Do Similar Interests Matter When Making Friends?

Everyone has heard the age old expression, “opposites attract.” Whether you’re talking about The Beauty and the Beast, Ron Weasley and Hermione, Wall-E and Eve, or Shikamaru and Temari; opposites attract is one of the oldest tropes in fiction. But, does the same idea apply to platonic relationships? Do similar interests matter when making friends? Yes, and no. 

Similar Hobbies & Interests Make it Easier to Make Friends

If you research how to make friends, most articles such as this one, will tell you a key component to making friends is through joining something. Whether it’s a club, organization, or even a fandom, the key is to be with like-minded individuals who share similar interests to you.

For example, if you’re a major anime fan, head over to an anime convention! As described in a cosplayer thread, conventions are “the easiest way to make new friends… it's easy to just chat with people.” Any fan of anything absolutely loves to talk about their theories, reviews, ideas, or just their love of that topic! It’s easy to start off any conversation, or soon-to-be friendship, with an opener about your common interest. In a recent survey directed towards Americans about friendship, 51% of surveyors said they have activity friends, meaning those that they participate in different activities with whether it be hobbies, sports, or anything else social. 

Making friends by absolutely fangirling over a concept doesn’t just have to be something that happens in real life either. Thanks to social media, and of course, the internet, people from all over the world can meet those with similar interests to them! Online friends may be a bit more rare than real-life friends with 39% of surveyors from the previously mentioned survey saying they have friends that they purely only interact with on the internet, and never in person. But, these bonds can be twice as strong. 

You might have noticed this yourself, but humans tend to be more confident online than in person. Of course, this might make you think of internet trolls, who have confidence because they’re able to hide, but for this instance, we’re taking a look at a more positive side of internet interactions. So, what are the reasons behind the boosted confidence and how does it help you make friends?

When introducing yourself to someone online with a known interest similar to yours, you can get straight to the point of discussing your passions. No more wasting time with the obligatory (and boring) greetings. Plus, talking about a shared interest instantly brings a level of excitement to the conversation that you both share. You’ll feed off each other's energy and thanks to the safety of your screen, you don’t need to think of strong responses right away. You have time to read what they said, process it, think of what to say, and send a worthy reply. Just because you need some more time online (usually) to add to a conversation, doesn’t make the conversation any less genuine. 

Yubo’s Add by Tags

At Yubo, we want to make meeting and making new friends as simple as possible. That’s why we added the add by tag feature to be the ultimate icebreaker. 

What are tags on Yubo? Yubo tags are interest-based signs that can be added to any user’s profile. Users can add as many tags as they’d like! All they have to do is go to their profile, click “tags,” and then pick their favorite tags from any of our 18 categories:

TV & Podcasts, Games, Music, Movies, Sports, Food, Languages, Schools (higher education only), Places, Manga & Anime, Lifestyle, Activities, Pronouns, Brands, People, Books, Spirituality, and of course, Yubo.

And then, if a user would like to add someone else with the same tags, all they have to do is open up their profile, click on the said tag, and then they’ll see a list of those who all have the same tag in their own profile. Watch a full tutorial and explanation of the add-by-tag feature below!

Are Friendships Stronger because of similar interests?

Having similar interests can definitely make friendships easier to form and maintain. If the two of you are into the same musician, you can listen to their music together. If you’re both obsessed with the same tv show or book, you can read it or watch it at the same time. If you’re into basketball, you can discuss strategy or the game that’s on. Having similar interests or hobbies can help ensure you never run out of something to connect on or talk about with that friend. 

Do you need to share interests to be friends?

No. While having similar hobbies or interests can make friendships easier, it does not reflect the quality of your friendship at all. Opposites attract doesn't just apply to romantic pairings on the screen, but also to your friends in real life. Many friends have stark differences that end up complementing each other. When making a friend, or evaluating a current friendship, all that truly matters, is how they make you feel.