Which dating apps have a friends mode?

Sometimes you want a partner, sometimes new friends, and often both, especially after a move, a breakup or a big life change. A friends mode lets you do both without mixed signals.

Having dating and friendship in one place is convenient, but only if intentions stay clear. Mixed signals are one of the most common frustrations in friend-finding on dating apps. A dedicated friends mode solves that by showing friends-only members only to others looking for friends, while letting people who are open to both say so openly.

How friends mode works on Souldaters

• Choose your intent: dating, friends only, or both.
• Friends-only members appear only to people looking for friends, which keeps intentions clear.
• Mutual wave first. Like dating, chat only opens once both people wave.
• Same tribes and filters. Find friends who share tribes such as hikers, book lovers or vegan, and use filters like sober or non-drinkers.
• Completely free.

Who uses friends mode?

• People new to a city
• Parents looking for other parents
• People who want activity partners for running, yoga or hiking
• Anyone who wants a wider circle alongside dating

Tips

• Say what kind of friendship you want in a prompt: "Looking for a Sunday walk crew."
• Suggest a specific plan quickly.
• Show up repeatedly; friendship grows through regular contact.

Alternatives

Bumble has a dedicated friend-finding app, and Meetup is great for group events. See our Bumble BFF comparison and making friends after 30.

You can change your intent at any time in settings. Many members start in friends mode to get to know a new place or ease back into socializing, then open up to dating later, or the other way round. Your tribes, prompts and profile stay the same either way, so switching takes seconds.