Start chatting

Guides to random video chat

Practical, honest guides for meeting new people on video chat: how to stay safe, how to spot scams, how to fix your camera, what to say, and how it all works. Written by the people who build OMG Chat, and kept up to date as the app and the web change.

Safety

How to stay safe when you video chat with strangersA practical, no-nonsense safety checklist for random video chat: what to set up before you start, what never to share, red flags to watch for and what to do if a call goes wrong.Sextortion and scams on video chat: how to spot them and what to doHow webcam blackmail (sextortion), romance and crypto scams, fake verification links and gift-card requests work on random video chat, the warning signs, and step-by-step help if it happens to you.

Getting started

Camera or microphone not working in video chat? How to fix itStep-by-step fixes for a blocked camera, a black screen, no sound, echo or a call stuck on connecting, in Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge on Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android.70 conversation starters for video chat with strangersEasy openers, fun questions and ways to keep a conversation going with someone you've just met on random video chat, plus what to do when it falls flat.Random video chat etiquette: how to make a good first impressionSimple habits that make strangers want to keep talking: lighting and framing, the first ten seconds, skipping politely, handling language barriers and ending a call well.

Background

How random video chat works (and why it sometimes takes a while to match)A plain-English look behind the Start button: how strangers get matched, how WebRTC connects two browsers, what is and isn't private, and why waiting times depend on who's online.A short history of random video chat: from Chatroulette and Omegle to todayHow talking to strangers online went from chat rooms to Omegle and Chatroulette in 2009, the mobile apps that followed, why Omegle closed in 2023, and what the genre learned along the way.What happened to Omegle?Why Omegle closed in November 2023 and what to look for in a replacement.Sites like Omegle: alternatives comparedHow popular random chat sites and apps differ, and what to check before you turn on your camera.

Also useful