Conversation topics for talking to strangers, friends or anyone, by text or video

Running out of things to say is the most common reason a chat with a stranger fizzles out. Having a few topics in your back pocket fixes that. Here are topics that work well with someone you have never met, grouped so you can move from easy to deeper as the conversation warms up.

They work by text or video. By text, one topic per message is easier to answer than several at once.

Easy conversation topics and openers

Light, low-stakes questions that anyone can answer:

• What is something small that made you happy this week?
• What is your favourite way to spend a rainy day?
• What are you into at the moment?
• If you could learn any skill instantly, what would it be?
• What is a hobby you have always wanted to try?

“Tell me about…” topics

These invite a story rather than a one-word answer:

• Tell me about the best trip you have taken.
• Tell me about something you are looking forward to.
• Tell me about a skill you are proud of.
• Tell me about the last thing that made you laugh.

Interesting topics to talk about: interests and hobbies

If you both chose the same interest, start there. Some of the conversation starters built into RandomHey:

• Films and series: “Which film do you think deserved more attention than it got?”
• Music: “Is there an album you think everyone should hear once?”
• Games: “Single-player story or multiplayer chaos: which do you prefer, and why?”
• Books: “Which book would you like to see adapted into a film?”
• Sport: “Who is a player you enjoy watching, even if they are not on your team?”
• Science: “If you could ask an astronaut one question, what would it be?”
• Art and photography: “What makes a photo memorable to you?”

Travel and places

• What place would you love to visit that is not on the usual tourist list?
• What is the best meal you have had while travelling?
• Mountains, sea, forest or city: where do you feel most relaxed?
• What is something visitors always get wrong about where you live? (Keep it to the country or region, not your town.)

Food

• What dish do you make when you want to impress someone?
• Which food from another country would you like to learn to cook?
• What is a food you hated as a child and love now?
• Breakfast: sweet or savoury?

Work, study and plans, without personal details

You can talk about what you do without saying where you do it:

• What is the most interesting part of what you do?
• What did you want to be when you were younger?
• What is something you are learning right now?
• What is a goal you are working towards this year?

Deeper topics for later in a good chat

Once the conversation is clearly going well, these open things up. Do not start with them. There are 100 more in deep questions to ask.

• What is the best piece of advice you have been given?
• What book changed how you think about something?
• What is something you changed your mind about in the last few years?
• What does a really good day look like for you?
• What is a topic you could talk about for an hour?

Good topics for texting

Text chat rewards short, specific questions. A few that work particularly well by text:

• Quick choices: “Coffee or tea?”, “Book or film?”, “Early bird or night owl?”
• Recommendations: “What should I watch this weekend?”
• Simple sentence games, useful if you are practising a language: “Describe your ideal weekend in three sentences.”

Topics to avoid with a stranger

• Where exactly you live, work or study. Keep it to the country.
• Your full name, phone number, email or social media.
• Money, including requests for it, gifts, or “investment opportunities”.
• Photos of yourself or anything that shows your home, documents or surroundings.
• Sexual topics. RandomHey is for adult, non-explicit conversation, and our community guidelines do not allow it.

If someone pushes on any of these, you can end the chat. See staying safe when you talk to strangers online.

How to change topic smoothly

• Link the new topic to something they said: “You mentioned cooking. What is the best thing you make?”
• Be honest: “Random question, but…” works surprisingly well.
• On RandomHey, either of you can press Another topic to get a new conversation starter.

Put it to use

Pick two or three topics from this page and try them in a random text chat or a random video chat. For openers and follow-up questions, read how to start a conversation with a stranger. For quick games, try this or that questions or would you rather questions.