What is the difference between Closer and Pie?

Closer is a friendship app that uses manual / self-select matching with groups of Intentionally small groups, priced at $$ ($20/month after 3-month free trial, plus $35 initiation fee), available in 3 cities. Pie is a friendship app using interest-based matching with groups of Varies, priced at Free (Completely free — no subscriptions, no paywalls), available in 0 cities. Key differences include their matching approach, pricing model, and city coverage. Closer's strengths: No app download required — just sign up on the website. Pie's strengths: Completely free — no premium tier, no paywalls, no catch.

Which is better, Closer or Pie?

It depends on what you're looking for. Choose Closer if you prefer manual / self-select matching, Intentionally small groups groups, and weekly events — Facilitated social experiences for real connection.. Choose Pie if you prefer interest-based matching, Varies groups, and on-demand events — Free local events that grow your social circle.. Both are available as IRL social apps. Compare pricing (Closer: $$, Pie: Free) and city availability on Søren to find the best fit for meeting people in real life.

Closer

Pie

Closer vs Pie

Closer and Pie are both friendship apps that help you meet people in real life, but they take different approaches. Here’s how they stack up across pricing, format, cities, and more.

Side-by-side comparison · Updated 2026

At a glance

Closer Pie

CategoryFriendshipFriendship

Price$$ — $20/month after 3-month free trial, plus $35 initiation feeFree — Completely free — no subscriptions, no paywalls

Group SizeIntentionally small groupsVaries

MatchingManual / Self-selectInterest-based

Frequencyweeklyon-demand

Age Range21-4018+

PlatformsWebiOS, Android

Cities3 cities0 cities

Founded20232020

Pricing

Closer is priced at $$ ($20/month after 3-month free trial, plus $35 initiation fee), while Pie comes in at Free (Completely free — no subscriptions, no paywalls).

Format & matching

Closer uses groups of Intentionally small groups, compared to Pie’s Varies, and Closer relies on manual / self-select matching while Pie uses interest-based matching.

How they work

Closer: Head to becloser.co and create an account with your name, email, and phone number. Your first three months of membership are free — after that it's $20/month. Browse upcoming experiences in your city: dinners, drinks nights, live jazz, yoga and wine, home-cooked meals, or weekend getaways. Reserve a spot and show up solo. A facilitator guides the evening with conversation prompts designed for small groups, so you skip the surface-level small talk and get to real conversations fast. There's a $35 initiation fee at your first event.

Pie: Download the app and set your city — Pie is live in Chicago, Austin, Bay Area, and Columbus. Your home feed shows free, in-person events happening nearby, filtered by your interests. Tap an event to see who's going, RSVP, and add it to your calendar. After you attend, Pie starts learning who you vibe with and surfaces a personalized feed of friend and friend-of-friend activity. You can also host your own events — keep them private or broadcast them to the whole network using 'snowball mode.' There's a built-in chat for coordinating plans and sharing photos after the fact.

What to love

Closer: No app download required — just sign up on the website. Three free months of membership to try it risk-free. Variety of experience types beyond just dinners — yoga, jazz, trips, home meals. Facilitated format means you skip awkward small talk and get to real conversation. Everyone comes solo, so there's no feeling of being the odd one out.

Pie: Completely free — no premium tier, no paywalls, no catch. Event-first model means you're bonding over shared experiences, not forced small talk. The friend-of-friend feed creates organic social discovery that feels natural. You can host your own events, giving you control over the vibe. 4.7-star rating with 1,000+ reviews suggests people genuinely love using it.

Reality check

Closer: Currently limited to 8 cities — mostly US, plus London, Toronto, Montreal, Sydney, Melbourne. $35 initiation fee at your first event on top of the monthly membership. No matching algorithm — who you meet is based on who else signed up for that event. Late cancellation ($10) and no-show ($20) fees can sting if plans change last minute.

Pie: Only available in four cities — if you're not in Chicago, Austin, Bay Area, or Columbus, you're out of luck. No algorithmic matching — you have to browse and choose events yourself. Event quality depends on what's happening in your area on any given week. As a PBC (Public Benefit Corporation), long-term monetization strategy is unclear.

Søren's take

On Closer: Closer sits in a sweet spot between a dinner club and a full-blown social platform. The facilitated format is the real differentiator — most social clubs just put people in a room and hope for the best, but Closer's prompts and small-group structure actually create the conditions for meaningful conversation. The three-month free trial is generous, and the event variety (not just dinners!) keeps things fresh. If you're in one of their cities and tired of forced networking energy, this is worth a try. Just be aware of the initiation fee — it's not huge, but it's an extra cost they don't highlight upfront.

On Pie: Pie is refreshingly simple in a space full of personality quizzes and subscription paywalls. The pitch is: here are free events near you, go to them, meet people. That's it. No matching algorithm, no premium tier, no gamification. The friend-of-friend social graph that builds over time is genuinely clever — it mimics how real-life social circles actually form. The catch is geographic: four cities is a small footprint, and if yours isn't on the list, you're waiting. But if you're in Chicago, Austin, or the Bay Area and want a zero-cost way to build a social life, Pie is the obvious first download.