you move flat.

8. HelloTalk and Tandem: friends through a language

These are language-exchange apps, and they work for friendship because they give two strangers a job to do. You find someone learning your language, help each other by text, voice or video, and correct each other's mistakes. HelloTalk lists more than 260 languages, and Tandem says it reviews every application to join. Both are free to start.

Partners can vanish once the practice stops being useful, so look for people whose lives interest you as well as their grammar. As on any open chat app, some people are after something else. Block and move on.

9. InterNations: for people living abroad

InterNations is a network for expats, with communities in 420 cities by its own count, plus local events and activities. You need a membership to use the app, with free and paid options (App Store), and some events cost money. It's for ages 18 and over.

It earns its place in your first few months in a new country, when you need someone to explain the tax office. Stay only there and you may end up in a bubble of people who are also leaving in two years, so pair it with something local.

10. Peanut: for mothers

Peanut is a community for mothers and women at other stages of motherhood. You can find mothers nearby, chat, join groups and ask the questions you'd rather not ask your mother-in-law. Profiles go through a selfie check, the app is free to download with an optional paid plan, and it's for ages 18 and over.

Fathers aren't its audience. If that's you, a local parents' group on Meetup or Nextdoor is the better place to start.

11. Nextdoor: the people on your street

Nextdoor is a neighbourhood network that runs in 11 countries, mostly in North America, Europe and Australia. You join with your real name and address, and you see local posts, groups and events. It wasn't built for friendship, and plenty of it is lost cats and plumber recommendations.

That's also why it can work, because a neighbour is the easiest person in the world to see twice. Post something small and specific: "I walk the canal on Sunday mornings. Anyone want company?"

12. r/MakeNewFriendsHere: post today, see who answers

This Reddit community has roughly 1.2 million members. It's for adults only, and sexual content isn't allowed (The Hive Index). Write a post saying who you are, what you're into and what kind of friend you're after, and people reply. It's free, immediate and works on any phone or browser.

It's an open forum, so expect a lot of short chats that lead nowhere, and you know nothing about the person replying. Be specific, and keep your real name, workplace and address to yourself. Our guide to making friends online covers how to turn a chat into something longer.

Not an app, but worth more than most: parkrun

parkrun is a free, timed 5 km event held on Saturday mornings at about 2,800 locations in 23 countries, run by volunteers (Reuters via FBC News, 2026). You can walk it, and you don't need an app, a profile or a fee. It doesn't run in India. It gets a place here because it does what most apps can't: same park, same time, same faces, every week. Volunteer one morning and you'll talk to more people than you would by running.

Three narrower apps

TechCrunch's April 2026 roundup also covers Meet5, for group activities aimed at people over 40, in the US and several European countries; Wyzr Friends, for adults 40 and over; and Les Amís, aimed at women, transgender and LGBTQ+ people, in European cities plus Austin and New York. They're worth a look if you fit the audience and live in the right place.

Which one should you pick?

Start from your situation. Here's where we'd send a friend.

• You're on iPhone. Rimeso won't work for you yet, so skip it. Use Meetup for a group near you, Timeleft for a booked table and Slowly for slow conversation online. If you live in one of their cities, 222 and Pie are easy to try.
• You're an introvert. Start in writing, where you can think before you speak: Slowly, or Rimeso on Android. In person, choose an activity with something to look at, such as a board-game group, and use 222's plus-one if arriving alone worries you. Our guide to making friends as an introvert has more.
• You're new in town. If you want an app to find friends close by, open Meetup in your first week, choose two groups that meet often and add parkrun if there's one nearby. Nextdoor helps with the streets around you. Our guide to making friends after moving goes further.
• You want to meet in person. Meetup gives you the same faces every week, Timeleft gives you a one-off night out, Pie works in its cities and parkrun costs nothing. Rimeso won't help here, because it's for conversation and we don't arrange meetups.
• You want a pen pal. Slowly, with little competition on this list. Add HelloTalk or Tandem if you'd like to practise a language too.
• You're a parent. Peanut if you're a mother. Otherwise try Nextdoor or a parents' group on Meetup. Whoever you are, the people you see at the same playground every Saturday are a head start.
• You're an expat. Use InterNations in your first months for the practical help, HelloTalk or Tandem for the local language, and then one local activity, so your friends aren't all leaving when you do.
• You're in India. The picture is different there, with hobby clubs and meetups that barely appear in global lists. See our guide to the best apps to make friends in India.

How to get more out of whichever app you choose

Most attempts fizzle, and that says nothing about you. Chats stop. Groups turn out duller than their photos. The second visit is harder than the first, because the novelty has gone and nobody knows your name yet. Three habits help.

1. Choose one online and one offline. Five apps at once means five half-finished conversations.
2. Go back at least three times. Repetition turns a stranger into someone you know, and it's the least exciting part.
3. Make one small, specific invitation within a week of a good chat. "I'm going to the Tuesday quiz again. Want to come?" beats "we should hang out sometime", which almost never happens.

Stay careful while you do it. Keep your address, workplace and money out of early chats, meet in public, and tell someone where you're going. Anyone who asks for money or rushes you onto another app gets blocked. If an app feels more like flirting than friendship, our guide to friendship apps that aren't dating apps shows what to look for.

Whatever you choose, expect months rather than days. For the longer view, read our guide to making friends as an adult.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best app to make friends?

It depends on what you want. Rimeso suits a small online circle on Android, Meetup suits regular in-person groups, Timeleft suits a ready-made table of strangers, Bumble BFF suits one-to-one matching where the new app is available and Slowly suits pen pals. Most people do best with one online app and one real-world activity.

Are there free apps to make friends?

Yes. In Rimeso the daily question, circle, chat and Vent Room are free. Meetup membership is free, though some groups charge dues. The new Bumble BFF app says every feature is free, and Slowly lets you send letters for free. Reddit costs nothing, and neither does parkrun, which is a weekly event and not an app.

Which friendship apps work on iPhone?

Meetup, Bumble BFF, Timeleft, Pie, Slowly, HelloTalk, Tandem, InterNations, Peanut and Nextdoor all have iPhone apps, and 222 is iPhone only. Rimeso does not have an iPhone version yet.

Can you really make friends through an app?

Yes, but the app only makes the introduction. Research by Jeffrey Hall estimated about 50 hours together to become casual friends and about 90 to become friends, so what counts is whether you keep seeing or talking to the same people after the first chat.

How do I stay safe on apps to meet new people?

Keep your home address, workplace and money out of early chats, meet in public the first few times, tell someone where you are going, and block and report anyone who pressures you or asks for money.

Sources

• Hall, J. A., How many hours does it take to make a friend?, Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 2018
• University of Kansas, How to make friends? Study reveals how many hours it takes, 2018
• TechCrunch, Bumble BFF's revamped app is here, September 2025
• TechCrunch, The best apps to make new friends right now, April 2026
• App Store, BFF: Make friends and meet up, checked November 2026
• Meetup, home page, checked November 2026
• Timeleft, FAQ, checked November 2026
• Global Dating Insights, 222 aims to recreate the meet-cute internationally, March 2026
• Reuters via FBC News, parkrun's millionth event, June 2026