When comparing Delta Chat vs Element (formerly Riot), the Slant community recommends Element (formerly Riot) for most people. In the question“What are the best cross-platform encrypted messaging apps?” Element (formerly Riot) is ranked 1st while Delta Chat is ranked 5th. The most important reason people chose Element (formerly Riot) is:
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.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro No phone number required
Pro Open Source
Pro No registration required
Pro PGP-encrypted via Autocrypt Guideline
Pro Uses well-established protocols
Everyone knows/uses Email.
Pro Distributed architecture
There is no central Delta Chat server.
Pro You can forward a message from one chat to another
Pro You can share a document, a file, an image, an audio even with applications outside Delta Chat
Pro Multi account
Pro Disappearing messages
It has messages that disappear automatically.
Pro Independent video chat
You can use Jitsi Meet or other providers.
Pro You can reply privately
When you are in a group and want to comment privately on a person's sentence, press and hold on the sentence and click on reply privately. The user will be notified with the quoted and commented sentence. If he clicks on the quoted sentence it will take him to the group and to the position where he wrote this sentence.
Pro You can create broadcast lists
It will be present in the next version.
Pro Bots can be created
Without needing to have a space on a server, just a simple PC and an email for the bot.
Pro You can send stickers and animated stickers
Pro You can decide to set a limit for the size of messages that will be downloaded automatically
Pro You can set a ringtone for each chat
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.
Pro Markdown support
Code snippets in chats can be highlighted with Markdown.
Pro Simple interface
Element has a very simple interface, adding the ability for more inexperienced users to use it.
Pro VOIP and Videoconferencing
Pro Supports encryption
Element allows for fully encrypted text, voice, and video chatting.
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.
Pro Decentralized
An open network for secure, decentralized communication.
Pro Self-hosting and federated network
Pro Libre/open source
Pro Search
Search messages in your current room, or all the rooms you're in. Not subject to a message history limit like Slack.
Pro Cross platform
Web browser
Linux
OS X
Windows
Android
iOS
Pro Large existing community
With public rooms for many people, and you can create your own and let people from the community join.
Pro Etherpad real-time document collaboration
An easy to activate integration that allows multiple authors to edit a document simultaneously.
Pro File Sharing
Pro Supports text, voice, video
Cons
Con Email providers "recipents" per day limitation
Unless you control or run your own email server.