The Ultimate Roommate Compatibility Checklist

Use this checklist before you commit to living with someone — whether you found them through a friend, a listing, or a matching app. Work through it together over a coffee or a call. The goal isn’t to interrogate anyone; it’s to surface mismatches while they’re still cheap to discover.

1. Daily rhythm

• What time do you usually wake up and go to sleep — weekdays and weekends?
• Do you work or study from home? How often?
• Are you a “quiet evenings in” or “out most nights” person?
• How do you feel about noise — music, calls, TV — in shared areas?

2. Cleanliness and chores

• How tidy do you keep shared spaces day to day?
• How quickly does mess start to bother you?
• How should cleaning be divided — rota, app, or “whoever notices”?
• Are we splitting the cost of shared cleaning supplies?

3. Guests and relationships

• How often do you have friends over?
• Would a partner be staying regularly — and is that a shared cost or just a presence?
• Are parties or gatherings on the table, and with how much notice?
• What’s the expectation around overnight guests you don’t know?

4. Money

• How is rent paid, and on what date?
• How do we split bills — evenly, by room size, or by usage?
• How do we handle shared groceries and household items?
• What happens if someone’s late on their share, or wants to move out early?

5. Shared space and food

• Do we share food and cooking, or keep things separate?
• Any dietary needs that affect the shared kitchen?
• How do we handle the fridge, shelves, and shared cupboards?
• Is the living room a social space or a calm one — or both, at different times?

6. Dealbreakers

• Smoking or vaping — indoors, on the balcony, or not at all?
• Pets — existing, or planning to get one?
• Any allergies or hard limits the household needs to respect?
• Is there anything you simply will not live with?

7. The honesty check

Finally, turn the checklist on yourself. The most common reason flatshares fail isn’t a bad flatmate — it’s two people who both described an idealised version of themselves. Answer every question above about your own habits, honestly, before you ask anyone else. A match that’s built on who you really are will outlast one built on who you hoped to be.

Want this scored automatically against other people moving to your city? That’s exactly what Roomdott’s compatibility quiz does — turning this checklist into a match, not a guess.