The Idea: Taste-Based Matching
Dating apps match people on appearance, age, and a bio. Pornder matches people on what they actually enjoy watching — a much more honest signal of compatibility. When two users independently swipe right on the same videos and categories, their similarity score climbs. High score = genuine shared taste, not just mutual curiosity.
The People feed surfaces users ranked by that score. You're not browsing strangers at random; every profile you see already has significant overlap with your own preferences.
Step-by-Step: From New User to Matched
Create a free account
Tap the profile icon and sign up with an email. Your swipe history syncs to your account so your taste profile is ready immediately.
Swipe videos to build your taste profile
Every right-swipe trains Pornder on your preferences — categories, performers, duration, production style. The more you swipe, the sharper your match score becomes.
Open the People tab
The People feed shows other users whose taste profile overlaps with yours, ranked by similarity percentage. Swipe right on a profile to express interest.
Match when both swipe right
When the other person swipes right on you too, it's a match. You'll both see a popup and land in each other's Matches list.
Chat and propose Watch Together
Start a text chat with your match, then tap the film-reel icon to invite them into a synced Watch Together session.
Watch in sync — with or without cams
Watch Together syncs playback in real time. Enable the Live layer to add your webcam. The host controls play/pause/seek; the guest can tap Sync to catch up at any point.
The People Feed in Detail
Each card in the People feed shows a display name, profile photo (optional), and a match percentage — the overlap between your taste profiles, expressed as a score from 0–100%. A 70%+ match means you've both swiped right on a substantial portion of the same content.
Swipe right on a profile to signal interest. The other person won't know unless they swipe right on you too — it's mutual, not one-sided. When both sides match, you get an animated match notification and move into the Matches list.
Watch Together: Synced Playback for Two
Watch Together is the flagship shared-activity feature. Here's what happens technically:
- One user is the host and picks the video. They see play, pause, and seek controls.
- The other user is the guest. Their player mirrors the host's position automatically.
- If the guest's stream drifts (network lag), they tap Sync to jump back to the host's timestamp.
- A chat strip runs alongside the player — send reactions, timestamps, or just talk.
The sync protocol runs over WebSocket. Events — play, pause, seek, change_video — are broadcast from host to guest with sub-second latency on a normal broadband connection.
Live Mode: Add Your Webcam
Once inside a Watch Together session, either user can enable Live mode. This layers a peer-to-peer WebRTC video call on top of the synced player. Both users see a small webcam tile in the corner while the video plays full-screen behind it.
Key privacy note: Live mode is WebRTC peer-to-peer — your webcam stream never passes through Pornder's servers. The signalling handshake goes through the server; the actual video does not.
Live Chat
Text chat alongside any Watch Together session. Messages are ephemeral — not stored after the session ends.
Synced Playback
Host controls the player; guest follows. One tap to re-sync if streams drift.
Webcam (Live)
Optional peer-to-peer cam layer. Server never sees your video — direct device-to-device.
Taste Matching
Matches ranked by genuine content overlap — not swiped photo attractiveness.
Tips for a Better Match Experience
- Swipe honestly. Your match score is only as good as your swipe history. Don't swipe right on everything — the algorithm needs real signal to find compatible people.
- Add a bio. A short bio on your profile helps break the ice in chat, even if the match is already taste-based.
- Use Watch Together as an icebreaker. Jumping straight to a shared video removes the pressure of small talk and gives you something concrete to react to together.
- Start with Live off. Use the chat strip first. Enable the webcam layer once you're both comfortable — it's always opt-in, never automatic.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Pornder match me with other people?
Pornder calculates a similarity score based on which videos and categories you both swiped right on. The higher the overlap, the higher your match percentage — no personality quiz required.
Do I need an account to find matches?
You need a free account to appear in the People feed and to receive match notifications. Swiping videos works without an account, but your likes won't be visible to potential matches.
What is Watch Together?
Watch Together lets two matched users stream the same video in sync — one person is host and controls playback, the other follows. A live chat strip runs alongside the player so you can react in real time.
Can I choose which videos to watch together?
Yes. Any video in the Pornder library can be queued in a Watch Together session. The host picks from their saved favourites or searches the catalogue; the guest's player syncs automatically.
Is the chat in Watch Together private?
Yes. Messages in a Watch Together session are only visible to the two matched users in that room. They are not stored on the server beyond the session.
What is the Live feature?
Live is a real-time video call layer on top of Watch Together — both users can see each other via webcam while the video plays. It uses WebRTC for peer-to-peer connection, so video never passes through Pornder's servers.
How do I start a Watch Together session?
Open a chat with a match, tap the film-reel icon in the top bar, and choose a video. Your match gets a notification and joins with one tap.