Written out in full, with the real numbers, so you can decide before signing up rather than after. The things Kindred deliberately does not have are at the bottom.
Matching
Three separate rooms. Couples looking for other couples, singles looking for friends, and singles dating. They never mix. A couples account is never shown to a single, in either direction.
Matched on what you do, not how you look. Shared interests, an approximate distance and a short profile you wrote yourself.
Distance is a band, never a point. Other people see "under 5 km away", not a map, not a pin, not an address.
Your own filters, and theirs. Age range and distance are both sides' decision. Somebody outside your range never appears, and you never appear to somebody who set you outside theirs.
A wave is a limited thing. Ten a day free, 25 on Kindred, 60 on Kindred+. Reaching out is meant to cost something.
Nothing is shown until a profile is finished. Three photographs, a few sentences, three interests, two free evenings and a location. An unfinished profile is in nobody's deck, and it also cannot see anybody. You are visible on the same terms that let you look.
The first three days
No photographs, either way. You get their answers before you get their face.
A creature instead of a picture. Every card carries a small chosen creature, from a fixed set, so a blind card is still a thing rather than a blank.
Day 3, both at once. Photographs and names unlock for the two of you at the same second. Nobody sees the other first and nobody gets to decide in private.
Silence cannot kill a blind match. The quiet clock does not start until somebody speaks, or until day 3 if nobody has.
Getting to an actual meeting
Day 7, the app names the deadline. It asks both of you to agree a day, a place and a time, so neither of you has to be the one who risks it.
Free evenings on every card. Two at minimum. You can see when they are free before you ask.
Rationed chat until you meet. From day 7, 15 messages a day each. Arranging the meetup does not count against it.
Meetups are confirmed in person. You scan each other's code on the day. It cannot be claimed by somebody who did not turn up.
After you meet, every timer stops. Permanently. Real friendships are allowed to go quiet.
A private rating afterwards. Yours alone, never shown to them.
Tell a friend where you are. A live location share, for the length of a meetup, sent to somebody you choose. The person you are meeting is never told it exists.
Report and block, on every profile and every chat. The other person is never told they were reported.
Nobody is vetted, and the app says so. Kindred does not run background checks and does not verify identity. You are told this before you agree to anything, not in a footnote.
18 and over, asked once. A date of birth is required before anything can be seen or shown.
Couple accounts cannot be run by one person. Both partners register with their own email, and confirm each other by scanning a code in person. Until that scan, the couple is shown to nobody.
None of this is on a paid tier. Safety is not an upsell and never will be.
Privacy
No advertising and no data sale. The app is paid for by the people using it, which is the only funding model that is not in tension with the product.
No third party trackers. Nothing on the site or in the app reports to anybody else.
Locations are named from a list built into the app rather than sent to a geocoding service.
Delete everything yourself, in about ten seconds. No waiting period, no retention window, nothing to cancel first.
What it costs
Free. A real app: make a profile, be matched, reach ten people a day, talk, and meet.
Kindred, $0.99 a month. First month free. 25 waves a day and the ordinary things without limits.
Kindred+, $2.99 a month. 60 waves a day, up to 200 km, any age range, undo a pass, one second look a week at somebody you passed on, and three extra days for a match that went quiet.
What Kindred deliberately does not have
No endless swiping. The deck is small on purpose and the waves are limited.
No read receipts and no typing indicators. Both exist to make you anxious enough to keep the app open.
No boosts, no priority placement, no paying to be seen first. Nobody can buy their way in front of you.
No buying your way past the blind days. Photographs unlock on day 3 for both people whatever anybody has paid. This is the one rule with no exception at any price.
No streaks, no badges, no daily rewards. The app is not trying to be a habit. It is trying to get you off it and into a room with somebody.
Common questions
What is Kindred?
A blind first app for meeting people near you, in three separate modes: couples looking for other couples, singles looking for friends, and singles dating. You are matched on interests and a short written profile rather than photographs, photos unlock on day 3 for both people at the same moment, and on day 7 the app prompts you to agree a real plan with a date, place and time.
Is Kindred free?
Yes, and the free tier is a real app rather than a locked door: a profile, matching, ten waves a day, chat and meetups. Kindred is $0.99 a month with the first month free, and Kindred+ is $2.99 a month for a wider reach and the extras. Every safety feature is free on every tier.
Do I need to download Kindred?
No. It runs in any modern browser, anywhere in the world, at kindredapp.ca/a. There is no waiting list and nothing to install. The App Store and Google Play builds are not out yet; everyone who signed up is emailed when they are.
How is Kindred different from other apps?
Three things. There are no photographs for the first three days, so matching happens on what people are into rather than how they look. On day 7 the app asks for a real plan, and until you have met, chat is rationed to 15 messages a day each. And couples meet other couples in a room of their own, which no mainstream app does at all.
Does Kindred verify its users?
No, and it says so plainly before you agree to anything. Kindred does not run background checks and does not verify identity. A profile is whatever somebody typed into it. What it gives you instead is a live location share you can send to a friend for the length of a meetup, free, which the person you are meeting is never told about.
Can one person run a couple account on Kindred?
No. Both partners register separately with their own email address and date of birth, then confirm each other by scanning a code in person. Until that scan happens, the couple profile is shown to nobody.
All of it opens in a browser.
Nothing to install, free to join, and it works anywhere in the world. The App Store and Google Play builds come later; everyone who signed up gets emailed when they do.
Kindred does not run background checks and does not verify that anyone is who they say they are. No app does, whatever it implies. Meet somewhere public the first few times, tell someone where you are going, sort out your own way home, and never send anyone money. The safety section is honest about exactly what we do and what we cannot do.