Do internet friends count as real friends?

Dear everyone saying you can't know someone if you've never met them in real life; People can be fake and deceitful in real life too. Dear people who think that never meeting in person = never seeing their face; Look up Skype, seriously, it's the most commonly used chat program. It has real time video chat. A LOT of people use it. Dear person laughing at OP because they want to make friends online; Congratulations on mocking a stranger over the internet who has a different lifestyle than you!

I grew up living on a farm outside of a small town. I had a number of real life friends but I didn't always get to see them on a regular basis. I also had friends online. I've found out people I thought I knew online were totally different than what I was led to believe and the same thing has happened to me in real life. I have made lasting friendships in real life AND online. Most of my childhood friends have moved on with life. One of the last ones I still kept in contact with just got deployed, I won't be seeing him for at least two years. One of my childhood friends is a person I met in an online game nearly 10 years ago. He popped up on Skype last week to get some advice about his troubled relationship. I know and care for both people equally.

People are people, there are good and bad people out there in every walk of life and on every part of the globe. The people on the internet aren't some different breed, they're human just like the people you meet in real life. I will admit it is easier to live a false life online than it is in real life but if you believe everyone you meet in real life is who they say they are or that you can read someones face well enough to always know their true self and real intent you are living a lie and you're eventually going to get hurt by it.

Dear OP, yes you can make real friends online, just be careful, like in real life not everyone online is a great person but, just like in real life, there are plenty of good ones out there.

They can. I met some of my best friends online. Two I have now met in real life. One was my best friend before we met in person. We spend hours online together every day we can line up our schedules (different time zones, 14000+ km apart) and we both have full time jobs and lives outside of our friendship. But with some people you just click. Meeting each other in person just strengthened our relationship exponentially and we are now in a romantic relationship.

It's true people can deceive you about themselves but there are always ways to find out if someone is real or not. Do a little research. And if it is more than just someone to chat with casually, do give video and voice calls Skype, facetime or Yahoo Messenger a try now and again. It doesn't mean the person on the other end isn't still hiding something, but at least you know they are a real person.

It's true though that friendship, like romantic relationships, is a lot to do with the chemistry between two people and you can't get a full appreciation of that unless you meet them and see how they act in real life, how they smell, how comfortable you both are with the level of physical contact...

Maybe I just got lucky. But people find friends and romantic partners online every day. My best friend and I are so happy to live in the times we do because 20 years ago we'd never have met or learned of each other's existence, yet we have a bond so close that neither of us has ever experienced it with another person before. And a lot of that bond came from the relationship we developed online.

I don't think they can be real friends, because you don't really know them. I guess if you met them outside then you could become real friends, but sometimes you really can't trust some of your so called real friends. Real friends always support each other and have respect for each other. Can you tell what a person is truly thinking over the internet? No. Can you see their facial expressions for a reaction to what you are talking about? No. How can you know if they are real or not? You can't.

Yes I would say so, of course, they will be your real friends also, if you are comfortable with calling them your friends. You can meet some very good friend's on the Internet in different states, I have some that I enjoy a lot myself. Good Luck .

It depends on the way you chose your friend. Some of them may be bad but some of them may be good. I do have some internet friends who can count as real friends.

If you are associated with them for a long time on the internet and have helped you thru things that people would do in real life then yes they do count! Interesting question it has lots of loaded answers!!!

Somewhat yes and no. If it's like Facebook and you talk to people on there that you actually know and have interaction with off of Facebook or have had interaction with them off of Facebook then yes. If just random people I'd say know but coming from someone who is a YouTuber I talk to other people in my genre that I do consider friends though I've never met them. It's kind of like having an internet penpal.

PEN PALS.

Don't mean to rain on your parade, but you need to know OR be ready for this:

You can be infatuated, entertained, comforted and less lonely by someone you have "never" met face to face (in person),

but NOT Love. Too many "unknown" facts/variables.

Example: I HAD A MEXICAN FRIEND who was taking English classes 3 times a week. There was this blonde Russian girl in the class with him. He was so deeply in LOVE with her, that he would go to these classes even if he was dead tired. He wanted to see her so bad each week, but was too scared to ever talk to her. Partly because of his English and mostly because she was a Beautiful Blonde Russian GIRL. On the last day of classes they had a little banquet. He finally got up the nerve to say something to her. He goes to her "scared to death" and says "Hi". She was a very nice and sweet girl. She smiled BIG and said HI back. She had the worst breath he had ever smelled on a person and his interest in her dropped like an anchor in the deep sea. Point is: There are things you can't know about a person just by looking at them or talking to them online or text or phone or mail. It's called JUDGING A BOOK BY ITS COVER. Most of the time, you're gonna find you Fcked up.

Yeah, they are, depends. If the friendship lasts for years, they re definitely real friends cause I ve known some friends for over 3 years now, and I ve met some too. Would meet the others whenever I visit them while i travel abroad.

It depends. Sometimes, they are. But you actually don't know who they are or what their motives are. They could be five years younger than you and trying to hang out with older folk, could be an older adult predator, or could be just another person looking for interaction. I think with ANY friend, online or real life, it takes more than just dubbing them your friend. You have to see what kind of person they are--or how they at least will present themselves to you, see their loyalty, etc. There's a difference between "friends" and "pals". Sure, you can have as many pals as you want.

IRL and online, they have to show you they are your friend, and you have to show them. Hope this helps!