Moving to a new place and searching for the best websites to find roommates? Whether you have an open room or are relocating to a new city, it can be challenging to find someone to live with—especially if you’ve never met them before.
Here’s how to screen potential roommates online, what to look for, and how to use popular website features to narrow down your search.
The Top 5 Best Websites to Find Roommates & Their Key Search Features
Below are the five best websites to find roommates, their key features, and why they’re helpful in your search.
1. Roomi
Source: Roomi
Roomi is a roommate app and website that helps connect you to verified renters in your area. It uses algorithms to match you with people based on the questions you fill out in over 200 cities.
Their questions focus on lifestyle, living habits, hobbies, and roommate preferences, such as:
•Do you have pets? Are you comfortable living with pets?
•Do you smoke? Are you comfortable living with someone who smokes?
•Are you looking for a quiet environment, or do you prefer a social household?
•What is your typical daily schedule? When do you work/study and go to sleep/wake up?
The renter verification process requires a government-issued ID, a “Selfie”, and a safety screening that checks criminal databases when creating a Roomi account. That way, you can avoid financial scams and feel safer making a major decision to live with someone you don’t know.
During the screening process, you can use their in-app messaging to communicate with potential roommates and review their profile details. While most features are free, premium services like unlimited messaging and identity verification require in-app purchases. Their pricing starts around $9.99 per month, $24.99 for three months, $34.99 for six months.
Roomi also offers open rooms if you need to fill a space with search filters like move-in urgency, geographical area, and gender preferences.
2. Roomster
Source: Roomster
Roomster is also a roommate app and website that helps you find rooms for rent and people to live with. It’s unique because it’s a global roommate finder in 192 countries and 18 languages. This is especially helpful for international college students looking to move in with one or more people off-campus and who are concerned about language barriers.
They even organize the site by major worldwide cities, like New York, Paris, and Tokyo. Some of Roomster’s features are free, like creating an account, posting a listing with up to five messages, and browsing room and roommate listings.
However, you need a paid membership to access most features like unlimited messaging, private mailboxes, and texting/calling. Subscription pricing options include weekly plans starting at $11.99 and monthly plans for around $29.99.
Another key feature Roomster offers is the ability to communicate with landlords. This is practical as screening the people you’ll rent from is just as important as the ones you’ll live with.
3. RoomieMatch
Source: RoomieMatch
RoomieMatch heavily focuses on screening its users. Before anyone contacts you, all users must enter their IP address with their exact location and provide a valid email to prevent financial scams. They even have on-staff human moderators who check this documentation and their online database every three weeks to help protect their subscribers.
Their process works differently from other roommate search websites. Instead of you browsing through open room and roommate listings, they’ll find potential matches for you and email you with their results.
In addition to basic demographics like gender, moving status, and age, their Roommate Behavior Ratings system collects information on how people behave as roommates and individuals. It’ll then compare these behaviors and predict whether or not you’ll get along with them.
The Roommate Behavior Ratings feature uses a predictive behavior scale based on these five factors:
•How do you keep house?
•How do you keep company?
•How do you keep your end?
•How do you keep yourself?
•How do you keep yourself busy?
Based on the answers to these questions, it’ll create average scores and cross-reference them with your preferences to help you find a compatible roommate. A free basic subscription is available with access to features like creating a profile and receiving a Roommate Behavior Rating—but people can only reach out to you. A paid subscription of $19.95 per year unlocks the ability for you to contact anyone on the site who fits your profile.
RoomieMatch does all the legwork for you as a roommate-matching website.
4. SpareRoom
Source: SpareRoom
Already renting in a house or apartment and have an open room available? Or looking for a spare open room to rent? Then SpareRoom can be a great go-to resource. You can find over 10,000 available rooms and roommates in the U.S. and the U.K.
SpareRoom has a team of moderators who check posted ads and its site’s content seven days a week. As one of the top sites to find roommates, they have high ad response rates within days. There are free and premium ad options available.
Free ads include contact from free users after seven days from when the ad was posted, and contact from upgraded users immediately. Paid ads, called Bold Ads, add on more features, including ranking higher on search pages and getting twice as many ad inquiries. Bold Ads start at $14 weekly, $25 bi-weekly, $28 every four weeks, and $149 every six months.
SpareRoom’s ads also have a Buddying Up feature that helps you match with other room seekers to find a whole house or apartment together.
5. Chicago Rentals
What makes Chicago Rentals stand out among the best websites to find roommates is its qualification process. They combine the incomes of all roommates to ensure you all qualify for the apartment you want—rather than individually, as other sites do. From monthly rent to average utility costs, they’ll ensure you all can live within your means.
Whether you’re renting in Chicago or its surrounding suburbs, it’s convenient to understand how much you all can afford to live together. And with Chicagoland experts on staff, they can also help you and your roommates find the best place to live in this major metro area.
They own and manage over 30 Chicagoland apartment properties, each with unique amenities for diverse lifestyles. Simply provide your financial documentation, the number of people you’re living with, and daily living details, and they’ll streamline your search.
Search Smarter: Find Your Chicagoland Apartment with the Right Roommates
Looking to live in Chicagoland with roommate(s)? Let us help your group move easily.
At TLC Management Co., we have over 30 apartment locations in the area with convenient and luxurious amenities, including:
•Resident-exclusive Bark Parks, shared public working spaces, and resort-style swimming pools
•In-unit laundry, patios/balconies, high ceilings, and oversized closets
•No security deposit required and flexible lease options on select properties
Browse our Chicago and suburban properties or contact us at info@chicagorentals.com to start your apartment search with roommates today!
