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What are the best messaging apps for Android?

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Signal vs Element vs Telegram

 vs Jami (formerly Ring) vs Silence vs Threema vs QKSMS vs Viber vs Hangouts vs Wire vs Briar vs Conversations.im vs Discord vs Disa vs WhatsApp vs Pulse SMS vs StealthChat vs Session vs Wickr vs YAATA SMS vs Facebook Messenger vs Google Allo vs GroupMe vs BBM vs Hike vs aTox vs Actor Messenger vs Antox vs LINE vs Slack vs mysms vs VZW Messenger+ vs Skype vs Taptalk vs InTouch Messenger vs Handcent Next SMS vs twinme vs Vine Messages vs Mirage vs Wibrate vs Bolt vs Snapchat vs Slingshot vs WeChat vs Material Messaging vs Skype Qik vs Instagram Direct vs MightyText vs Textra vs invi vs Jami (formerly GNU Ring, SFLphone) vs CoverMe

Specs

Platforms

Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, Mac OS X

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / audio / video / files / contacts / GIFs / location

Publisher

Open Whisper Systems

DIY integrations

Yes

Decentralized

No

Proprietary Dependencies

Yes

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

MacOS, Windows, Linux, Android, Browser, iOS

End-to-end encryption

Yes (optional)

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

All File Types

Publisher

New Vector Ltd

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

Yes

License

Apache License 2.0

Message history

Yes

File Sharing

Yes

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Web, Android, iOS, Windows, Linux, macOS, BSD, Windows phone, UWP

End-to-end encryption

Secret chats

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video / audio / GIFs / stickers / PiP Video / Videomessages

Publisher

Various companies affiliated with Telegram

DIY integrations

Yes

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

Through bots

License

-

Message history

Yes

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤ 100,000

Videoconferencing

Yes

Locationsharing

Live

Video recording

Yes

File Size

2048 MB

Multidevice

Cloud

Message deletion

Mutual/timed

Usernames

yes

Cloud sync

Yes

Unit Testing

Yes

Open source

Most clients

In-app purchases

To pay 3rd parties

Open source backend

no

Audio/video streaming

Only from some clients

Open clients API

yes

Multiplatform

Yes

Proxy support

yes

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Windows, Linux, Mac, Mobile

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

-

Media

Yes

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

Yes

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

5.0+

Messaging systems

Yes

Server stored messages

No

Screensharing

No

Technology

Python

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS / WP

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

No

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video / audio

Publisher

Threema GmbH

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

No

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

No

File Size

15M

Multidevice

No

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

No

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Transitory

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

No

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images

Publisher

QK Labs

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

no

File Size

5.3M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0.3 and up

Messaging systems

SMS MMS

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

$1.99 per item

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS / WP / BB / Symbian / Windows / OSX / Linux

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video / audio / emoji / stickers

Publisher

Viber Media S.a r.l.

DIY integrations

No

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

No

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤200

Videoconferencing

One-on-one

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

Yes

File Size

37M

Multidevice

Yes

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

2.3 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

No

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

$0.99 - $35.17 per item

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

Yes

Hosting options

Hosted

Native videoconferencing

Yes

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Web / iOS / Android / OSX / Chrome

End-to-end encryption

No

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

No

Media

images / maps / emoji / stickers / GIFs

Publisher

Google Inc

DIY integrations

Yes

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

No

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤150

Videoconferencing

Up to 10 people

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

No

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

Yes

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data SMS

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

Yes

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

No

Cloud Sync

Yes

Hosting options

Hosted

Native videoconferencing

Yes

Search

Through GMail

Bot

No

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Web iOS Android OSX Windows Linux

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

No

Media

images / video / audio / GIFs

Publisher

Wire Swiss GmbH

DIY integrations

No

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

No

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤128

Videoconferencing

No

Locationsharing

Yes (iOS, Android)

Video recording

No

File Size

25M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.2 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Transitory

Screensharing

Yes

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

No

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

20/20

Group calls

Yes

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

4.1+

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Web, Windows, Linux, Mac, iOS, Android

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

No

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

Yes

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

No

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

Yes

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

Yes

Bot

-

Security Score

15/20

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

Yes

Open-Source

No

User Groups

Yes

Server Stored Messages

Permanent

Channel Settings

Yes

Jurisdiction

United States

Peer-to-Peer

No

Animated Profile

Only with Discord Nitro

Upload File Size

8 MB free, 50 or 100 MB paid

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images / audio / emoji

Publisher

Disa.im

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

no

File Size

34M

Multidevice

Service dependant

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data SMS MMS

Server stored messages

Service dependant

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

Service dependant

Cloud Sync

Service dependant

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android, iOS, Web, Mac, Windows, Windows Phone

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images, video, audio, documents

Publisher

WhatsApp Inc.

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤ 256

Videoconferencing

Yes up to 8 people

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

Yes

File Size

100 MB

Multidevice

Message Mirroring

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

2.3.3 or above

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Transitory

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

No

Message Deletion

Auto-erase

Cloud Sync

Yes, Via Google

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

No

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

No

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

No

Message Deletion

Yes

Cloud Sync

No

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

No

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

No

Self destructing message

Yes

Media & File Sharing

Yes

In-App Screen Lock

Yes

Screenshot proof

Yes

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android/F-Droid/APK/Play Store, iPhone, Mac, Windows, Linux

End-to-end encryption

Only

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS / WP

End-to-end encryption

No

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video / audio / emoji / stickers

Publisher

Facebook

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤150

Videoconferencing

Yes

Locationsharing

yes

Video recording

Yes

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

Yes

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

No

Cloud Sync

Yes

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

Incognito chat

VoIP

No

Audio recording

Yes

Media

Images (full resolution) / Emoji / Stickers / GIFs / Audio / Map

Publisher

Google Inc

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

Message Mirroring

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

Yes

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

Auto-erase

Cloud Sync

No

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

Yes

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android iOS WP

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images / emoji / GIFs

Publisher

groupme

DIY integrations

No

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

No

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

no

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data SMS MMS

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

No

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

$0.99 - $1.99 per item

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

Hosted

Native videoconferencing

No

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / BB / iOS / WP

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video /audio / emoji

Publisher

BlackBerry Limited.

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

Yes

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

Yes

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Depends

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

$0.99 - $1.99 per item

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

GPL-3.0

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

Tox

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

No

Media

images

Publisher

im.tox.antox

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

No

Videoconferencing

No

Locationsharing

No

Video recording

No

File Size

N/A

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

N/A

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Chrome, iOS, Android, Mac OS, Windows

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

Yes

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

Yes

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android, Windows, Chrome

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

iOS, Android, WP, OSX, Windows, Linux, Web. Blackberry. Chrome OS. BSD, iPadOs

End-to-end encryption

yes(optional)

VoIP

yes

Audio recording

yes

Media

images / video /audio / emoji

Publisher

Skype

DIY integrations

No

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

SIP (paid)

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

yes

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

Yes

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

Yes

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

6.0

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Limited (30 days)

Screensharing

Yes

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

Yes

Hosting options

Hosted

Native videoconferencing

Yes

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

No

VoIP

No

Audio recording

No

Media

images / video

Publisher

Wit Dot Media Inc

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

No

Locationsharing

No

Video recording

Yes

File Size

5.9M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0.3 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Temporary

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS / WP

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

yes

Audio recording

no

Media

images

Publisher

Alpha Touch

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

yes

Locationsharing

yes

Video recording

no

File Size

6.6M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

Yes

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video / audio

Publisher

Twinlife SA

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

Yes

Videoconferencing

One-on-one

Locationsharing

No

Video recording

Yes

File Size

11M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

Yes

Usernames

No

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

No

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

Yes

IOS client

Yes

Audio/Video streaming

Yes

Platforms

Android / iOS / WP

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

yes

Media

video

Publisher

Vine Labs

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

yes

Video recording

yes

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images / video

Publisher

mobli

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

yes

File Size

7.7M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Temporary

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images / video

Publisher

Instagram

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

no

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

yes

File Size

2.3M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images / video

Publisher

Snapchat Inc

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

no

Videoconferencing

yes

Locationsharing

yes

Video recording

yes

File Size

17M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Temporary

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images / video

Publisher

Facebook

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

no

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

no

File Size

2.9M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.1 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Temporary

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS / OSX / WP / Windows / BB / Symbian / Web

End-to-end encryption

No

VoIP

Yes

Audio recording

Yes

Media

images / video / audio / emoji / stickers

Publisher

WeChat Tencent

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤500

Videoconferencing

Yes

Locationsharing

Yes

Video recording

Yes

File Size

40MB

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Transitory

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

$0.99 per item

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

No

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

yes

Media

images / video /audio / emoji

Publisher

Noah Seidman

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

yes

File Size

4.7M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

5.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS / WP

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

video

Publisher

Skype

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

yes

File Size

9.3M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.1 and up

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Temporary

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

images

Publisher

Instagram

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

yes

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

yes

Video recording

no

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

Data

Server stored messages

Perminent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / Chrome / Safari / Firefox / Opera / IE

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

no

Publisher

MightyText: SMS Texting w/ PC - Free SMS Messaging

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

no

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

no

File Size

Varies with device

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

Varies with device

Messaging systems

SMS MMS

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

no

Media

emoji

Publisher

Delicious Inc

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

no

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

no

File Size

N/A

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0.3 and up

Messaging systems

SMS MMS

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

$1.99 per item

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

Android / iOS

End-to-end encryption

no

VoIP

no

Audio recording

yes

Media

images / video / audio / emoji

Publisher

invi Labs

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

≤100

Videoconferencing

no

Locationsharing

no

Video recording

yes

File Size

18M

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

4.0 and up

Messaging systems

Data SMS MMS

Server stored messages

Permanent

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

None

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Platforms

-

End-to-end encryption

-

VoIP

-

Audio recording

-

Media

-

Publisher

-

DIY integrations

-

Decentralized

-

Proprietary Dependencies

-

Service integrations

-

License

-

Message history

-

File Sharing

-

Groups

-

Videoconferencing

-

Locationsharing

-

Video recording

-

File Size

-

Multidevice

-

Message deletion

-

Usernames

-

Cloud sync

-

Unit Testing

-

Open source

-

In-app purchases

-

Open source backend

-

Audio/video streaming

-

Open clients API

-

Multiplatform

-

Proxy support

-

Required Android Version

-

Messaging systems

-

Server stored messages

-

Screensharing

-

Technology

-

In-App Purchases

-

Message Deletion

-

Cloud Sync

-

Hosting options

-

Native videoconferencing

-

Search

-

Bot

-

Security Score

-

Group calls

-

Android version

-

Private Channels

-

Open-Source

-

User Groups

-

Server Stored Messages

-

Channel Settings

-

Jurisdiction

-

Peer-to-Peer

-

Animated Profile

-

Upload File Size

-

Channel

-

Self destructing message

-

Media & File Sharing

-

In-App Screen Lock

-

Screenshot proof

-

Protocol

-

Peer-to-peer

-

IOS client

-

Audio/Video streaming

-

Pros + Cons

Pro
 Provides security and privacy

Signal uses an advanced end to end encryption protocol that provides privacy for every message every time.
Comment

Pro
 Free and open source

Signal is free and open source software, enabling anyone to verify its security by auditing the code. It's the only private messenger that uses open source, peer-reviewed cryptographic protocols to keep your messages safe.
Comment

Pro
 Supports encrypted group chats

Comment

Pro
 Has a desktop app

Signal Desktop can be used on multiple devices and has most features of the Android version, although it still requires you to register with your phone.
Comment

Pro
 Supports sharing of various different media types

Signal supports: emoji, pictures, videos, audio, contacts, any location and GIF.
Comment

Pro
 Note to Self feature

Allows you to "send: messages to yourself and sync to desktop so you can use Signal as a kind of encrypted Pushbullet alternative
Comment

Con
 Needs access to your phone number and contacts to work

Comment

Con
 Single device

Signal can only be registered to one mobile device at a time. But you can link Signal to Signal Desktop.
Comment

Pro
 You can easily view all media exchanged

You can easily view all media shared in the chat without scrolling back to when it was shared.
Comment

Pro
 Annonymous Sender (Encrypted)

The sender credentials can be encrypted with the rest of the message, leaving only the recipient address readable by the Signal server. Even if Signal wanted they couldn't see who is talking with who by this mean.
Comment

Pro
 Works everywhere in every country

Unlike most messenger apps, Signal works reliably in all countries by securely circumventing internet censorship.
Comment

Pro
 Recommended by Edward Snowden

Edward Snowden uses this messenger and recommends it to everyone who is concerned about his privacy.
Comment

Con
 Servers hosted in the US

A security risk due to National Security letters, which require giving up data to the US state, and making it illegal to disclose that.
Comment

Con
 Unreliable notifications

Sometimes messages won't be received if the Signal app has been closed for a long time or hasn't been opened after booting the device.
Comment

Con
 Poor support

Their E-mail adress for support are not working. They have a Community support on here. Sometimes if you need a support, you need to create an account on their forum and need to share a topic and wait for long time.
Comment

Pro
 SMS/MMS support

Signal can be your default SMS/MMS text messenger. Encryption is not possible when sending SMS to your contacts, however.
Comment

Con
 Uses message mirroring

Comment

Con
 Cannot work w\o Google services

Signal relies on Google services for push notifications so although it is encrypted and open source it needs proprietary component to work. That means you can't use Signal on some custom Android ROM (preferably rooted for full control) without Google apps installed.
Comment

Con
 If SMS/MMS imported, other apps can't read SMS

For those using Join, Pushbullet, or similar apps to send and receive SMS/MMS from web or desktop, putting your SMS in Signal somehow breaks this functionally. The dev is aware but plans to remedy the situation have not been named a priority.
Comment

Con
 Uses message mirroring

Comment

Con
 Signal requires Google Apps, which is privacy invasive

You first need to install closed source, privacy invasive Google tracking system into your phone by way of Google Apps, which gets access to everything that happens on your phone. Only after installing this Google Apps, are you able to use Signal.
Comment

Pro
 You can make video and voice calls

Via this app you can set up a conference call, or make one-on-one video or voice calls.
Comment

Pro
 Excellent multimedia support

Through Element you can share pictures, videos, audio files, and more.
Comment

Pro
 Uses Matrix, the open communications protocol

Comment

Pro
 End-to-end encryption

End-to-end encrypts private chats by default.
Comment

Pro
 Integrates with other messaging apps

You can message users of different messaging apps - not only Element, provided they are in the Matrix.org ecosystem. They include Weechat, Quaternion, Tensor, NaChat, and PTO.
Comment

Pro
 Web and mobile (iOS, Android) versions available

Comment

Pro
 Search

Search messages in your current room, or all the rooms you're in. Not subject to a message history limit like Slack.
Comment

Con
 Looks to complicated for regular user

If this app can make secure communication experience be straightforward and without hassle to everybody including my grandma, that would be its greatest achievement.
Comment

Con
 Still in active yet early development

There is clearly a User Experience issue esp. in web version which the developers are aware of and are working hard to improve. They've got the concept concrete, so UX won't be an issue in no time. Most often used parts are functional, but some are yet not. The success of riot depends on how fast the development is, or it'll get outdated too quickly as developers of Signal and Telegram have predicted.
Comment

Con
 Buggy

Thousands of bug reports open on GitHub.
Comment

Pro
 Supports text, voice, video

Integrates with Jitsi for multi-party video chats.
Comment

Pro
 Very good and simple interface

Element has a very simple interface, adding the ability for more unexperienced PC-Users to use it.
Comment

Pro
 Bridges to other networks

You're not confined within Element's or even Matrix garden, and you don't have to make users of other networks switch to Matrix.
Comment

Con
 Paid subscription

They have a paid subscription called: Element ONE.
Comment

Pro
 Widgets support

Want to watch that flick at YouTube and discuss it at the same time? Have Grafana graphs stacked above your DevOps team chat? Collaboratively edit Google Docs and chat over without switching applications? This is possible with Element.
Comment

Pro
 21

dakk
Comment

Con
 21

jhj
Comment

Pro
 Truly cross-platform and open API

Not only does Telegram have an Android, iOS and WP app, but it also has a client for desktops on Windows, OSX and Linux. Basically any device one owns, Telegram has a client that runs on it.
Comment

Pro
 Beautiful UI

Very customizable with a lot of clean looking options.
Comment

Pro
 Media messaging

Videos, gifs, images, geolocation, and documents.
Comment

Pro
 Privacy focused

In addition to the end-to-end encryption that provides privacy to communications, the app also includes self destructing timers for chats, and the ability to permanently delete messages, yours and theirs, from your device.
Comment

Pro
 Cloud data sync

Telegram synchronizes all data in the cloud for easy access to all your files and conversations on any device.
Comment

Pro
 Maximum group size is 200,000 people

In most cases, you can have a group chat without worrying about the maximum number of people.
Comment

Pro
 Bot platform API

Telegram features its own API platform to easily create and share bots.
Comment

Pro
 Private cloud storage

Everyone can easily upload self files to their online storage or clone other user sent files. Keep it , manage it , share it , remove it. There is unlimited data storage - 2.0GB per file.
Comment

Pro
 Secure

Telegram uses an open source MTProto encryption protocol that provides complete end-to-end encryption for secret chats. To show off their confidence in the protocol the company behind Telegram has organized $200,000 and $300,000 challenges to break the encryption. So far there have been no winners.
Comment

Pro
 Cross-platform

Telegram works on everything. Even on a terminal.
Comment

Pro
 Free and convenient large file sharing

Copy/paste videos, gifs, images, geolocation, documents, and even executable files. Drag over files for practically any time up to 2.0GB in size. Images can be compressed, too.
Comment

Pro
 Possible to send photos and videos without compression

Comment

Pro
 Open source client apps

Client apps are open source, making whole service more trustworthy.
Comment

Pro
 Telegram calls generally have very great quality and are crystal clear

Comment

Pro
 Free of cost

The application is available free of cost.
Comment

Con
 Only "Secret Chat" messages are encrypted end-to-end

The only way to get end-to-end encryption (client-client) using Telegram is to use the Secret Chat function, anything through the regular service is server-client encrypted.
Comment

Pro
 Saved messages

You can write messages to yourself. You can write some notes, add links, and see everything across all your devices.
Comment

Pro
 Channels for one way broadcasting

Broadcasting channels suitable for announcing things.
Comment

Pro
 Voice and video messages

You can post voice and video messages if you are too lazy to write text messages.
Comment

Pro
 Save time with inline bots and link previews

Unfortunately, on the desktop videos don't play, but images are viewable without visiting popular websites like imgur and Instagram. You can play YouTube videos and others within the app, so you don't need to embed code or anything. With inline bots, such as @gif, @pic/bing, @vid/YouTube, etc, you can look things up without leaving the client or chat that you're in. Simply type the name and some keywords and wait for the results to load.
Comment

Pro
 Multiplatform native client apps

There are native desktop, mobile and web client apps, that are optimized for speed and are light on memory usage.
Comment

Pro
 Two-step verification

You can set up an additional password to your account, which can be reset by your email. You don't have to use an email if you do not want to. If you lose access to your email or forget your password, you will be able to reset it via text message if your account is over seven days old and will receive it within a week (in case you recover anything before then).
Comment

Pro
 High quality calls

Uses the latest GPL audio codecs, such as Opus, an adaptative high-quality codec that supersedes AAC at any bitrate.
Comment

Pro
 @mentions

You can ping people to get their attention by @mentioning them.
Comment

Pro
 Cloud chat keys are kept in different jurisdiction

Even though encryption used for cloud-based storage (e.g. Gmail, Facebook, iCloud) may not be as secure as end-to-end encryption or zero-knowledge storage, Telegram does the most that it can by holding keys to chats in different jurisdictions, requiring intergovernmental cooperation to obtain the keys. This is aside from whatever other security measures have been taken, of course.
Comment

Con
 Doesn't use proven encryption

Telegram uses their own proprietary encryption called MTProto. It was their own creation. It was competently created by mathematicians, but not encryption experts. It has not been proven secure.
Comment

Pro
 Banned in China

Comment

Pro
 Customer support is within the app

Although it's volunteer based, but still pretty top-notch if available, which it tends to be.
Comment

Pro
 Desktop app handles HiDPI

The desktop app has a built in setting to scale the UI of the app up to 200% which allows for those with 4k monitors/screens to use the app without scaling issues.
Comment

Con
 Not fully open source

Telegram has an open API and protocol free for everyone, but the backend software is not open source. Therefore 100% privacy can not be evaluated.
Comment

Pro
 Unlimited storage

Unlimited number of files can be stored forever on the cloud. You can upload files up to 2.0 GB each.
Comment

Pro
 Self-destruct messages

Messages can be set on a timer. They will disappear after the timer expires.
Comment

Pro
 Pinned messages

You can pin messages to the top of groups or supergroups so members will see them when opening the group.
Comment

Pro
 Popular in the USA

On SimilarWeb you can see that Telegram is on the top 15 among all communication apps.
Comment

Pro
 Fast sending and receiving of messages

The message will be delivered to the recipient within one second of sending it.
Comment

Pro
 Group voice chat

This Discord-like feature adds to the interactivity of the application.
Comment

Con
 Source of some client apps not released

They don't release last Android source.
Comment

Con
 Limited "Secret Chat"

Secret chat is only implemented in the mobile apps, meaning there is no way to encrypt messages end-to-end when using the desktop client or the web browser client.
Comment

Con
 Can only be used with a phone number

It is not possible to activate and use Telegram by mail etc. You need a phone number.
Comment

Pro
 Edit or delete messages after sending them

Comment

Con
 Cloud data sync

This feature for some people is a con.
Comment

Con
 No SMS support

Comment

Con
 Does not support spherical 360° photos

Spherical 360° photos becoming more popular these days, but Telegram does not support such format.
Comment

Con
 No source code sintax highlighting

Telegram does not have source code syntax highlighting, making it difficult to share code snippets.
Comment

Pro
 Group Voice Chat

This Discord-like feature adds to the interactivity of the application.
Comment

Con
 No video chat

Comment

Pro
 Supergroups of up to 200,000 people

In Supergroups, anyone along with admins can delete their messages from all sides. All of the user's messages can be deleted by an administrator, and they can be banned and reported as well. Supergroups can have a public link (outside of Asia, due to high spam volumes), which is also a username.
Comment

Con
 Does not work for visually impaired

Doesn't work for visually impaired.
Comment

Pro
 Pinned Messages

You can pin messages to the top of groups or supergroups so members will see them when opening the group.
Comment

Con
 "Secret Chat" feature is not available for desktop client

Secret chats with end to end encryption are only available on mobile apps.
Comment

Pro
 Group voice chat

This Discord-like feature adds to the interactivity of the application.
Comment

Con
 Video messages

You can send small video messages just the way you send voice message.
Comment

Pro
 Supergroups of up to 200,000 people

In Supergroups, anyone along with admins can delete their messages from all sides. A message can be pinned to the top. All of the user's messages can be deleted by an administrator, and they can be banned and reported as well. Supergroups can have a public link (outside of Asia, due to high spam volumes), which is also a username.
Comment

Con
 No longer maintained

Last release was on 2019-08-29 on F-droid.
Comment

Pro
 Free and open source

Comment

Pro
 Encrypted

Comment

Pro
 Encryption only with mobile network (without 4G)

Comment

Con
 Little functionality

Since it's pretty much just an encrypted SMS solution, it will never provide as much functionality as other messaging apps.
Comment

Pro
 Registration without phone number

Registration is handled by random generated IDs. No phone number needed.
Comment

Pro
 Encrypted communication

Provides complete end-to-end encryption.
Comment

Pro
 Company behind Threema is based in Switzerland

Comment

Pro
 Servers in Switzerland

Privacy laws protect the data Threema has.
Comment

Pro
 Supports encrypted group chats

Comment

Pro
 Provides a web client

You can control and message with friends via Threema Web, the official web client for Threema.
Comment

Pro
 Ability to send pics and videos

Threema supports sending media messages such as video, pics and even voice messages.
Comment

Pro
 Group chat polls

Comment

Con
 Not free

Unlike many other options Threema is not free as it costs $1.99 for the app.
Comment

Pro
 Allows verification of contacts identity via QR Code

Comment

Con
 Single device only

You cannot use multiple devices to send messages. However, it does have message mirroring on a web client.
Comment

Con
 No cloud sync

E2E encryption means no cloud syncing of messages.
Comment

Pro
 Quick Reply

When a new message is received, a window pops up with the relevant message and allows replying from the window, without ever having to open the app.
Comment

Pro
 Everything is free

The app is available for free with an optional donation IAP that ranges from $1-$10.
Comment

Pro
 Beautiful design

Responsive, highly customizable Material Design interface makes for a native looking app that fits in well with Google's UI design guidelines.
Comment

Pro
 Readable in day or night due to themes

There are light and dark themes available within the settings which can be switched depending on how light it is around one when using the app. The dark theme can also help to conserve battery when being used as not as much brightness and hence battery will be used.
Comment

Pro
 Very active developer who listens to the community

While QKSMS is one of the younger apps, the developer is quickly adding features/fixing bugs.
Comment

Pro
 Save yourself from sending out bad messages

Through delayed messaging one can set it up so that a message is not sent automatically. This can help for those times that it may be best to think something over before sending out a rash message.
Comment

Pro
 Convenient Android Wear support

Those that own an Android Wear device will be able to set it to receive their messages on the Android Wear device making for convenient notifications and easy messaging through not having to take their phone out.
Comment

Pro
 Per-conversation notification settings

Users can set different notification settings per user as an easy way to know who is messaging without having to look at the actual message.
Comment

Pro
 Easily communicate with groups

Users can communicate with large groups at the same time due to the included group messaging feature. This is convenient when trying to synchronize with friends or colleagues.
Comment

Con
 Buggy

There are little annoyances here and there, from dark theme problems making text unreadable to crashing and missing notifications.
Comment

Con
 The company evades U. S. tax

The company uses the common practice of tax haven addresses in order to avoid paying US taxes despite being registered in Delaware.
Comment

Con
 Proprietary Software

Not Open Source.
Comment

Pro
 Desktop apps allow texting, calling and enables transferring calls between devices

Viber has native apps for both Windows and Mac that allow you to send and receive messages from your desktop. You can also use the desktop to make and receive calls. Synchronizes between all devices you are using Viber on. Allows transferring calls between devices.
Comment

Pro
 Supports voice calls

Viber has really well implemented voice tech. It has comparable quality to Skype and you can even tranfer calls from your phone to your desktop seamlessly.
Comment

Pro
 Completely free

Viber uses data connection and the app is free.
Comment

Con
 No web client

You cannot login from the web to send and receive messages.
Comment

Con
 Constantly on

Need apps like Greenify to stop it from being constantly on and active, even if you don't use it.
Comment

Pro
 Clean interface 

The interface is simple, functional and intuitive.
Comment

Pro
 See who of your contacts is using Viber quickly 

Viber is tied to your phone number so it can quickly see who else in your contacts list is using the application.
Comment

Pro
 Android Wear support

Viber includes Android Wear support on Android 4.3 or higher and Viber 5.3 or higher.
Comment

Pro
 Same protocol as used in Signal

Viber's protocol uses the same concepts of the "double ratchet" protocol used in Open Whisper Systems Signal application.
Comment

Pro
 Public chats

It's possible to be a fly on the wall on other group or one-to-one chats that have been opened up to the public. These public chats are often promotional chats with celebrities.
Comment

Con
 Constant reminders of messages

If you don't check your messages (say your in a group chat and simply don't check all of them), it will flood your notifications.
Comment

Con
 Doesn't sync well

Sync awfully between Phone and PC clients.
Comment

Pro
 Supports video calling over WiFi and data.

Can call friends using voice or video options.
Comment

Pro
 Combines cellular and data messaging 

This has an advantage in that if you text someone who uses Viber it will be free, if not it will just revert to SMS. This means you can replace your standard messaging app with Viber as well.
Comment

Pro
 Keys only on device

Starting with Viber 6.0 the encryption keys are stored only on the clients themselves, not even Viber itself has access to them.
Comment

Pro
 No need to create an account or add contacts

One of the best things about Viber is how it handles setup and sending messages. Viber uses your existing number as your ID, so you don't need to create a separate Viber account.
Comment

Pro
 Supports 200 person group chat

Viber allows creating groups of up to 200 people on the Android version of Viber. It also has a cool "smart notifications" feature to prevent being overwhelmed with notifications if a lot of people are active in a chat group.
Comment

Pro
 Insight and well documented encryption

Viber has made a documentation available, explaining in great details their encryption system and giving good insight on how it works.
Comment

Con
 Shady company

There is zero information on the founders of Viber, which leads to some questions as to who is behind a platform that has access to a large swath of user information.
Comment

Con
 Has multiple a security vulnerabilities

EFF gave Viber's security 1 out of 7 points in November, 2014. It deducted points because the provider is capable of reading encrypted messages, there's no way to verify contacts identities, past communications are not secure if encryption keys are stolen, the code is not open to independent reviews, the security design is not properly documented and there has not been a recent code audit.
Comment

Con
 Potential spyware

Viber communication's aren't end-to-end encrypted. The company has access to the key that the communication's are encrypted with.
Comment

Con
 Transitioning to corporate orientation

Google is turning Hangouts in to a Slack competitor. It's unclear what the future of Hangouts is, but Google has said the consumer Hangouts we now have 'isn't going anywhere.'
Comment

Pro
 Save and sync your chats across multiple devices

Start chatting on your phone, then on your computer, then on your tablet seamlessly!
Comment

Con
 Lack of end to end encryption

Communications are encrypted between client and Google servers but not from sending client to receiving client. This means that there is still a possibility for someone other than the receiver to read your message if they have access to internal Google servers. But it allows also lightweight chat history search, spam protection and other features.
Comment

Pro
 No need to create a separate account if you use any other Google service

Hangouts uses Google account credentials. If you use any other Google service, then you already have an account set up.
Comment

Con
 Is owned by Google

Google is a cooperation that earns money from collecting data and breaching privacy.
Comment

Con
 Poor interface

The app tends to lag, the design can be confusing and considering that another app has to be installed that supplies another icon in the home screen in order to get a dialer for calls in Hangouts, overall it is very confusing and cluttered.
Comment

Pro
 Group video support

If you have signed in your Google account, Hangouts allows making video calls with up to 10 people or one-on-one. There are business, education and government solutions that increase the participant count to for video calls to 15 as well as offers support for those accounts. Additionally, you can switch between using either the front-facing or rear-facing camera on your phone or tablet.
Comment

Pro
 Free and cross-platform

Google offers all features of Hangouts completely free on iOS, Android and web with quick and reliable sync across all platforms. It's also tightly integrated in other Google services - it can be accessed from services such as Gmail, Google+, Chrome. While the standard Hangouts offering is completely free, there are business, education and government solutions that increase the participant count to for video calls to 15 and offers support that may cost money.
Comment

Con
 No rich text editing

On Android you can receive messages with bold or italic text. However, you cannot bold or italicize text on Android, only on iOS devices or via the web interface.
Comment

Con
 No way to moderate groups

If a member of a group chat room becomes disruptive, or there's some other need, there's no way in Hangouts to remove somebody from an existing chatroom. Similarly, if somebody is no longer active, there's no way to remove that user from the chat room to make slot for new active members.
Comment

Pro
 Chrome browser extension

Use the extension on any computer you can run Chrome browser to text from your computer or tablet!
Comment

Con
 Buggy video calls

Whether video calls work on your device is pure lottery, and there's nothing you can do to fix it.
Comment

Pro
 Excellent read receipts in group chat

It's possible to know what each and every participant of the group has read. Their icons are displayed below the last message.
Comment

Con
 Poor indication of who's online

There is no way to find out if a person in your contact's list is online or not in the Android app.
Comment

Con
 Poorly manages data

Doesn't cache images well either received or sent. Often users will see the sent images re-downloading, same for conversations.
Comment

Pro
 Can share animated GIFs

If you have gifs in your mobile phone, you can share them in the conversation and your partner will be able to see it animated in the chat.
Comment

Pro
 Google Voice integration

Google Voice is a service that enables making and receiving free phone calls within US. Google Voice forwards incoming calls to all connected devices and allows placing calls from any of the connected devices, but they will show as coming from the Google Voice number. Hangouts completely integrates Google Voice, allowing you to place calls and receive texts and voicemail from all of your devices. The Hangouts app for Android also includes a needed dialer for making calls with the users Google Voice number.
Comment

Pro
 Free calls to US and Canada from anywhere in the world

Hangouts app for Android can be extended with an optional dialer for making calls. Most calls to US and Canada are free and international calls have cheap rates. A Google Voice account will be needed in order have a number that allows these calls to be made.
Comment

Con
 API support was removed

This change closed options for integrations and connections between similar apps.
Comment

Pro
 Advanced status sharing

Hangouts can inform about the status of other users including what device they are currently using, whether they are in the middle of a call and when were they last seen. This allows making sure that you're not disturbing someone when initiating a conversation. It's possible to granularly turn off status sharing.
Comment

Pro
 Video tools

Hangouts can add different effects and overlays to video calls that can be viewed on your device. Unfortunately, they can't be set from your phone.
Comment

Con
 Not available on Windows Phones

There is no Hangouts app for the Windows Phone.
Comment

Con
 Doesn't support sending voice notes or video recordings

Currently there is no built in function that supports creating and sending voice notes or video recordings.
Comment

Pro
 Seamless integration with OK Google for voice control and typing

Hangouts can be used completely hands free, even if the app is not open and the phone is locked: "OK Google, send a Hangouts message to Mary".
Comment

Con
 No customer support

Free product, you're on your own.
Comment

Con
 Won't send SMS/MMS anymore

They removed support for sms/mms. The same goes with integration to hangouts.
Comment

Con
 No SMS/MMS backup

They don't have options to backup sms to cloud.
Comment

Con
 SMS messages sent from the web app can't be sent outside North America

SMS messages sent from the web app can only be sent to number in America and Canada - sending to foreign numbers won't work, although you can still receive texts from anywhere.
Comment

Pro
 Combines cellular and data messaging

Hangouts allows sending and receiving SMS, MMS and data messages in one place. It's possible to switch between message types in the compose view at the bottom left corner of the screen.
Comment

Pro
 Comes bundled with Android

Since version 5.0 Android devices include Hangouts as part of the pre-installed apps.
Comment

Pro
 End-to-end encryption

Comment

Pro
 Swiss legislation

Registered in Switzerland.
Comment

Con
 Interface can be confusing

Comment

Pro
 Cross-platform

Wire works on Android, iOS and OS X or in a browser.
Comment

Con
 Now it's just to complicated

When started, few years ago, Wire was quite good, clean and simple. Now it's too much hussle to get to the point to send your first message.
Comment

Pro
 Multi-device

You can be logged in to multiple devices at one time.
Comment

Pro
 Calls can be moved between devices

It's possible to start a call on one device and continue it on another without interrupting it.
Comment

Pro
 Can send drawings

Sketch is a feature built into Wire that allows users to create simplistic drawing to then send to their contacts.
Comment

Pro
 Good looking design

Full width media and profile picture chat backgrounds look great on app.
Comment

Pro
 Libre/open source

Comment

Pro
 Clean, modern interface

Comment

Pro
 Privacy-respecting

Comment

Con
 No cloud sync

When you login to a new device you have no message history. Also, messages sent while the device was off or without a data connection are not received if they were delivered to another device.
Comment

Con
 Sluggish UI

Comment

Con
 Lacks video calling

Currently there is no video calling feature built into Wire. Something many other messaging apps already have, leaving users to need a different app if the feature is needed.
Comment

Pro
 Decentralized

Bluetooth/WiFi/Tor p2p messaging. No server needed.
Comment

Pro
 Fully End to End Encryption

Comment

Pro
 Disappearing messages support

You can send disappearing messages.
Comment

Pro
 Forums support

You can have a forums messaging group chat.
Comment

Pro
 Send messages thought bluetooth

You can send messages to other Briar users thought bluetooth
Comment

Pro
 Send messages with other users on the same wifi

You can send messages to other Briar users without connecting to the internet on the same WiFi as them.
Comment

Pro
 Blog support

You can post blogs to all your friends.
Comment

Con
 No support for calling

You can't call other Brial users.
Comment

Con
 No support for SMS

Their isn't support for SMS/MMS/RCS. (I know the developers don't care but it is a feature it lacks)
Comment

Con
 UI doesn't look modern

Most people think this app looks old.
Comment

Con
 Small user base

Briar has a small but very dedicated user base.
Comment

Pro
 Uses XMPP + OMEMO

Can speak to anybody on XMPP and does not need a phone number or email.
Comment

Pro
 One of the most secure protocols, together with open-source and very active development

Comment

Pro
 Open Source

Comment

Pro
 As it is XMPP federation based this app can cross-message with all other clients on Android, iOS, Linux and Windows whom use the same protocol

Comment

Pro
 Has one of the most intuitive and good looking UI's among XMPP apps for Android and Android message apps in general

Comment

Con
 No voice or video support

It supports A/V calls now.
Comment

Con
 Proprietary software

Discord is closed-source, meaning their code isn't available for inspection or reproduction
Comment

Con
 No self-hosting avaliable

Discord is wholly hosted by Discord (the company), you cannot run private instances, and all servers are hosted on their infrastructure. For most people, this won't really impact their usage.
Comment

Con
 Developer's previous company was sued for privacy violations, among other things

See: http://classactionlawsuitsinthenews.com/class-action-lawsuit-complaints/openfeint-green-international-privacy-class-action-lawsuit-complaint/ https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases-proceedings/closing-letters/openfeint-inc Discord's privacy policy also states that while they might not sell your data, a company they get sold to will quite possibly attain said data and thus may be in "more" shady hands.
Comment

Con
 Non-Nitro users cannot send files bigger than 8 MB

Nitro subscribers are able to send files up to 100 MB in size and Nitro Classic users up to 50 MB
Comment

Pro
 User friendly 

Discord follows the same type of interface design popularised by Slack, which is extremely clean and attractive, and doesn't clutter the interface with unnecessary chrome and cruft.
Comment

Pro
 Game integration 

Discord shows which game each user is currently playing, which among other things helps users to form PUGs with minimal hassle.
Comment

Pro
 Free for unlimited users

Unlimited amount of users.
Comment

Pro
 Easy setup

You can quickly send invites to people and they can join in using the web client without having to create an account or install the app.
Comment

Pro
 Cross-platform

Discord has native desktop apps for Windows, OSX and Linux, and mobile (Android, iOS) platforms and it's also accessible from the web.
Comment

Pro
 Can be used in browser 

Users can invite others to join a Discord channel via a web link, which means no installation is required to use the software - which is one of the big typical barriers to entry for social software.
Comment

Pro
 Open source bots and management tools

Discord has a wide variety of bots for things from airhorn noises to automated server management, to leveling systems for chat. The bot API is open and there are dedicated sites for finding bots.
Comment

Pro
 Good 1-click invite system

Discord allows inviting people to a specific channel with a link. Links can be set to expire. Low effort/passive invite mechanics.
Comment

Pro
 Dark theme out of the box

Comment

Pro
 Supports video and text communication 

Behaves and looks like Slack for regular text channels, but with the ability to create voice channels as well
Comment

Pro
 Android app has push notifications

Comment

Pro
 Familiar for Slack users

For those that are used to the way Slack (a similar chat client) works, Discord will be familiar in its use, which lowers the learning curve quite a bit for those that have switched or tried Slack before.
Comment

Con
 Some functions cut out and available only with "Nitro" subscription

Comment

Con
 Based on Electron = eats a lot of ram

Comment

Pro
 Ability to create bots

Discord provides an API for creating custom bots.
Comment

Pro
 Ability to thread channels

Ability to create channel categories for channels to sit inside of.
Comment

Pro
 Syntax highlighting and Markdown support

The support is limited but still exists. It's a killer feature for dev teams.
Comment

Pro
 Language localization

Have localization for many language, including Russian.
Comment

Pro
 Screen-sharing available

One could easily share their screen while calling someone
Comment

Pro
 DDoS mitigation

Discord prevents users from being DDoSed out of games.
Comment

Pro
 Numerous controls for setting member roles.

Deny access, Deny write message, Allow read messages etc.
Comment

Pro
 Targeting of roles

Targeting roles allows for quickly requesting someone from a group e.g. artist, moderator, etc.
Comment

Pro
 Has low-latency VoIP support 

Comment

Pro
 Low effort invite mechanics

Comment

Pro
 Friendly payment policy

Free account have no tangible restrictions. Premium account is just a way to say "thank you" to developers. And it work for all servers of discord (not as in slack). And it can be purchased by one who wants. In contrast to Slask, where all active members of the server should be "premium".
Comment

Pro
 Does not allow NSFW related things to be posted unless in a NSFW channel

Comment

Con
 Has noticeably limited UI and behaviour customization.

This can only be partially bypassed with BetterDiscord, which is unstable and against the ToS.
Comment

Con
 Very unstable on Linux

Comment

Con
 Not a generic "team chat" tool

All the UI and the features are aimed specifically at communicating with your gaming team/clan.
Comment

Pro
 Open Source

Open source means anyone can contribute with a plugin for the Disa framework. In other words, there will probably be a big amount of plugins (other messaging services) soon! Right now, the Disa team is developing the Telegram plugin.
Comment

Con
 Uses other services

This is not a messaging service, but simply a way to use other services, like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, or your carrier's SMS/MMS. So you must have accounts with those services.
Comment

Con
 Not pretty

It looks fine. Has some rough edges. Definitely not pretty.
Comment

Pro
 Combines conversations from different services via plugins

Disa can replace WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and your default SMS, allowing you to easily change between messaging services. Disa recently went open source, which means a lot more plugins for other message services soon! As of now, the Telegram plugin is being made for Disa.
Comment

Pro
 Intuitive interface

Interface follows Material Design guidelines.
Comment

Pro
 Easy on your battery

Disa promises to use less battery than other apps due to their patent pending technology.
Comment

Pro
 Still in beta

even if Disa is still in the beta stage it already have a lot of features and can already replace others competitors as your daily driver
Comment

Pro
 PushBullet support

Disa support PushBullet quick reply from PC.
Comment

Pro
 Personalization

Choose a color for each service! Select a vibration pattern for each service! Pick your favorite ringtone for WhatsApp, but keep the default for SMS? Easy. Different LED colors on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp? Of course you can do it!
Comment

Pro
 Disa is great, because you just need one app

Comment

Con
 Plugin for WhatsApp discontinued

WhatsApp uses a proprietary protocol for it's messaging service, which is why there are so few messaging apps that support its integration. Being that Disa offers a plugin for WhatsApp integration, it is only a matter of time until they are told to stop, which is why the current plugin has been abandoned.
Comment

Pro
 Straightforward interface

The interface is very simple, fast and easy to use. You can start using it as soon as the app has been downloaded - it does not require setting anything up or registering. You can communicate with anyone in your contacts list that also uses WhatsApp. Includes useful features like seeing when a contact is currently available or typing.
Comment

Pro
 Widely used

WhatsApp reported 1.5 billion users in 2018. Your friends are most likely already using WhatsApp, so it's easy to get setup.
Comment

Pro
 Effortlessly builds your contacts by using your phone number as identification

WhatsApp will automatically find all of your contacts currently using Whatsapp and add them to your contacts. This makes it really easy to setup and given that it's the most popular messaging app it's likely that a lot of your contacts are already using it.
Comment

Con
 Shares meta data with Facebook

WhatsApp shares your messaging meta data with Facebook if you do not opt-out in the settings. If you use the same phone number for WhatsApp and Facebook, the profiles can easily be linked. See https://www.whatsapp.com/faq/en/general/26000016
Comment

Con
 Tied to carrier phone number

WhatsApp cannot be used by people without a smart phone with an active cell plan. If your phone is lost or damaged, or if your phone number changes, you cannot get messages sent by friends without them updating your phone number. You cannot send message to them until you are able to get SMS messages at your phone number.
Comment

Con
 Proprietary

Not open source.
Comment

Pro
 Message mirroring on web app

WhatsApp can be used from the desktop via Chrome, Firefox and Opera browsers. Accessing it requires using the Android app to scan the QR code that's presented on web.whatsapp.com.
Comment

Pro
 Signal protocol

Whatsapp uses the state-of-the-art Signal protocol that ensure strong end-to-end encryption.
Comment

Con
 Hard to migrate history cross platform

Migrating your chat history from Android to iOS or the other way around is not so simple. In some cases it requires a 3rd party app and in some the only way is to migrate specific chats one by one.
Comment

Con
 Web interface uses message mirroring

To use your computer to send messages your phone must be on with a consistent data connection.
Comment

Con
 Single device

You cannot use the same WhatsApp account on multiple devices (e.g. a tablet, a PC and a cellphone). The account is tied to the device with the specific cellphone number. Chat history is deleted when you sign in to a new account, unless you have created a backup.
Comment

Con
 No cloud sync

Messages are not stored on WhatsApp server for privacy and security reasons.
Comment

Con
 Limitation on shareable file sizes

WhatsApp now allows users to share files of any type, but there is still a 16 MB size limit.
Comment

Pro
 One-on-one texts can be encrypted

WhatsApp has implemented end to end encryption for messages sent on it's service. Even WhatsApp has no way to read a users messages.
Comment

Con
 NOT Open Source

Whatsapp is not Open Source app
Comment

Con
 There's barely any key checking being done

Whatsapp say's everything is encrypted and, yes it is. But if you turn your phone off, and someone else pretends to be your phone, he or she will receive your messages 2 days later without any security breach warnings or what so ever. The message's are delivered without any problems, but it's pretty useless if the keys are not really checked.
Comment

Pro
 Per-Conversation Customization

Comment

Pro
 Good material design UI

Comment

Pro
 Multi-platform/unified messaging

Comment

Pro
 Encrypted messaging content on devices

Comment

Pro
 Good Material Design UI

Comment

Pro
 Able to send encrypted chat, voice messages , and VoIP calls

Comment

Pro
 In-app security lock

You have the option to lock the app itself.
Comment

Con
 Many people have difficulty registering the app

Multiple people have reported not being able to receive the activation code required to register the app.
Comment

Pro
 Simple UI

Make it easy to use
Comment

Pro
 Can send self-destructing messages

Messages can be set to self-destruct after a set time.
Comment

Pro
 Offers 3 types of encryption

The app claims to be the only communication app that encrypts data in transit, on disk and on screen. Encryption in transit is used to make sure no-one can listen in on your conversations even if the traffic is going through their servers, encryption on disk is used to make sure that even if someone gets ahold of your phone and is capable of extracting your messages from it they won't be able to read them and screen encryption is essentially a lock screen that sets in after a set amount of time used to make prevent "shoulder surfing".
Comment

Con
 Poor support

Comment

Con
 Code is not verified

Comment

Con
 Closed source

No way to verify security practices.
Comment

Pro
 VOIP support

Session supports VOIP.
Comment

Pro
 p2p

tor p2p.
Comment

Pro
 No need of a phone number

You don't need a phone number to make a session account.
Comment

Pro
 Attachments support

You can send up to 10MB per *attachment.
Comment

Con
 Small user base

Wickr claims that one million users have downloaded the app with no information on how many active users they have. But even if every person that has downloaded the app is an active user, the userbase is really small compared to apps like WhatsApp that boast about hundreds of millions of active users.
Comment

Con
 Partially Open source

Comment

Pro
 Content shredder

Wickr has a feature that not only erases all messages, but also overwrites them with junk data.
Comment

Pro
 Doesn't require a phone number

Unlike most, you can use your phone but you don't have to. You can register without giving anything and add contacts either via e-mail (only) or phone number.
Comment

Pro
 Can find other users securely

Instead of using usernames, emails or phone numbers to find other users, Wickr uses hashes derived from phone numbers or email addresses (this applies to the find friends functionality only). Hashes are the result of a one-way cryptographic function, meaning it's purposefully difficult to reconstruct original data (phone numbers and email addresses in this case) from them. For Wickr, hashes are generated on the client's side so that no personal information is ever sent to the Wickr servers. The app finds people on your contact list that also use Wickr by comparing the hashes that get generated from contacts and comparing them to the hashes that are stored on Wickr servers.
Comment

Pro
 Send Delay

Comment

Pro
 Premium features are non-essential

Comment

Pro
 Very customizable

Comment

Pro
 Delivery Reports for both sms and mms with the option to save delivery time

Comment

Pro
 Archiving

Comment

Pro
 Group Chats

Comment

Pro
 Complete Multimedia Support including but not limited to sending and receiving: Pictures, Videos, Audio, VCards, GIFs

Comment

Con
 Some features are paid

Blacklisting (Premium) Auto forward (Premium) Auto responder (Premium)
Comment

Con
 Lack of privacy

Messenger is owned by Facebook. Based on their privacy policy, this means that any information you provide (including messages sent) are used by Facebook to profile you and sell access to your data to advertisers.
Comment

Con
 Suspension from Facebook suspends Messenger usage

If your Facebook posts or comments are found by the AI to have broken the User Guidelines, which is more easily done now than ever, you are unable to send messages until your suspension is ended.
Comment

Pro
 Chat heads

Chat heads are a feature that allow keeping conversations above any other app.
Comment

Pro
 Read receipts

Users can see who has seen each message in group messages
Comment

Pro
 Great UI 

User interface of the application is clean, intuitive and easy to overview.
Comment

Pro
 Simple and easy for beginners on the app

Comment

Pro
 Uses Facebook friends to create a contacts list

Allows communicating with anyone who's a friend on Facebook.
Comment

Con
 Lack of end-to-end encryption

Secret (end-to-end encrypted) chats are only supported in one-to-one messages, and are not enabled by default, and the encryption has not been verified independently.
Comment

Pro
 Easy to share posts from Facebook

Integration with Facebook makes it easy to share any interesting posts from the Facebook timeline.
Comment

Con
 Limited encryption support

End-to-end encrypted chats ("Secret chats") must be specifically enabled from settings and initiated with a plus button and enabling toggle on top right. Even then the connection metadata is shared with Facebook.
Comment

Pro
 Works over WiFi and Cell data

This is the only messenger service that does it all. Encryption, multi-device syncing, WiFi and data, easy to use, everyone has it. None of the cons in this list even apply anymore.
Comment

Con
 Annoying notifications

You can't disable notifications permanently just for a few hours.
Comment

Pro
 Works with deactivated Facebook

Users can deactivate their Facebook profile and still continue using Messenger.
Comment

Con
 Only recently integrated encryption

Only recently integrated encryption, from a big, not open-source, giant American company.
Comment

Con
 No wake screen when receiving a message

When receiving messages, if your phone is locked, it won't wake the screen.
Comment

Con
 No video messages 

Currently there is no way to send video messages using Messenger.
Comment

Con
 No web interface (yet)

Currently there is no web interface to send message using your computer. Project leads have teased screen shots of the web interface.
Comment

Con
 Few users currently

Allo was just released in September, 2016 and it doesn't have a very large following yet. We haven't yet seen how popular it's going to be.
Comment

Con
 Exclusive

If your contacts aren't on Allo it is worthless, and no one is on Allo. Tried it after Hangouts fail, discarded it within days.
Comment

Con
 History deletes on sign in

If you uninstall the app or migrate to a new phone your messages history is deleted. This, despite the fact that Google keeps a copy of your messages permanently for data crunching.
Comment

Pro
 Integrated with Google Assistant

Automatically shows options for restaurants/movies/etc when relevant according to the context of the conversation. It's also able to perform actions accordingly like order tickets.
Comment

Con
 Single device

Part of reliably saying if one saw your message, and having it tied to a phone number, is that you cannot have the same Allo account on two phones.
Comment

Pro
 Supports end to end encryption

You can send end to end encrypted message that will auto-delete themselves after a specified time.
Comment

Pro
 whisper SHOUT let's you express yourself through text size

You can easily adjust the text size to show either a whisper or a shout, adding emphasis to your messages. Simply hold the send button and slide up (to shout) or down (to whisper).
Comment

Pro
 Message can self-destruct after a certain time

You can send end to end encrypted message that will auto-delete themselves after a specified time.
Comment

Pro
 Animated stickers and emoji

Some shouted emoji animate and you can download additional stickers and send animated stickers.
Comment

Pro
 Full resolution picture sharing

Comment

Pro
 Smart replies

Part of the Google Assistant is providing common answers based on your conversation thread (like in Gmail/Inbox).
Comment

Pro
 Themes

Each chat's theme can be changed to one of a few themes. Some themes even have specific chat colours for each user, making it easy to see who is talking.
Comment

Pro
 Can share a location

Share your current location or any place with other people.
Comment

Pro
 Encryption on-the-wire and in cloud storage

All messages are encrypted while in transit and on Google's servers.
Comment

Pro
 File sharing

Comment

Pro
 Reads receipts

GroupMe has a built in function to read receipts.
Comment

Pro
 Great web client

GroupMe has an excellent web client that can be used to send and receive messages and manage groups from the desktop.
Comment

Pro
 IFTTT Integration

Allows sending messages from web services via IFTTT.
Comment

Pro
 Integrated calendar

It's possible to add location and time with reminders directly in the GroupMe app.
Comment

Pro
 Makes it easy to silence 1 or all groups

GroupMe has settings that allow muting a single group or turn off all GroupMe notifications from within the app.
Comment

Pro
 Does not require everyone in the group to have a smartphone

GroupMe can set up a custom phone number which allows people without the App to send and receive messages. This makes it easy to add anyone to messaging.
Comment

Con
 Drains battery fast

GroupMe, in order to have a constant connection which allows for notifications drains the battery of a device quickly, which is not ideal for a messaging app that one needs on time notifications from.
Comment

Pro
 Great for office communication

BBM works great in the office environment. Set up group chats and calendars to organize your projects and workflow. Share all types of media files with each as well.
Comment

Con
 Advertisements in app

Unlike other popular chat apps which are free to use, BBM uses ads to keep the app free for use. The user can pay a fee to remove ads, however, this is a subscription fee, not a one-time payment.
Comment

Pro
 Lots of great features

It contains a wallet for money transfer, news update & sports update feature.
Comment

Pro
 Without data media sharing option within 100m

Comment

Pro
 Great sticker system

A very fast sticker suggestion based on key words typed. This helps to send relevant stickers quickly. Also when we press upon a sticker it opens a quick reply sticker option.
Comment

Pro
 Night-mode

Hike has an app theme & auto night mode(8pm-6am) inside to reduce strain on eye while texting at night.
Comment

Pro
 Has a timeline

It has a timeline(photo + text), which is similar to BBM.
Comment

Pro
 Photo editing feature

It has a selfie edit feature like Instagram, helps with editing selfies for profile photos & photo statuses.
Comment

Con
 Security of user information

First of all, this is closed source software. It also lacks-end-to-end encryption. In today's time, irrespective of every other feature, encryption is the most important one. Because without it, rest of the features become risky to use and thus meaningless.
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Pro
 Open Source

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Pro
 Uses the Tox protcol

Comment

Pro
 End to End encrypted

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Pro
 P2P

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Con
 Can only message other tox users

Comment

Pro
 

Comment

Pro
 Free, open source

Antox is licensed under Creative Commons with source code available on GitHub. Being open source makes it possible to make sure your messaging are not controlled by a corporation.
Comment

Pro
 Peer-to-peer

There is no middleman, all communication happens between the users.
Comment

Con
 High data usage

Antox uses the Tox protocol which is Peer to Peer, so there will be high data usage and battery drain. WiFi only mode is currently recommended for now.
Comment

Con
 Still in early development

Antox is still really early in development, being in beta currently.
Comment

Con
 Battery drain

Antox uses the Tox protocol which is Peer to Peer, so there will be high data usage and battery drain.
Comment

Pro
 Multiple levels of encryption

Encrypted messages can only be read after verification of the computer, 2-factor authentication.
Comment

Pro
 Group document and file sharing

Group chat include collaborative text documents and the ability to share files.
Comment

Pro
 Wide variety of stickers

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Pro
 Integrated social network

Similar to Facebook's timeline.
Comment

Pro
 It's free

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Con
 Users have been concentrated in Japan

Of the 360+ million registered users, the top country is Japan (50 million). Thailand and Indonesia are 2nd and 3rd with 33 and 30 million, respectively, with very small market penetration in the US (10 million, 11th place).
Comment

Con
 Some features do not work if your carrier is not Docomo/Softbank/au/Y!Mobile

Some features (ex: finding a friend by id) require a 18-year-old check. However, The 18-year-old check only works with major Japanese carriers. In particular, it does not work with MVNO carriers.
Comment

Con
 No cloud storage of messages

When you sign in on a device you don't have a message history, unless you performed a backup.
Comment

Con
 Single device

You cannot be signed in to multiple devices on the same account.
Comment

Con
 No web interface

A program or Chromium extension must be installed for the program to be run on computers. A smartphone and phone number are required for registration.
Comment

Con
 No E2E encryption

Data is sent of SSL only, not E2E encrypted.
Comment

Con
 Proprietary (non-free/libre)

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Con
 Hidden max limit of free users per channel

Slack says that their free accounts support an unlimited number of users, which is true. However they don't mention that there is an undisclosed maximum number of users per channel (8462). For a large open source community, this is something to keep in mind.
Comment

Con
 No self-hosting available

If you are worried about third-parties getting access to your data you should consider self-hosting. With self-hosting you are in control over where your data is stored, who has access to it. You will also not be vulnerable to exploits of a third-party provider.
Comment

Con
 Expensive when you need to upgrade

At $6.67 per user / month (or $8 if billed monthly) , Slack is significantly more expensive than the competition if you need features such as unlimited integrations (more than 10) or unlimited message storage (more than 10,000). However, the free version of Slack includes unlimited users. However if you need only unlimited messages you can use storage services like https://slarck.com to upload then browse and search your entire message history, while staying in Slack's free plan. So with a combo of Slack+Slarck this con is not that major.
Comment

Con
 "Native" desktop apps are web apps

While it's great that Slack provides installable apps for Windows, macOS, and Linux, they're just the Slack web app wrapped in Electron shell. This means they don't offer the same level of native UX that a truly native toolkit app would.
Comment

Pro
 Flexible, granular notification settings

Notifications are handled separately for mobile and the web app. You can receive notifications for all messages, just direct messages, or based on filters, and you can have different settings for different channels: you don't have to get notified every time someone pushed to GitHub or every time someone posts to off-topic chat, unless you want to.
Comment

Pro
 Very polished user experience

The entire Slack interface is polished and intuitive to use. There are very few bugs or inconsistencies in the UI and it's very fast to use. There is nothing in particular that is new with Slacks implementation of team chat, but the execution of the groups (called channels), search, external service integration and notifications is close to perfect.
Comment

Pro
 Fantastic search functionality

You can deep search messages, files and snippets. Given Slacks integration into many external services, Slack is good enough to act as the central search interface for your entire team.
Comment

Pro
 Browser support

Support for Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, Opera etc.
Comment

Pro
 Customizable

It look nice and you can customize themes and notifications.
Comment

Pro
 Device sync

If you install Messenger+ on your phone and another device it will sync you conversations. It's available on Android, iOS, Web and Windows.
Comment

Con
 A bit heavy compared to other SMS apps

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Pro
 Video calls 

One-to-one Skype-to-Skype video calls can be made over Wi-Fi or cellular networks. You can also join ongoing group video calls with audio only, but cannot initiate group video from your mobile device.
Comment

Pro
 Cross-platform

There's software for Windows, Mac & Linux and apps are available on iPhone, Android, and Windows Phone.
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Pro
 Bing AI integration

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Con
 Microsoft (Skype's owner) actively assists eavesdroppers

On the other hand, if you lose your copy of one of your conversations, you may be able to get a copy of it from your government with a little bit of luck and a public records request.
Comment

Con
 Obnoxiously large ads

Ads take up over 25% of the usable space.
Comment

Con
 Bloated and unreliable

The official Skype app on Android is unreliable. Messages are often not sent, and are out of sync.
Comment

Con
 Owned by Microsoft

Comment

Con
 Not a feasible alternative as a professional team chat

Missing key features, such as centralized management, centralized billing, data retention policies.
Comment

Con
 Plagued by bugs on all platforms

Crashes and other bugs are prevalent on Android, Windows and other platforms.
Comment

Pro
 Combines cellular and data messaging

You can buy Skype Credit or sign up for a subscription to make calls and send SMS at a reduced price.
Comment

Pro
 Widely used 

Chances are, the person you want to communicate with has a Skype account.
Comment

Pro
 File sharing 

Can send any type of file over Skype.
Comment

Con
 Android version does not support group video

Users on Android are unable to start or join a group video call, something that is a core feature for business's.
Comment

Pro
 Lacks advanced functionality that could get in the way of sharing

Taptalk lacks any additional features and choices that could take away from sending a photo as fast as possible. There's no preview screen that asks to reconfirm sending a message or choosing a filter. As soon as the photo or video is taken, it's sent.
Comment

Pro
 Offers a very quick way of sharing photos and videos

Tap a contact to take a picture, tap and hold a contact to record video. Tapping the screen will allow you to add text to photos and videos just taken. The whole interface consists of a single screen.
Comment

Pro
 One-to-one conversations increase chance of feedback

Limiting conversations to only two parties increases the likelihood of getting a response.
Comment

Con
 No groups

Taptalk only allows one-to-one communications.
Comment

Pro
 Filesharing support

Allows sharing any kind of file over the Internet.
Comment

Pro
 Multiple real-time locationsharing features

The app allow shaking the phone to discover nearby people interested in starting a conversation. The app also allows constantly sharing your location with contacts for a set amount of time.
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Pro
 P2P video

The app has peer to peer video chat.
Comment

Con
 Not a lot of people are using the app

The app has just 35 reviews on the Play store.
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Pro
 Customizable appearance

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Pro
 Video messages 

Videos can be up to six seconds long.
Comment

Pro
 Can communicate outside of Vine 

You can send messages to people outside of Vine.
Comment

Pro
 Video tools 

Vine can capture a video for you and has a grid to help line up shots.
Comment

Con
 No group messaging 

Currently there is no group messaging support built into Vine Messages.
Comment

Pro
 Includes filters

It's possible to change the look of images and videos via filters.
Comment

Pro
 Groups

It's possible to send messages to multiple people at once. Either by setting up a group or by selecting a bunch of people individually. Groups can also be muted if they get too noisy.
Comment

Pro
 Messages self-destruct after they've been viewed

Once a message has been viewed, it gets deleted from Snapchat's servers. Thus, unless a person chooses to save the message manually (a notification will be sent if a user decides to take a screenshot), there will be no trace of it left. It enables a bit more consequence-free, in-the-moment kind of communication to occur.
Comment

Pro
 Generates a contact list

Once the account setup process is complete, Mirage generates a list of people from your contacts that you are most likely interested in sending messages via Mirage.
Comment

Pro
 Interface designed for getting things done quickly

Tap a contact to take a picture, tap and hold a contact to record video. Tapping the screen will allow you to add text to photos and videos just taken. Swiping the screen changes what camera is used. Swiping from the side allows sending text and voice messages. Voice messages are recorded the same way videos are by tapping and holding on a contact just from a different view.
Comment

Con
 Buggy

Messages get lost users have trouble getting their codes to log in and has trouble actually finding the users contacts.
Comment

Pro
 One-to-one conversations increase chance of feedback 

Limiting conversations to only two parties increases the likelihood of getting a response.
Comment

Con
 No groups

Bolt only allows one-to-one communications.
Comment

Con
 Only available in select countries

Bolt is limited to New Zealand, Singapore, and South Africa.
Comment

Pro
 One tap photo and video sharing

Tap a contact to take a picture, tap and hold a contact to record video. Tapping the screen will allow you to add text to photos and videos just taken.
Comment

Con
 Security concerns

In 2013, Snapchat was hacked. As a result phone numbers and usernames of 4.6 million users were published online. That happened after concerns were raised by a security firm weeks before that Snapchat dismissed. Other security concerns were pointed out to Snapchat throughout 2014 including ways that the service could be used for DDOS attacks and how their anti-robot measures can be circumvented. Snapchat has since implemented two-factor authentication.
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Pro
 Includes news

Snapchat includes a Discover page (accessed by two swipes from the right side) where curated list of news and entertainment outlets can put up news from their sites.
Comment

Pro
 Does not get in the way of what it's designed to do

Snapchat is first and foremost a way to share photos so the first thing that the app presents the user with is the camera enabled and ready to take photos. Once photos or videos are taken, it's possible to caption them or draw on them.
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Pro
 Allows sharing photos, videos and texts that self-destruct

Once a message has been viewed, it gets deleted from Snapchat's servers. Thus, unless a person chooses to save the message manually, there will be no trace of it left. It enables a bit more consequence-free, in-the-moment kind of communication to occur. Additionally you can doodle on photos.
Comment

Con
 Non-intuitive UI

The UI space is well used but you'll likely miss a few messages until you understand of the UI works; it's not like the average mobile apps.
Comment

Pro
 Send to receive nudges users to interact

Requiring users to first share a photo or video before they can view photos and videos from others makes it more likely that the other person will respond.
Comment

Pro
 One tap photo and video sharing 

The first thing that the app presents the user with is the camera enabled and ready to take photos and videos. Photos and videos can have text written on them in white letters or drawn on with various colors and brush sizes.
Comment

Con
 Send to receive is unintuitive

Requiring users to first share a photo or video before they can view photos and videos from others can often feel frustrating.
Comment

Con
 User base outside of China is comparatively small

While WeChat has over 400 million users the majority of them are in China. Adoption in other markets has been slow.
Comment

Con
 WeChat complies with China's requirements to hand over data

WeChat confirms it will hand over all private data when requested by the Chinese government
Comment

Pro
 Enables meeting new people

WeChat has a feature that pairs random people for a conversation. It is activated by shaking the phone (requires location sharing to be enabled) and will present a list of people who are doing the same and how far away from you they are. Another feature for meeting new people is the Friend Radar that will display people in your vicinity that can then be added to your contacts list. Finally, there is the People Nearby feature which allows you to send and receive greetings from people in your vicinity.
Comment

Pro
 Can be used as a Walkie Talkie

WeChat has push-to-talk functionality that can be used both one-on-one and in groups.
Comment

Pro
 Friends can be added by scanning a QR code

WeChat generates a QR code for each user that other can be scanned to add them as a friend.
Comment

Pro
 Filters for photos

WeChat includes a collections of filters that can be applied to photos to change how they look.
Comment

Pro
 Can be used to exchange random messages with users anonymously

WeChat includes a Drift Bottle features that's a lot like a message-in-a-bottle. Users can send and discover anonymous text and voice messages to and from random WeChat users.
Comment

Pro
 Dual SIM support

The app is designed from the ground up with support for 2 SIM cards in mind.
Comment

Pro
 Message scheduling

Allows the scheduling of messages in advance.
Comment

Con
 Settings menu is barebones

In addition to visual customization the app allows turning sounds, notifications and vibrations on an off. That's about it.
Comment

Pro
 Pushbullet integration

Comment

Pro
 Per-contact customization

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Pro
 Very few bugs, good dev support

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Pro
 Fast load times and transitions

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Pro
 Great-looking material design

The app follows Material Design guidelines very closely.
Comment

Pro
 Video shooting is easy

A swipe down from the main screen of Qik and a tap on the record button will start recording a video that can be up to 42-seconds long. Once recorded the video can be sent to anyone in the address book.
Comment

Con
 Limited to contacts in the address book

It's only possible to send video to contacts in the address book.
Comment

Pro
 Allows canned video responses

Up to 12 five-second videos can be recorded and used as a quick way to respond.
Comment

Con
 Walled garden 

Can't communicate with people outside of Instagram.
Comment

Pro
 Video & photo messages 

Photos have to be cropped to be square.
Comment

Pro
 Group messages 

With up to 15 people.
Comment

Pro
 Filters  

That can be applied to photos and videos.
Comment

Pro
 Read and send texts from all your Android devices + Web

MightyText syncs your SMS between your phone, tablet and the web interface. This means you can now read and send SMS from whatever device is most convenient at the time.
Comment

Pro
 Easy to get going as it uses your current phone number & SMS

MightyText uses SMS, so the people you message don't need to download the app in order for you to message them. This makes the transition from plain SMS to MightyText very easy and unlike Google Voice you keep your existing number.
Comment

Pro
 Great Gmail plugin

The gtext Gmail Plugin lets you both manage and send texts from within gmail. Texts are labeled and searchable within gmail and you can message contacts just like its a Gchat.
Comment

Pro
 Desktop/Tablet UI optimised for making texting faster

MightyText has a special view on their desktop and Tablets that make participating in multiple conversations simultaneously very easy.
Comment

Con
 Uses SMS for all messages

MightyText does not support data messages, so you will still be billed as per your carrier rates for every SMS you send.
Comment

Pro
 Gives useful desktop notifications from your phone

MightyText gives you desktop notifications for new texts and calls with the ability to quickly reply from your computer. There is also a really cool feature that shows you your current battery life on your phone as well as low battery alerts no matter where your phone is.
Comment

Pro
 Easy sharing of photos & videos from phone

Using the toggle to turn on the photo and video sharing feature allows for sharing of both file types easily.
Comment

Pro
 Instant sync & easy sharing of photos & videos from phone

Photos and videos can be sync'd from ones PC to phone as well as easily shared through ones phone. This makes for a convenient way to access all of ones photos/videos in order to always have the accessable to be sent in messages.
Comment

Pro
 Easily send group messages

Users can add multiple contacts to a group message that gets sent to all recipients at once when sent, which is great for times when a user is trying to coincide info with a bunch of people such as a group going out for the evening or work related exercises.
Comment

Pro
 Match the rest of ones device with themes

Users can theme MightyText to their liking, making a more customized looking app that can fit with other themed UI elements of the OS.
Comment

Pro
 Easily schedule messages

Users can set up schedules for their messages for when they want one to go out but know they won't be close to their phone or just want to have a particular time to send something without having to do it at that specific time.
Comment

Pro
 Text directly from Facebook

Using a Chrome extension users can send texts directly from within Facebook on ones desktop.
Comment

Pro
 Sleek design

Clean, minimalist design.
Comment

Pro
 Allows responding to SMS without opening the app 

When a new sms is received, a window will pop up that has the message and allows answering it from there, without having to open the app.
Comment

Pro
 Can schedule messages

SMS & MMS can be set to go out at certain times.
Comment

Pro
 Personalization

Can change colors of apps UI and customize for specific conversations.
Comment

Con
 Only SMS / MMS

Lacks data messaging.
Comment

Pro
 Works with Pushbullet for SMS replies

Comment

Pro
 Automatically switches between SMS and IM

invi automatically detects if you're talking to someone who's on invi, and switches between SMS and IM automatically to accommodate. That way, you get fully-featured chats when you're talking to someone who has invi, but you also get a beautiful, seamless experience when simply sending SMS messages.
Comment

Pro
 Share and consume rich media without leaving the app

The killer feature of invi is the ability to consume media in the app. For example if someone sends you a link to a Youtube video invi automatically turns it into a playable widget. Not only can you view the media in the app, but you can also discuss the videos, photos etc while they are playing.
Comment

Pro
 Beautiful interface

The apps design has a level of care and detail put into it that is rare on Android apps. The home screen is not only beautiful, but shows useful information such as the last message sent, and the status of the person. The messaging interface itself is very clean and useful. As well as the conversation history it tells you if the recipient has read your last message, is currently reading the conversation or is replying. This makes conversations in invi very fluid as you always know the status of the recipient.
Comment

Con
 No group chat

Comment

Pro
 Makes it easy and fun to share stuff

invi makes sharing easy and fun - great to enrich conversations with stuff like YouTube clips, photos, games, web articles etc.
Comment

Pro
 Uses phone numbers for contacts

Invi uses your contacts phone numbers, not a app specific username or email address. This has pros and cons. On the upside it's very simple to get started as it automatically adds all your contacts who have invi installed, and if you text someone who doesn't have invi it will simply go to their normal inbox. This makes it very easy to integrate invi into your existing workflow. On the downside you cannot chat to someone if you don't have their number (gchat friends for example).
Comment

Pro
 Certain apps can be used in split screen

A collection of apps can be used in split screen view with the messenger. These are apps designed or ported specifically for invi. Some of the apps included allow browsing sites like reddit, 9gag, buzzfeed or playing games like 2048 while using the app.
Comment

Con
 You can only search contacts and not messages

Comment

Con
 Early in development

This app still has some rough edges and missing features (like group chat).
Comment

Con
 Registration difficult for those without a phone #

For those that do not want to share their phone number or just do not have one to share, registration for invi can not be done. This means the app cannot be registered on a tablet or media device (like an iPOD touch) unless there is a number to give, of which neither of those devices when used by themselves have.
Comment

Con
 Android only

The many features cannot be used with people who aren't on Android, and you cannot login from the web.
Comment

Pro
 Supports older devices

Invi is available on Android 3.0+ and a minimum screen resolution of 480×800.
Comment

Pro
 No central server required

If there is a wired and/or wireless connection between the caller and receiver, you can make a call.
Comment

Pro
 Cross platform support (computers, smartphones and televisions)

Works with devices running Android, Android TV, GNU/Linux, iOS, macOS and Windows operating systems.
Comment

Pro
 Second phone number

It offers phone numbers from USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Belgium and the Netherlands. You can get a second phone number to hide your primary number.
Comment

Pro
 Recall sent messages

Recall messages after they have been sent.
Comment

Pro
 End-to-end encryption

It supports end-to-end encryption.
Comment

Pro
 Do not require your phone number to register

You can register an account without your phone number or email.
Comment

Pro
 Private Vault

You can store your private photos & videos, passwords, personal contacts, confidential documents, notes, or secret diary in the private vault.
Comment

Pro
 Can send self-destruct messages

It is capable of sending messages that delete itself after being read.
Comment
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