Soulmates are the instant karmic connections that we encounter in life, often with the sense that we've "known the person forever" or "have a certain familiarity" even though we are meeting the person for the first time. While twin flames are invariably romantic connections, soulmate connections can have the quality of being romantic in nature or familial, such as a parent or a child, whether or not they are romantic partners or family relations in the current lifetime. The sense of familiarity comes from having shared a previous life/lifetimes with one another. 

While twin flames come together only when both souls are in their final stage of soul evolution, heralding a return to the "original state of soul union," soulmates can come together at any stage of soul evolution, albeit they tend to be on similar wavelengths. Both twin flames and soulmates have the characteristic of having different strengths and weaknesses so that both types of partnerships involve learning from one another.

We can meet more than one soulmate in our lifetime, whereas twin flames meet rarely over the course of many lifetimes and only at junctures that are key to their eventual and ultimate union at the final stage of soul evolution. Because twin flame relationships can be fraught with challenges in getting together due to the two souls not quite being ready to come together, not to mention the external forces that conspire to keep such pure, true love apart, soulmate relationships are much easier not only to find but to establish relationships, sometimes temporary and other times long lasting, but always with lessons to be learned from one another.

Soulmate connections can be just as rewarding and satisfying as twin flame relationships, the difference of the quality of twin flame relationships being the deeply intense, perfect telepathic love that comes from having known one another from the very beginning of time. Due to the spiritual trials and challenges that can keep twin flames apart, it is not unusual for an individual to choose to be with a soulmate over a twin flame, with the latter relationship then postponed for another lifetime.