Making friends is hard, and it only gets harder with age. With loneliness on the rise among American adults, a variety of friend-pairing services have sprung up in recent years hoping to help adults forge new friendships, the Washington Post reported. From apps to full service platonic matchmakers, adult friendships are becoming a business.
Dating apps like Bumble and the League have introduced friend-finding modes in recent years, while other apps were designed specifically with friend-pairing in mind. Often these platonic apps tend to target specific groups of people who already have something in common: the Peanut app connects mothers, while Tourlina pairs solo travelers.
Meanwhile, adult friend-pairing tools aren’t just taking over the app space. Professional matchmaking has long been a fixture in the world of dating services, one that’s managed to hold its elevated ground in the dating-app era with the promise of higher quality matches and a more personalized experience. Now matchmaking has entered the blossoming friend-pairing biz as well, with services such as DC-based BFF Matchmaking connecting adults looking for platonic friendships.
Founded by Washington matchmaker Michelle Jacoby, BFF Matchmaking pairs adults based on shared interests and even sets up potential matches on “friend dates” — for a price, that is. BFF Matchmaking offers a variety of packages starting at a $900 base-level package and going all the way up to a $2,100 VIP offer that includes six matches complete with planned, coordinated and scheduled first friend dates.
It may sound like a high price to pay for something people have always done for free, but in a world where adults are increasingly busy with work and family demands, outsourcing friendship to the professionals may just be a more efficient use of time and energy.
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