Friendster is back. What does this mean outside nostalgia?
Social media in the past years has greatly changed in terms of what we see on our feeds. Popular platforms such as Facebook, Twitter (pre-Elon), and Instagram, amassed widespread appeal on the promise of connecting both friends and strangers. Today, however, that promise has taken a backseat where we see intrusive ads and unwanted recommendations before getting to our friend’s latest updates—that is, on top of the widely accepted reality that our data is quietly being sold for profit.
Friendster, a social media pioneer that predated the many platforms we use today, had hundreds of millions of users in its heyday before ultimately bowing out to the industry giant that is Facebook.
More than a decade after its shutdown, Friendster has just made a comeback, and it’s promising a return-to-roots approach to social connection.
A new coat of paint
The new-look Friendster promises “social networking, without the nonsense.” With an almost bare-bones looking app (that’s only currently available on IOS as of writing), it doesn’t feature any ads or algorithm-adjusted content—just what your friends post on their feeds.
Adding friends has also taken on a new form. Rather than searching for your friends’ usernames or pressing that “add” or “follow” button on a recommendation, you can only add users in person. By that, you can only add friends you’re personally with at the moment, as if you were using Apple’s Airdrop function.
While the app is relatively new, it promises several additional features in its coming updates. Among these is a function where users can see their friends’ friends and request to message them. Another possible feature is dubbed “fading connections”: if two friends go a full year without tapping phones, the link between them softens.
According to Mike Carson, who bought Friendster and is the architect of its re-release, that will serve as a “gentle nudge that real friendships are kept alive in person, not online.” “All of this is built around the simple idea that real friendships happen when you actually meet in person,” he says.
“The idea that the only way to connect as friends on Friendster is by tapping phones was fun because it would promote people meeting in person. It would also verify that you are connecting to real people, and people that you actually want to connect with,” Carson shares, explaining the different approach to adding friends on the app.
“I wanted to create something positive”
According to Carson, in 2023, he discovered that the Friendster domain was active once again after it officially shut down in 2015. He then found the owner and discovered that the site was bought for $8k and was just being used to generate ad revenue. Carson later on finalized a deal, where he paid the current owner $20k in Bitcoin and a domain that was making around $9k/year in ad revenue.
But why? Carson notes that while today’s social networks come with a lot of negativity, he recalls Friendster as a platform that brought positive and enjoyable experiences. “I wanted to create something positive—something that people would enjoy and find useful.”
He also explains that his personal experience with social media apps contributed to this decision. “My wife and I met on OkCupid. I wouldn’t have my kids without it. Websites like that genuinely change the course of people’s lives—people meet, fall in love, and build families. That’s incredible to me.”
As a zoomer
That sounds good and all, but how does this work in practice? Is there room for a Friendster revival for someone who doesn’t have the nostalgia?
The charm and allure of social media is the possibility for human connection despite the distance. It took the traditional concept of friendship and even relationships, turned it on its head, and proved that those made online can be just as real as those made in-person. And to a certain extent, the new-look Friendster alienates those who may not have the capacity to go out and make new friends.
However, as someone who was late to social media and never experienced Friendster in its prime, its 2026 version does offer an escape from the noise that’s taken hold over social media. After all, the app is exactly what it says it is: It’s a way to keep tabs on what your friends are up to and a platform to keep in touch with them—all without the ads, the noise, and the doom-scrolling.
It’s intentional social media if there were such a term for it.
