Questions people ask about Lumi

Short, direct, and true. If something here is out of date, Support inside the app reaches a person.

The basics

What is Lumi?

Lumi is a free, anonymous way to meet someone new by video, audio, or text. You are paired with a random person one to one, or you open a room and bring your friends. It runs in the browser on a phone or a desktop; there is nothing to install.

Is Lumi really free?

Yes. Matching, chatting, group rooms, and every safety feature are free, and there are no ads. Optional adult-only extras (Lumi Plus, Room Pro, cosmetics, donations) fund the service. Nothing about safety is ever paywalled.

Do I need an account?

No. You can chat without creating an account. An optional account (adults only) lets you buy Lumi Plus or Room Pro and keep cosmetics across devices.

Which devices and browsers work?

Any modern browser on a phone, tablet, or computer with a camera and microphone. There is no app to install.

Is Lumi an Omegle alternative?

Lumi offers the part people liked about Omegle, a random one-to-one video, audio, or text chat with a stranger, without the part that closed it: everyone passes a selfie age check with a person behind it, teens and adults are in two lanes that never meet, and a person reviews every flag and every report. There are no ads, no bots, and no paywalled filters, and a ban is never lifted for money. Lumi is not affiliated with Omegle or its owners; the comparison page at /how-lumi-compares has the details.

Age and safety

Who can use Lumi?

Anyone aged 13 or over. Users aged 13 to 17 are matched only with other teens, are never monetized, and cannot use shared video. Adults (18 and over) are matched only with adults.

How does the age check work?

You enter your birth year and look at your camera for a moment while a few frames are taken. Software on Lumi's own servers estimates your age group; no outside company is involved. Borderline cases go to a person before you are let in, and a person checks the software's automatic decisions afterwards. If the check cannot read your face you get one retake, and after that a person decides.

What happens to my selfie?

It is used only to decide your age group and to let a person check that decision. It is deleted the moment a person has reviewed the check, and after 90 days at the latest whatever happens. No face template, faceprint, or embedding is ever stored, and the photo is never used for anything else or shared with anyone.

What is not allowed?

Nudity, sexual content, harassment, and any content involving minors are forbidden. Violations are reported and lead to bans that stick to the device and connection, not just the name.

How do I report someone?

Use the Report button in any chat or room. A moderator reviews the report; you can also skip or leave at any time, and you can mute a person in a room so you see and hear nothing from them.

Privacy

Can the person I am talking to see my IP address?

No. Audio and video are relayed through Lumi's own servers rather than sent directly between browsers, so the other person never sees your IP address.

Does Lumi record my conversations?

No. Lumi does not record video, audio, or text conversations. Automated screening (run on Lumi's own servers) may sample camera frames and check text to catch abuse; what gets flagged is kept as evidence and reviewed by a person, the rest is discarded. Remember that the other person could record their own screen, so never show anything you would not want seen.

Rooms and watching together

How do group rooms work?

A room is public (listed) or private (joined with a 6-character invite code). A room holds up to 20 people, with 4 on camera at a time; everyone else is in by voice and text and is put on camera automatically when a camera slot opens. Rooms are age-separated exactly like one-to-one chat.

Can we watch a video together?

Yes, in an adult chat. Anyone in a room or a one-to-one can pin a YouTube, Vimeo, or SoundCloud link and everyone watches or listens in sync; people who join late land at the point the room has reached, and the host controls the timeline. Nothing loads until you agree. Shared video is not available in teen rooms.

Paying for extras

What is Lumi Plus?

An optional membership for adults: priority in the matching queue, a higher video-quality ceiling, and cosmetic flair. It costs $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year, and it never changes who you meet or lets anyone skip a safety step.

What is Room Pro?

A per-room upgrade for adults, about $9.99 a month: the room persists when empty, holds up to 50 people with 6 on camera at once, and gets a vanity invite code, theming, and a banner.

Can I put my room on the front page?

Yes, if you host an adult room. A promotion puts it on the front page, marked Promoted, for a day ($3), a weekend ($6), a week ($15), or a month ($45), or any number of days at $3 a day, and keeps the room open the whole time even when it is empty. Six slots at a time, card or coin.

How do I get help?

Use Support inside the app. A person reads and answers it.

More about promoting a room: what you get, the prices, and the rules.