Google completes "rent a local friend" with "reviews", "jobs", "app" and "jobs work from home". Four questions, one page.
What "rent a local friend" means#
A local friend is a person who lives in the city you are in, paid by the hour for their time and what they know: where to eat, how to get around, which neighbourhood, which game, which night out. It is platonic and in public, and it is not a tour: there is no route and no script, you and they decide the afternoon. The phrase comes from Roavi, which calls its members Local Friends, and from RentAFriend, the older US directory of people you can hire for company. RentAFriend vs Roavi is the full comparison.
Reviews: what people say#
Across review sites and press, hirers say the same two things about the category. The good: the people are real, the afternoons are good, and it beats a group tour or a lonely weekend. The bad, mostly about RentAFriend: you pay a membership (about $24.95 a month) and then message profiles that have not been active in a year; support is slow; there are no checks on who is listed. RentAFriend review, both sides and is RentAFriend legit? go deeper. Roavi's answer to the complaints: no membership, every profile reviewed by a person with three real photos, reviews from previous meetups on the profile, and an optional identity-verified badge.
Jobs: how it works for the local#
There is no employer. You list yourself, set an hourly rate (most list $15 to $50), people message you, you meet in public and are paid directly. On Roavi listing is free and there is no commission. It is not work from home: the value is being in your city with the person. What it really pays and how volume works: paid friend jobs, honestly and RentAFriend jobs and pay.
App#
Roavi works on your phone in the browser: browse by city, see photos, languages, interests, rate and reviews, message free. We could not find an official RentAFriend app in the App Store or Google Play; details in rent a friend app.
Where it works today#
Roavi is strongest where it started: the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Mexico, and across Asia (Japan, Thailand). In the US it has Local Friends in New York, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco, Phoenix and Nashville, and is thin elsewhere, which is the honest reason a new US profile gets seen. Country pages: USA, Mexico, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Japan, Thailand.
Someone from here, for a few hours, at their rate.
Meet local guidesLive somewhere people visit? Get paid for your time, no commission.
Become a Local FriendThe plain-English question: can you rent a friend?.
The platform itself: what is Roavi?.
The phrase is also a company, rentalocalfriend.com, running since 2012: Rent a Local Friend review: real or fake, reviews, jobs, app.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does rent a local friend mean?
Paying someone who lives in a city for a few hours of their time and local knowledge: eating where they eat, getting around, a game, a night out, a market. It is platonic and in public, and it is not a tour: there is no script, you decide the plan together. Roavi calls these people Local Friends.Are rent a local friend jobs real?
Yes, as freelancing: you list yourself, set an hourly rate, people message you and you meet. There is no employer, salary or shifts. On Roavi listing is free and there is no commission; your profile is reviewed by a person before it goes live.Is there a rent a local friend app?
Roavi works on a phone in the browser: browse Local Friends by city, see photos, languages, rate and reviews, and message free. We could not find an official RentAFriend app in the app stores.