A minimalist social accountability platform that turns group habits into shared progress. Built from real-world experience, backed by behavioral science.
🏆 2nd Place — ZeroOne Hackathon 2026
Before any code was written, there was a WhatsApp group. Five friends made a simple pact: share what you did today. Exercise logs with sweaty selfies. Book chapter summaries. Coding streaks. Every update had proof attached.
No algorithm, no suggested posts, no ads. Just five people holding each other accountable. And it worked for over a year. Some of us read 20+ books. Others hit fitness goals we'd been putting off for years.
The group became a ritual. Missing an update felt wrong. Seeing your friends hit their goals made you want to hit yours. That emotional loop — part competition, part community — is what we bottled into Only Friends.
- Private Communities — Create focused spaces for specific goals (Fitness, Reading, Coding, Morning Routines).
- Shared Task Lists — Every member sees the same daily/weekly tasks. One group, one mission.
- Duolingo-style Streaks — Maintain your daily streak. Break it, and you start over.
- Point System & Leaderboards — Earn points for every task you complete. Compete in real-time rankings.
- Progress Rings — Visual completion tracking for each community.
- Achievement Badges — Unlock milestones like "Early Bird", "Streak Master", and "Century Club".
- Notifications — Get notified when friends complete tasks, join communities, or overtake you on the leaderboard.
- Minimal Dark UI — Distraction-free interface with premium aesthetics. No clutter.
This isn't just another habit tracker. Only Friends is grounded in real behavioral science research.
| Approach | Success Rate |
|---|---|
| Goal set alone (willpower only) | ~10% |
| Goal committed to someone | ~65% |
| Goal with specific accountability check-ins | ~95% |
Source: American Society of Training & Development
- Social Proof — When you see your friends completing tasks, it triggers motivation. Each completed task is a nudge. (Robert Cialdini, Influence)
- Loss Aversion — Breaking a 30-day streak hurts more than skipping a single workout. Duolingo proved this at scale — streak mechanics drive 3× more daily engagement.
- Variable Rewards — Points, badges, and leaderboard shifts create the same dopamine loop that keeps you coming back. (Nir Eyal, Hooked)
- The Köhler Effect — People work harder in groups than alone, especially when they know their effort is visible. Research shows 3× more consistency when peers are watching.
- Small Group Dynamics — Dunbar's research shows that accountability peaks in groups of 3-8 people. Too small = no pressure. Too large = anonymity. Only Friends optimizes for this sweet spot.
You complete a task → Friend sees it → Friend feels motivated →
Friend completes a task → You see it → You feel motivated → ∞
This is the infinite social loop. Each action compounds. The group gets stronger, not weaker, over time.
| Layer | Technology |
|---|---|
| Framework | React Native / Expo |
| Routing | Expo Router (file-based) |
| State | TanStack Query, Zustand |
| Icons | Lucide React Native |
| Styling | React Native StyleSheets (Custom Dark Theme) |
| Fonts | Poppins, Inter (Google Fonts) |
| Landing Page | Vanilla HTML, CSS, JS |
| Platform | iOS, Android, Web (single codebase) |
git clone https://github.com/ishaaqdev/OnlyFriends.git
cd OnlyFriendscd apps/mobile
npm installnpx expo start --web --port 8100The app will be available at http://localhost:8100.
From the project root:
# Using Python
python -m http.server 8000 --directory docs
# Or using npx
npx serve docsOpen http://localhost:8000 in your browser. The landing page includes an interactive iframe that connects to the running Expo app.
# iOS Simulator
npx expo start --ios
# Android Emulator
npx expo start --android
# Expo Go (scan QR code)
npx expo startOnlyFriends/
├── docs/ # Landing page
│ └── index.html # Responsive website with dark/light mode
├── media/ # Static assets
│ └── images/ # Team avatars, screenshots
├── apps/ # Application source
│ └── mobile/ # Expo / React Native project
│ ├── src/
│ │ ├── app/ # File-based routing (Expo Router)
│ │ │ ├── (tabs)/ # Tab screens (Home, Tasks, Friends, Profile)
│ │ │ ├── notifications.jsx
│ │ │ └── ...
│ │ ├── components/ # Reusable UI components
│ │ └── utils/ # Theme, helpers
│ ├── polyfills/ # Web compatibility polyfills
│ └── package.json
├── README.md
└── LICENSE # MIT License
| Home | Friends | Profile |
|---|---|---|
| Dashboard with streak | Leaderboard & friends | Stats & achievements |
Built in 48 hours at the ZeroOne Hackathon by three friends who lived the accountability experiment firsthand.
| Name | GitHub | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 🧑💻 | Mohammed Ishaaq | ishaaqdev | ishaaq42 |
| 🧑💻 | D Karthik Raj | dkarthikraj | d-karthik-raj |
| 🧑💻 | Ullas M | ullasroxx | ullas-m-naik |
This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.