8 Apps Solo Travelers Use to Meet People in 2026
Solo travel in 2026 is more connected than ever, but “just talk to people at the hostel” only gets you so far. The right apps can turn a week of eating alone into a week of eating with strangers who become real friends. Here are eight that actually deliver.
All 8 Apps Compared Side by Side
Not all of these apps were built for travelers. Some were built for locals. A few were built for dating and repurposed brilliantly by solo travelers who needed a platform that already had active communities. Here’s how they stack up before we break them down individually.
| App | Best For | Cost (2026) | Platform | Standout Feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meetup | Event-based socializing in cities | Free (some events charge entry) | iOS, Android | 330,000+ groups in 190 countries |
| Couchsurfing | Meeting locals and fellow travelers | $2.99/month | iOS, Android | Hangouts feature for spontaneous same-day meetups |
| Hostelworld | Hostel bookers who want pre-arrival social connection | Free | iOS, Android | Meet the World — message guests at your hostel before you arrive |
| Bumble BFF | Platonic friendship in any destination city | Free (Boost: $12.99/month) | iOS, Android | Women message first — removes a specific category of unwanted contact |
| Tourlina | Female solo travelers finding trip companions | Free (Premium: $4.99/month) | iOS, Android | Women-only platform purpose-built for companion matching |
| TravelBuddy | Finding a travel companion before departure | Free (Gold: $9.99/month) | iOS, Android | Match by destination overlap, travel dates, and style preferences |
| Facebook Groups | Long-trip community advice and planning | Free | iOS, Android, Web | Solo Travel Society: 1M+ active members |
| Discord | Real-time travel community chat | Free (Nitro: $9.99/month) | iOS, Android, Desktop | Destination-specific servers with honest, unfiltered conversation |
What the Table Doesn’t Show
User density varies wildly by city. Meetup is excellent in New York, London, Berlin, Sydney, and Tokyo. In smaller towns, you’ll find groups — but the last event might have been six months ago. Always check activity in your specific destination before counting on any platform.
Couchsurfing’s active user base shrank noticeably after the platform went paid in 2020. In most major European cities and across Southeast Asia, it’s still alive. In smaller Latin American cities, results are inconsistent. Open the Hangouts section for your target city before your trip — if the most recent post is older than a week, that community might be dormant.
Meetup and Couchsurfing: The Two Apps That Have Earned Their Reputation
These two have been around long enough to build genuine, active communities in most major travel destinations. They solve the same problem with completely different mechanics.
Meetup — The Best App for Meeting People Who Actually Live There
Meetup isn’t a travel app. That’s exactly why it works.
When you join a hiking group, a language exchange, or a food tour in a city you’re visiting, you’re meeting people who live there — not other tourists trying to fill an afternoon. Locals show you things that don’t appear on any list. The best meal I’ve eaten in Tokyo came from a recommendation at a Meetup language exchange. No English menu. No Google Maps listing. Zero stars on TripAdvisor because it didn’t exist there.
The numbers: over 10 million active members across 330,000+ groups in 190 countries. Categories run from hiking, fitness, and photography to tech, arts, language exchange, and food. Most events are free. Some professional or ticketed events run $10–30. Signing up takes five minutes, and many groups let you attend as a guest before you commit to joining.
The RSVP system matters. When you tell an organizer you’re coming, you’re expected. That creates a lower-pressure entry than showing up cold to a bar meetup where nobody knows you. You have a name, a reason to be there, and usually someone who’ll say hello when you walk in.
Strongest cities for Meetup: New York, London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Singapore, Sydney, São Paulo, and most large US metros. Smaller cities in Eastern Europe, Central America, and rural Asia tend to have sparse activity — use Facebook Groups or Discord there instead.
Couchsurfing Hangouts — The Feature Most People Miss
Most people know Couchsurfing for the accommodation side. The Hangouts feature is where the real value is for solo travelers who aren’t couch-surfing at all.
Open the app, tap Hangouts, and post something like: “Just arrived in Lisbon — anyone up for exploring Alfama this afternoon or grabbing a pastel de nata?” Within a few hours, you’ll typically have responses from a mix of locals and fellow travelers. It’s low-commitment, spontaneous, and surprisingly active in cities like Lisbon, Budapest, Prague, Chiang Mai, and Medellín.
At $2.99/month, it’s the cheapest paid option on this list. The subscription actually improved things. The people who pay — even $3 — tend to be more serious about the community exchange. Less noise, more genuine interest.
One important step before every meetup: check the person’s profile reviews. Couchsurfing’s reference system lets users leave public feedback. Multiple positive references from different people over time is a good sign. An account with zero reviews, or references only from equally new accounts, warrants a pause.
Before You RSVP to Anything
This applies to every platform on this list. Before meeting anyone from an app for the first time: verify their profile has genuine history, tell someone back home who you’re meeting and where, and pick a public place for the first encounter. A busy café, not a private rooftop. You can always move somewhere less crowded once you’re comfortable. None of this should stop you from going — it should just become automatic.
How to Not Come Across as Desperate or Creepy
The biggest barrier for most solo travelers isn’t finding the apps. It’s not knowing what to do once they have them. Two things make more difference than anything else.
The 48-Hour Rule After Arriving
Sending messages the moment you land is a mistake. You’re jet-lagged, possibly disoriented, and making social commitments with a foggy brain. Give yourself 48 hours to settle in first — walk the neighborhoods, figure out what kind of company you actually want. Some days you want a group. Some days you want headphones and silence. Both are valid. Don’t lock yourself into plans before you know which kind of day it is.
The delay also gives you something specific to say. “I’ve been here two days, tried the night market near Jalan Alor, and I’m thinking about Batu Caves tomorrow — anyone been recently?” is a completely different message than “Just arrived, anyone want to hang out?” One signals a person with opinions. The other signals someone killing time.
What to Actually Write in Your First Message
Generic openers die in inboxes. “Hey, I’m visiting your city and want to meet people” gets ignored because it’s vague. It also sounds faintly desperate, which isn’t a compelling pitch.
Specific beats vague, every time. Mention a neighborhood you already explored. Name a plan you’re loosely making. Ask a question they can actually answer. Two sentences with a real angle is enough — give the other person something to respond to, and make it easy to say yes without committing to a three-hour hangout right away.
The best openers read like a text from someone interesting who happens to be in town. Not a networking email from a stranger who needs a favor.
For Women Traveling Alone: Tourlina and Bumble BFF
Female solo travelers navigate a layer of safety calculus that most apps weren’t designed around. These two were — or at least, one was built for it and one was adapted for it brilliantly.
Tourlina — Built Specifically for This Problem
Tourlina is a women-only platform for finding travel companions. Not dates. Not casual local meetups. Actual trip companions — someone to split a taxi with in Nairobi, explore temples with in Myanmar, or road-trip across Iceland alongside.
- Free to join with basic messaging; Premium at $4.99/month unlocks unlimited messages and a profile visibility boost
- Filter by destination, travel dates, age range, and travel style (backpacker, mid-range, or luxury)
- Works best when you start searching 2–4 weeks before departure
- Most active in Southeast Asia, Western Europe, and Bali — thinner in Central Asia and sub-Saharan Africa
The verdict: if you want a trip companion specifically, Tourlina is the strongest option for women. The community is smaller than Bumble BFF but the intent is sharper — everyone is there for travel, not general friendship. That focus makes the matches more useful.
Bumble BFF — More Users, Different Use Case
- Same swipe mechanics as Bumble Dating, strictly platonic mode
- Women message first in all interactions — eliminates a specific category of unwanted contact
- Free; Bumble Boost at $12.99/month adds Rematch and SuperSwipe features
- Works best in cities with large expat and young professional communities: London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Bangkok, Melbourne
- Better for travelers spending a week or more in one city than for short visits
If you’re doing the kind of trip where you stay somewhere long enough to actually feel at home — the type of slow budget travel where you cook in a shared kitchen and take day trips rather than checking three cities in a week — Bumble BFF rewards that pace. The app works best for people who can actually follow through on plans, and that requires being somewhere long enough to do so.
What to Actually Expect From These Apps
Most people give these apps two or three tries, get ignored or have an awkward first meetup, and conclude that “meeting people through apps doesn’t work.” That’s a calibration problem, not a platform problem. Here’s what realistic looks like.
- Response rates are low. On most platforms, expect a reply to roughly 1 in 5 outreach messages. That’s not rejection — it’s just the math. People are busy, already mid-plan, or traveling themselves. Don’t personalize the silence.
- The first meetup is often awkward. Two strangers from an app are going to have a stilted opening ten minutes. That’s normal. Push through it. The interesting conversations nearly always start after the pleasantries die.
- Most connections are temporary. You’ll meet some people once and never see them again. That’s fine. Some of the strongest travel memories come from a single afternoon with a stranger. Don’t measure success by whether you stay in touch for years.
- Occasionally you’ll meet someone remarkable. Someone who changes what you think about where you’re going, or what you’re doing with your life, or what’s possible. These moments are rare. They’re also the reason solo travelers keep traveling solo.
The people who get the most from these apps treat a failed meetup as data, not defeat. Adjust your message, try a different platform for that city, or just give it another day. The connection you’re looking for is usually one message away from where you stopped trying.
Which App Should You Actually Download First?
Direct answer, broken down by situation.
If You’re Flying Into a New City in the Next 72 Hours
Download Meetup and Couchsurfing tonight. Set up your profile. Browse events in your destination. RSVP to one thing — one, not five. One anchor is enough. Everything else will fall into place once you’re on the ground and oriented.
Also check whether your hostel uses Hostelworld’s Meet the World feature. If it does, message your future fellow guests before you arrive. Walking into a common room where someone already knows your name because you chatted in-app is a completely different experience than walking in as a stranger. If you haven’t locked in accommodation yet, a solid comparison of hotel and hostel booking apps can help you find the best place to stay before you start worrying about who you’ll meet there.
If You Want Someone to Actually Travel With You
Use TravelBuddy (everyone) or Tourlina (women). Both are built for pre-trip companion matching — the only two apps on this list designed specifically for that. TravelBuddy’s Gold tier at $9.99/month adds advanced filters for travel style, budget level, and daily pace. Worth it if you have strong preferences about how you travel.
Start this process at minimum two weeks before departure. Real travel companions don’t materialize in 24 hours. Give the matching time to breathe.
If You’re on a Long Trip of Three Weeks or More
Build a layered approach. Use Hostelworld’s Meet the World for immediate hostel-level connection. Use Meetup in cities where you’ll spend real time. Use Facebook Groups — specifically Solo Travel Society (1M+ members) and destination-specific backpacker groups — for advice from people who are mid-trip right now, not writing a guide months after the fact.
And download Discord. The r/solotravel server alone has 50,000+ members. Destination-specific servers exist for cities like Bangkok, Tokyo, Medellín, and Cape Town. The conversations are unfiltered in a way curated travel apps aren’t. Drop a message saying you’re arriving next week. See what comes back.
On a long trip, no single app carries the weight. The ecosystem matters more than any individual platform. Shift between them as your needs change, and you’ll rarely find yourself eating alone — unless you want to.
Solo travel apps are improving with every cycle — more specific, more safety-aware, better at facilitating real connections rather than surface-level tourist chatter. The tools available in 2026 are meaningfully better than what existed five years ago. That gap is only going to keep closing.