MeetMe is a chat and livestreaming network that started life as myYearbook, a social site from 2005, and rebranded in 2012 around one idea: meeting new people rather than staying in touch with old ones. Today it is one of the larger apps in that space. This MeetMe review covers how it works, where the money comes from, and how it compares with a one-on-one random chat.
What MeetMe is
MeetMe is an app for iOS and Android, with a web version, where you create a profile, discover people nearby or worldwide, chat with them and watch or broadcast livestreams. It is part of the same company as Skout, and the two products overlap heavily. The livestream side has grown into the centre of the app: broadcasters earn from virtual gifts, and viewers buy the gifts. MeetMe has been through the same redesigns as Skout, and the current app leads with the live feed rather than the profile grid.
How MeetMe works
- Profiles and discovery. Browse people, filter by location, send messages.
- Chat. One-on-one text conversations with anyone who replies.
- Live. Streams from users, with real-time chat and gifting.
- Premium. Paid features that boost visibility and remove limits.
- Account required. MeetMe is a named network, not an anonymous one.
Safety and moderation
MeetMe moderates profiles, chats and streams and publishes safety guidance. The risks are those of any large profile-based network: fake profiles, romance scams and people who push to move the conversation to another app quickly. Livestreams add another dynamic, because the gift economy rewards attention and can pull viewers into spending. Keep your location settings conservative and treat every new contact as a stranger until they have earned otherwise.
As with Skout, the app knows who you are, where you are and what you watch. That is the cost of a persistent identity, and it is worth deciding up front whether you want to pay it.
Who MeetMe suits
People who want a profile-based network with livestreams and the possibility of meeting someone in their own area. It suits regular, app-based use. It is a poor fit for anonymity, for camera-first stranger chat, or for anyone who wants to avoid a gift economy. If you enjoy watching streams as much as talking, it is one of the more active networks for that.
MeetMe vs RandomChat
RandomChat is anonymous and immediate: no profile, no feed, no streams, one stranger at a time in the browser. Sign-in is optional, every connection is relayed so partners never see each other’s IP address, and live translation covers more than 100 languages. You can end a chat with one tap and never see that person again unless you both choose to. For the difference between meeting people and talking to strangers, see our talk to strangers page. MeetMe is at meetme.com.
Ready to try it yourself?
RandomChat.io is free, anonymous, and works in your browser: no downloads, no email needed. Start a random video chat now