THE SLOW POST

Things worth
reading slowly.

Notes from a very small post office: how distance-based delivery actually works, how to write a first letter that gets a reply, and why we keep deleting the features everyone else adds.

11 letters from the desk —

COMPARISON · START HERE

Slowly alternative: an honest comparison (2026)

Slowly built the category and is still a good app. Here is what Snailpost offers — no charge per letter, translation on arrival, no popularity metrics — and when Slowly is the better pick.

29 July 20268 min readRead the comparison →

Everything else

02COMPARISONSlowly alternatives: slow-letter pen pal apps comparedSlowly made the slow letter normal. If something has started to rub, here are the apps and services closest to it — described using only what their makers say.20 October 20268 min read

03GUIDEHow to find a pen pal in 2026Signing up is easy. Getting a reply is the part nobody explains — so here it is, step by step, from choosing a place to the letter that gets answered.20 October 20266 min read

04HOW TOWrite letters to strangers: what to say, where to send themA stranger is the only reader who meets you exactly as you are on the page. Here is what to write, and where your letter can land.20 October 20266 min read

05IDEAS100 pen pal questions and letter promptsThe difference between a pen pal who writes for a year and one who drifts is often one generous question. Here are a hundred.20 October 20268 min read

06GUIDEPen pals in India: international friends who write backIndia has always been a country of letters. Here is how to find friends abroad who write back — and how to make your ordinary life the interesting part.20 October 20266 min read

07THE IDEAWhat is a slow letter app?Instant messaging solved delivery and broke correspondence. A slow letter app puts the distance back in — and it turns out the wait was doing most of the work.29 July 20267 min read

08GUIDEThe best pen pal apps in 2026Six ways to find a pen pal in 2026, ranked by what they are actually for — from distance-timed letters to old-fashioned paper exchanges.29 July 20269 min read

09HOW TOHow to write a first letter to a pen palNobody is stuck for words. They are stuck for a shape. Here is the shape — six moves that turn a blank page into a letter someone reads twice.29 July 20268 min read

10THE CASEA social app with no feed, no likes, no streaksEvery engagement mechanic is a small debt you repay with attention. Remove all of them and something older is still standing underneath.29 July 20266 min read

11ESSAYHow to keep a long-distance friendship aliveThe friendships that survive distance are not the ones with the most messages. They are the ones with a rhythm you can both feel.29 July 20266 min read

Slowly alternative: an honest comparison (2026)

Everything else

Reading about letters is nice. Writing one is better.