I have 4 people I consider closer than blood relatives and maybe 5-10 more that I count as friends. It works well.

I have fewer friends than most hermits do.

I have 1 male friend and 1 female friend and sometimes I feel that is too many.

Gone from lotsof friends who don't know each other to a few close ones: 6- 20-40 years.

I'm not sure I'm still in research mode.

A few very close friends has always been my preference. I enjoy one on one time with them and when you have a huge social network, your time is stretched too thin between other matters and so you never get enough time with each person. Some people can maybe juggle that or they have a ton of friends that they get together with every so often, but for me personally I couldn't imagine having more than a handful of individuals that know me well and that I, in turn, truly know.

I tend to be misanthropic, so just a few friends.

A few close inner circle friend's then acquaintances

Very few, but that's not entirely up to me.

I only have one really close friend left and he's an alcoholic

I only have one really close friend left and he's an alcoholic

I dig a few friends with morally casual attitudes.

A few 'Real' friends.The one's there,when you're down &out.

One true friend is enough.

Lots to plot with

Just a few is good for me.
I'm no social butterfly.

I have a variety of great friends. Then there's my bestie that keeps me grounded.

Quality over quantity. Thats why I don't have friends no more. ?

I have a handful of very dear, close friends. I think there is a big difference between acquaintances and friends and some people don't know the difference. They think big numbers make them special. Like a lot of people, I don't have the time to have lots of friends because friends are a lot of work....they're relationships and if you don't give them proper attention, they go away. If you make more withdrawals from your bank account than deposits, it goes away.

Being an introvert, I prefer to have a small circle of close friends.

It has nothing at all to do with the fact that only a small number of people I've known for a long time can stand me at a party. >_<

I think you can only have a few really good friends.

I have a few, I'm happy with that.

Like most I just prefer a few with maybe a few acquaintances aka low pressure 'say hi once in awhile types. Too many and it feels insincere, too few and it gets clingy

I would say I have alot of friends. They all serve a different purpose. I also have about 10 people that I call BEST friends. These are the ones I have been very close to at one time or another and I keep them in my life even if just seeing them once a year. I would say a BEST friend is one who knows you well. Knows your secrets and keep them to themselves. They also let you be yourself and Never get mad at you. I usually make at least One best friend wherever I work or live and keep them close at Heart

A few (at most) close friends. Out from those, a spectrum of colleagues, an ever-widening gyre of acquaintances. Sometimes I miss the intense friendships I had in college, those that verged on shared consciousness. I've never had anything like that out here in the "real world", and I've been out here a while.