Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. All the services provided by InterPals are completely free.

InterPals is funded completely by advertising. This brings in just enough revenue to keep the site up and running.

If you see a banner that you are interested in, please don't hesitate to click it. You will be helping us improve the site, and you are never obligated to buy anything.

InterPals is a friendly community of over 5 million friends, language learners, travelers and penpals. It's a place to meet people from other countries, practice languages with native speakers, make new friends and make your world more connected. You can search for people by country, language, age and interests, then connect through private messages. It's NOT a dating site - it's focused on friendship, cultural exchange and language learning.

No, InterPals is NOT a dating site. We are a community focused on friendship, cultural exchange, language learning and penpals. While some members may develop romantic relationships naturally through friendship, using InterPals primarily for dating or romantic pursuits violates our Terms of Service. Members who send inappropriate romantic/sexual messages may have their accounts suspended or deleted.

You can either start by searching the penpal database, or by signing up. Once you are signed up, you can create a profile with information about yourself for other penpals to see.

When you see a penpal profile that interests you, you can send a private message (you need to sign up first) introducing yourself. If you create your own profile, it will be posted on the InterPals web site and you will start getting messages from other people as well.

Yes! InterPals has official mobile apps for both iOS and Android devices:

For iPhone/iPad: Download from the App Store

For Android: Get it on Google Play

The mobile apps let you chat with friends, find language partners, and connect with travelers on the go!

If you're having trouble with the site or have a question, please use our feedback form to contact us directly.

If you've forgotten your username or password, we can help you reset it.
Please visit our password reset page.

If you've found enough penpals for the moment, you can remove your profile from the penpal search results from your privacy settings and then reactivate it when you're ready.

To permanently remove your account from the InterPals web site, visit the account deletion page.

InterPals allows you to change your username a maximum of twice. To change your username, go to Account Settings. Changing your username will update all of your old posts and messages with the new username.

InterPals lets you upload photos and create photo albums to share photos with other InterPallers. To begin uploading visit your photos page, where you can create albums and begin adding photographs.

Another way to add photos and images to your profile is by using the [img][/img] BBCode tags in your profile descriptions. This lets you link to externally-hosted images without having to upload anything to InterPals. Learn more about BBCode.

If you're having trouble uploading photos, check these common issues:

• File size: Photos must be under 10MB
• File type: We accept JPG, JPEG, PNG, and GIF files
• Browser issues: Try clearing your browser cache or using a different browser
• Account status: New accounts may have temporary upload restrictions

If you continue having problems, please contact support with details about the error message you're seeing.

When you sign up, we send a verification email to the address you provided. Click the link in that email to verify your account. If you didn't receive it:

• Check your spam/junk folder
• Make sure you entered your email correctly
• Wait a few minutes - emails can be delayed
• Resend the verification email

You must verify your email to access all features on InterPals.

Every user starts out with one empty album -- the "Profile Photos" album, which contains the photographs that visitors will see on the left side of your profile. The album cover becomes your main thumbnail image and is what other users will see when they come across your profile in search results, bookmarks, etc.

Private messages are like emails between InterPals members, but they are sent and received on the InterPals web site. You can read, delete, and reply to them from your private message inbox.

When you receive a private message, you will be notified instantly as long as you are on the web site. You can also be notified by email when you receive a private message on InterPals. You can turn this option on or off from your notification settings.

Get started with private messages: go to your inbox or search for penpals to private message.

Bookmarks are usernames that you can choose to save and view the profiles at your convenience. Click "Add bookmark" at the bottom of any profile to add it to your bookmarks. You can edit your bookmarks to delete old ones or view your entire list.

No, each person is allowed only ONE account on InterPals. Creating multiple accounts violates our Terms of Service and can result in ALL your accounts being permanently banned. If you've forgotten your login details, use the password reset feature instead of creating a new account.

To update your email address:
1. Go to your Settings
2. Click on "Account" section
3. Enter your new email address
4. Confirm your password
5. Click "Update Email"

You'll need to verify your new email address by clicking the link we send you.

InterPals depends on its volunteer moderators to help keep the site a friendly and welcoming place for users of all ages. Most moderators are asked to join by the InterPals staff. However, if you care a lot about InterPals and would be interested in helping out with reviewing profiles, deleting spam and pornography, etc., you can contact us.

We look for responsible, mature individuals who have been consistently active on our site -- the longer, the better!

To help reduce the amount of spam on this site, we have instituted several limits on the number of new contacts that members can initiate per day. The longer you are a member of InterPals, the higher this limit will be.

This means that there is a limit on the number of new people you can contact. There is no restriction on messages to users with whom you have already corresponded. Messages from users who write to you first don't count against this limit.

This message means that your account has been flagged as potentially violating our Terms of Service and you must wait for our moderators to review the account.

This does not necessarily mean that your account violates the ToS -- it is possible that your account was flagged because you use a computer that has been used in the past to violate our ToS (this is especially true if you access the Internet from a shared computer at a school, internet cafe, workplace, etc.).

It is entirely possible that our volunteer moderators have not yet had a chance to review your report. We receive hundreds of new reports every day, so please bear with us. Likewise, it is possible that the moderator could not find evidence of a ToS violation. Please be as detailed as possible when filing a report.

If you would like to prevent a certain user from contacting you or viewing your information, you can click the "Block this user" link on that person's profile. Alternatively, you can edit your blocklist from your privacy settings.

Anyone you send a message to will be able to reply to your message regardless of the private message limitations set on your profile.

If you encounter a fake profile or scammer:

1. Don't respond to suspicious messages
2. Click "Report" on their profile (bottom of the page)
3. Select the reason (fake profile, scammer, spam, etc.)
4. Provide details - Include specific examples of suspicious behavior
5. Block the user to prevent further contact

Our moderators review all reports. Common scam signs include: asking for money, sharing suspicious links, pushing to communicate off-site quickly, or using stolen photos.

General Safety Tips:

• Protect your personal info - Don't share your full name, address, phone number, or financial information early on
• Stay on InterPals - Keep conversations on our platform where we can help if issues arise
• Video chat first - Before meeting or sharing personal details, verify the person via video chat
• Trust your instincts - If something feels wrong, it probably is
• Report suspicious behavior - Help keep our community safe

Remember: Genuine friends will respect your boundaries and won't pressure you.

NEVER send money to someone you've only met online.

If someone asks for money:
1. Stop communicating with them immediately
2. Report their profile using the report button
3. Block the user to prevent further contact
4. Don't feel guilty - Real friends don't ask for money online

Common scam stories include: medical emergencies, travel problems, business opportunities, or romantic sob stories. These are ALL scams. InterPals strictly prohibits financial requests between members.

Red flags to watch for:

• Too good to be true - Extremely attractive photos, perfect life story
• Fast romance - Declares love quickly without meeting
• Avoids video chat - Always has excuses not to video call
• Asks for money - Any financial request is a scam
• Pushes off-site - Wants to move to email/WhatsApp immediately
• Poor language - Inconsistent grammar, copy-pasted messages
• Suspicious links - Sends links to unknown websites

Trust your instincts and report suspicious profiles immediately.

Language exchange on InterPals is simple:

1. Set your languages in your profile - Languages you speak and languages you're learning
2. Search for partners - Find native speakers of your target language who want to learn your language
3. Connect and practice - Exchange messages, do video calls, and help each other learn
4. Be patient and helpful - Good language exchange is mutual: spend equal time on both languages

Tips: Look for partners at similar skill levels, set regular practice times, and use a mix of text and voice practice.

To find native speakers:

1. Go to Search
2. Under "Languages Spoken", select your target language
3. Set the minimum level to "Native" or "Proficient"
4. Optionally, filter by country where the language is spoken
5. Look for people who want to learn YOUR native language for best matches

Pro tip: Read profiles carefully - the best language partners are those with similar interests and learning goals.

Languages I speak: Your native language(s) and any languages you're already proficient or conversational in. Other members might contact you for help with these languages.

Languages I'm learning: Languages you want to practice and improve. This helps others know what languages you need help with.

Set these correctly on your profile page to find the best language exchange partners. You can set your skill level for each language (beginner, intermediate, advanced, proficient, native).