The fundamental contrast between an INFP vs. INFJ type lies in perceiving-judging function. This means that INFPs would behave in easygoing ways. They are open-minded, flexible and readily accept change that happens in daily life.
On the flip side, INFJs are organized, planned, and systematic in their approach. They prefer to abide by the rules rather than trying out new ways of doing things. These individuals prefer to follow the crowd rather than maintaining their autonomy and individuality.
In this post, we will discuss the similarities and dissimilarities of these two introverted types in a detailed manner.
INFP vs. INFJ
Some personality types easily get mixed up because of their common personality traits. They look similar in terms of their cognitive preferences but actually have subtle points of differences. Such confusions are commonly seen in INFPs and INFJs.
Both these Myers Briggs introverts are intuitive-feeling types. This means they have a tendency to give more importance to feelings and less to logical reasoning and rational judgments. INFJs and INFPs are reserved, quiet, and serious personality types.
They have a small group of friends who are quite close to them. INFPs and INFJs appear similar in nature. Both are idealists with a creative bent of mind. They believe in their innate values and live life with fairness and honesty.
Both these personality types are deep thinkers. They are both loving and caring, and feel deeply for others. INFPs have a very clear understanding of the person who is feeling stressed out. They will act as a mirror and can reflect the pain but will not feel overwhelmed themselves.
However, INFJs will absorb the emotional pain of others as their own and may experience overwhelming emotions. They empathize much more deeply than an INFP.
With regard to decision making, both these personality types believe in maintaining their values. They are not the ones who will even attempt to do wrong things in life.
People with an INFP personality type will get stuck in conflicting situations and may not know how to overcome it. But, INFJs will be more concrete in their decision making policy. They are more assertive and straightforward than an INFP.
Both INFP and INFJ prefer to stay connected with like-minded people. They also have a rich inner world that is very creative and prefers to do things out of the way.
As both INFPs and INFJs are shy and private people, they hate the spotlight and always do things for others silently.
They prefer not to show off and hold their values close to their hearts. Both these types prefer to handle confrontations peacefully without hampering their relationships.
They are patient and humble, and never shy away from saying a ‘thank you’ to those who they admire the most. You may also find these two types trying to avoid conflicts just for the sake of maintaining peace.
INFPs and INFJs look so similar that it is difficult to set them apart. Before we move on to highlight the fundamental differences between the two types, let’s overview their points of similarities.
The Points of Similarities between INFP vs. INFJ
At a glance, INFPs and INFJs may appear the same personality type unless any personality expert tells you they are similar in several ways, yet subtly different.
The major points of similarities between INFP and INFJ are discussed below:
- INFPs and INFJs are an imaginative, creative bunch. They can think deeply, create innovative problem solving methodologies.
- Being an introvert makes these types stay quiet and reserved in social settings. INFPs and INFJs prefer to maintain a social distance unless they come across like-minded people to connect too dearly with them.
- Both these types maintain a low-end social life. They are not loud socially yet have very good social connections with the chosen few around them.
- INFPs and INFJs are emotional and understand the feelings of others. Both are empathetic and feel for others very deeply.
- INFPs and INFJs are introspective and their humane side makes them emotional souls.
- Both are intuitive in nature, thereby they dream a lot and can create ideas and imaginations that are not common.
- INFPs and INFJs are value-oriented people. Their beliefs and high-held values are dear to them. No matter what happens, they never shy away from speaking the truth or doing their job honestly.
- INFPs and INFJs are considerate and may act as people pleasers at times because they hate conflicts and want to sort out situational issues peacefully.
- Both these types will get drawn to abstract ideas and future possibilities. They hate monotonous detailing of facts and figures/. It can make them stifled and feel caged in one place.
- INFP and INFJ personality types value their unique qualities. They prefer ‘me-time’ not just to unwind and relax but to understand themselves the way they are.
- Both these personality types remain passionate with the projects they are working on. They take serious endeavors and push themselves harder to reach the big goals in life.
- INFPs and INFJs are both future-focused personalities. They are keen to know how their present life situation can impact their future life. Thus, they always look for big opportunities to make their life a purposeful one. Mediocrity can haunt them terribly and thus they refrain from staying just like that.
INFP vs. INFJ – The Key Differences
INFJs are fiercely private. They may not even open up in front of their close friends and family members. They will shy from public attention and may not feel comfortable if put amongst many people who are not known to them.
INFPs are also reserved and private. They have a low key social life but they are not rigid like the INFJs. They will not open up unless they know that the other person is trustworthy and can be relied upon. Once an INFP is comfortable, they are all ready to share their deepest feelings to their near and dear ones.
The fine-drawn differences between INFP and INFJ can be enumerated in the form of a table for your better and easier understanding.
| INFP | INFJ |
| INFPs are the perceivers. They prefer a spontaneous and easygoing approach to life. | They are judging types which means whatever they do is planned, organized, and meticulous. |
| INFPs are not keen to plan and organize their daily life because they are open to change. They prefer to adapt and adjust with the demands of the situation | INFJs are organized freaks. They thrive in setups that are well-planned and organized. They hate messy things and prefer to stay informed about what to expect in a situation. They will never adjust over the demands of the situation. |
| INFPs have introverted feeling as a dominant cognitive function. It means they have a good understanding of human emotions. They are more reflective as far as their emotional connections with others are concerned. INFPs may internalize the issues of others but will act as mirrors. They will not take things personally and feel overwhelmed. They also know how to let it go. | INFJs are empathetic as well and may take the emotional issues of others too seriously. In this way, they may feel overwhelmed. The problem with an INFJ is, they are ready to fix the issues of others and may try to share others’ emotional burden much more than an INFP. This makes them feel overburdened and more stressed out than an INFP. |
| INFPs have a spontaneous nature. They will not evaluate people and situations deeply. These individuals take things easy and enjoy the moment. They may notice the moods of others going awry and react to it but will not try to connect the previous dots that may have led to the situation. | INFJs can judge people and situations in better ways than INFPs. They are insightful, and want to know what things happen the way they do. |
| INFPs have introverted feeling as the dominant cognitive function. Therefore, they will decide emotionally and may overlook rational judgments completely. | INFJs see the world around them through introverted intuition. They are more analytical and logical than INFPs. |
| INFPs are friendly, flexible, and easy to approach personality types. Others find them easy to deal with. They are adjustable and less nitpicky than INFJs. | INFJs are friendly only to a certain extent. They are equally critical, nitpicky, and can be really bad at times with regard to controlling temper. They are less approachable than INFPs. INFJs are stubborn and picky at times. Others do not find them as friendly as they feel for an INFP |
| INFPs are socially shy and may feel more awkward if put in large groups. They are not comfortable feeling caged inside a big crowd. | Being an introvert, INFJs also prefer minimal to moderate socialization. They do not like to be in a large crowd but can manage well if required to do so. |
| INFPs are disorganized, messy, and prefer to do things on the spot. | INFJs are organized and prefer to have an order for everything. They hate surprises as they know they cannot handle sudden events in life. |
| INFPs can become critical, judgmental, and sarcastic in times of stress. They may also take the responsibility of rectifying people’s mistakes. | INFJs will behave like worrywarts when they are in the grip of stress. These individuals will behave impulsively and may lose their long term focus. |
To Sum Up
By summarizing all over again, we can say that INFPs prize flexibility and innovative thinking while INFJs prefer organization and prior planning. The main difference between them lies in their cognitive functions that set them apart in finer ways.
INFPs use introverted feeling to make sense of this world while for an INFJ, introverted intuition operates. The auxiliary function also operates differently. The INFPs use extroverted intuition while INFJs rely on extraverted feeling as secondary functions.
It may not be easy to always tell which type is what unless one gets into the subtle intricacies of their personality makeup.
