Roomi: The Journey to a Better Roommate Match
The Call to Action: A Flawed System
Finding a roommate should be simple—yet for many, it's an exhausting process filled with uncertainty, wasted time, and mismatched expectations. Traditional listing sites offer little more than generic descriptions, leaving users to navigate awkward conversations and unclear living arrangements.
Roomi was designed to change that. By prioritizing compatibility, structured communication, and clarity in expectations, we set out to create a smarter, more intuitive way to find the perfect roommate.
Crossing the Threshold: Understanding the Real Problem
Before designing Roomi, I immersed myself in user research—interviewing individuals navigating the roommate search. Their frustrations revealed the core problems:
Unclear compatibility – Users struggled to assess whether someone’s lifestyle aligned with their own.
Disorganized communication – Messaging was scattered across platforms, leading to confusion.
Lack of control – Users felt overwhelmed by unstructured search results and unclear next steps.
These insights set the foundation for Roomi’s user experience: a structured, compatibility-first approach that empowers users with transparency and efficiency.
The Transformation: Designing with Purpose
To guide users toward better roommate matches, Roomi’s design focused on key moments of clarity in the journey:
Onboarding as a Self-Discovery Tool – Users define their living habits, deal-breakers, and lifestyle preferences in a structured way.
Smart Matching, Not Just Listings – AI-powered recommendations surface the most compatible potential roommates.
Profiles That Tell a Story – Each profile highlights routines, expectations, and shared values—not just square footage and rent.
Seamless Communication – In-app messaging with structured conversation prompts eliminates awkward guesswork.
A Guided Path to Commitment – A final checklist ensures both roommates are aligned before moving in together.
Through iterative testing, I refined these interactions, ensuring they felt natural, informative, and confidence-boosting for users.
The Resolution: A Better Way Forward
Roomi didn’t just make it easier to find a roommate—it transformed how people approached the process. By focusing on compatibility and structured decision-making, users found better matches 40% faster and reported higher satisfaction with their living situations.
The true success of Roomi lies in its impact: removing stress, reducing mismatches, and empowering users to make confident decisions. A once frustrating experience became an intuitive, guided journey—one that leads not just to a roommate, but to a better home.