With more and more people trying to find friends after university, where do you go? The Internet. Sites like Craigslist, Girlfriend Social, and Meet Up are a few that have sprouted to fill in this gap.
It’s like online dating but for friends. It might seem odd, and I’ve gotten my fair share of raised eyebrows when I tell people that I’ve been meeting people online, and that I’ve met some really cool people online.
Maybe its because I’m already so used to talking and meeting people online through Twitter and here, that I’m “immune” to the weirdness of it all, but I’ve never really had a second thought about finding new friends through the Internet. I just knew that I was missing an integral part of my life through strong female friends, and I was ready to start looking for some.
The three sites that I’ve used are Craigslist, Girlfriend Social, and Meet Up (as the most recent addition).
Craigslist
Pros
This is probably the easiest one to use. You don’t have need an account, and you can narrow it down to your location fairly well. Added bonus of being able to search for other things as well. I found that there were definitely a lot of females on this one, and it’s a little addictive looking at posts. This one is usually a little more time-sensitive as many are posting about going out that night or the next, so it’s a good one to check before the weekends.
Cons
While there are some winners, there is also a lot of crap. There are a lot of sexual encounters (even in the strictly platonic section!) or everyone is looking for drugs. Definitely requires just a bit of weeding through. While I’ve never had any issues with unwanted male interactions, or stalkers, this one has a little bit of a higher risk factor.
Girlfriend Social
Pros
Since this is a site that requires you to create an account and login, it’s slightly more secure. You have to be a female to join, and it allows even more of a narrowed city search. This one is the most like a dating site, where you create a profile, and it pushes possible matches at you. Again, like CL it can be slightly addicting, but this is the one that I use the least.
Cons
I’m not quite a fan of the dating site style set up of this one, it’s a little bit more confusing, and a little bit harder to navigate. This one almost feels a little more “judgemental” since it’s like Tinder, and you just flick through pictures and brief captions while “Yay” or “Nay”ing them.
Meet Up.com
Pros
They have an app! I mainly use the app to do anything, it’s extremely easy to use, and the nice thing is that there is no pressure to choose a single person. You join a group that’s close to your location [or however far you are willing to travel], and then choose something that you’re interested in. It’s probably the most user friendly of the ones I use, mainly due to the app. I haven’t gone to any of the meetups yet, it’s nice because they are generally group things, and the groups that I’ve joined do put a cap on how many people can go, usually under 10 so it’s not quite as overwhelming. I am going to one next week, so I’m looking forward to doing that.
You can also create your own, and I might be interested in doing that, although it might be easier to suggest ideas to an already formed group.
Cons
As I haven’t gone to any of the meetups yet, I don’t quite have any feedback or cons to add to this one yet. Will do an update!
