The 8 Best Messenger Apps Compared to Facebook & WhatsApp
Are you looking for the best messenger apps? Nowadays, the majority of people rely on WhatsApp or Facebook for chatting.
According to Oberlo, over 300 million people use WhatsApp in India and 53% of users use the messaging app in the US.
But what if other top messaging apps give more features? Would you try them?
Why should I try other messaging apps when I am happy with Facebook and WhatsApp?
The Facebook mobile app asks you to download a separate Messenger app to chat with your friends. WhatsApp doesn’t have an equivalent PC version. Sure, it gives an option of WhatsApp Web. But for that, you have to keep your phone connected to the same network and near your PC. It doesn’t seem that comfortable.
Here we come up with a handpicked collection of messaging apps that we tried and tested.
Below is the list of best messenger apps that are more convenient to use on different devices and best when compared to Facebook and WhatsApp.
Running short in time? Have a look at these apps in one go-
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8 Free Best Messenger Apps Alternate to Facebook & WhatsApp
The majority of the apps have equivalent PC versions that synchronize across all your devices. And not just personal, some of the apps below are perfect for business needs, and international business calls, and are the best alternatives to Facebook and WhatsApp.
1. TamTam Messenger (Our #1 Pick)
TamTam is the best free messenger app for Android and iOS users. You can easily connect with your family and friends across the globe via chat, high-quality voice calls and HD video calls. You can create a group with no limit on the number of members.
The app encrypts all your chats and messages to keep the conversation secure. The encryption algorithm used by TamTam is a blend of their privacy protocol, along with well-known protection algorithms. Usually, free apps show tons of annoying ads. However, TamTam provides an ad-free experience and works fine even with a slow network connection.
You don’t need to create a login ID or password; just a phone number will let you use the app. TamTam makes chatting more fun and more relatable through its animated sticker collection to share your emotion or mood.
Features of TamTam:
- FREE chat, voice calls, and video calls with no ads to disturb you.
- Share your mood with Fun stickers and emojis.
- Group chats with your friends and family with unlimited group members.
- Use TamTam Channels to match your interest where you can become a member. You can either subscribe to existing channels or create your own.
- Encryption on all your chats.
- Seamless web app and PC client– You don’t need your mobile phone connected to the same network to use TamTam on your PC.
- TamTam provides APIs to create a chatbot to integrate into business applications.
TamTam, being available on any platform, certainly is the best messenger app you can rely on. Our whole team is using TamTam now, and there are a lot of reasons that this app is undoubtedly our favorite one.
2. Telegram– Best Free Messenger App
Telegram is a powerful, fast, and reliable messaging app used by over 5 million users. The app synchronizes all your messages across all your devices quickly.
Once you set up your Telegram account, chatting with your friends or a group chat would be a fun experience. With 256-bit symmetric AES encryption, all your conversations, and media files will be secure.
Telegram is a free messaging app with no ads and no subscription fees. As it uses a cloud-based platform, there is no limit to the media file or chats.
Features:
- Fast, secure, and free chatting experience.
- Group chats with up to 200,000 members.
- Faster synchronization of chats across all your devices.
- Unlimited storage for media files.
- Share files and documents of any type.
- For more privacy, self-destruct your messages at a particular timer.
- Enjoy chatting with emojis and smooth UI.
- APIs to integrate into your business tools.
Telegram is suitable for sharing study notes, and large files with a group of people.
3. twinme
twinme gives you a great experience of chatting, voice, and video calling. It’s a secure, free, and easy-to-use messenger app for Android and iOS. You don’t need a phone number, email id, or any other social id to create an account on twinme.
Once you install the application, you can scroll through your contacts and start chatting. It’s up to you what name and profile picture you want to display on your profile.
twinme allows you to create a ‘White list’ in which you can add selected contacts whom you want to get in touch with you. You can easily revoke the contact you no longer want to chat with.
Features:
- Highly secure and fast messenger without any need for a phone number or email ID.
- Customize your appearance to each of your contacts.
- Easy and high-quality voice and video calls.
- Secure conversation via end-to-end encryption.
- White list of contacts who you allow to chat with you.
- Free app with no ads.
twinme is one of the best secure messenger apps that doesn’t store any of your information and contact information.
4. Viber Messenger
Being versatile, Viber makes its entry to the list of best messenger apps for smartphones and desktops. Over one billion users worldwide are using this app. Viber is a free and secure app to chat, voice calls, or video calls with people in any corner of the globe.
Viber synchronizes your chat across all your smartphones and PC applications. You can easily share high-quality media files and group chats with your friends.
The “Viber out” feature allows you to make international calls at a cheaper rate. Viber is a free app, but it contains ads.
Features of Viber:
- Fun chat and group chat experience via stickers, emojis, and gifs.
- High-quality voice and video calls across the globe.
- End-to-End encryption over your chats and calls.
- Verified and trusted contacts by secret key exchange.
- Viber out feature of cheaper international calls on a landline.
- Self-destruct your secret chat.
- Smartphones, as well as PC applications.
- Viber Business solution for business chats and more.
Even though it’s a free app, there are some In-App purchases to use advanced features. Viber Out feature has credit plans starting from $9.99 to $24 for specific minutes assigned or $5.99/month.
5. Skype
Skype by Microsoft is one of the best messenger apps for personal as well as business purposes. You can chat with people on Skype and connect with them via free voice and video calls.
Skype has the best group video chat feature, which many companies use to host online meetings. You can connect with your friends and family members from all over the globe.
The app is available for smartphones and PC. It has a good collection of gifs to share your emotions. All your chat history and video calls are secure via Skype’s encryption.
Features:
- Secure chats and calls.
- High-quality audio and HD video calling feature.
- Call recording and screen sharing features.
- Available on all devices with faster synchronization.
- Low-price international phone calls via Skype credit.
- Get a local phone number and send a text SMS via Skype.
Skype is a powerful app for your business and personal use. You can subscribe to Skype to get a local phone number and to use advanced features.
6. imo
imo is yet another free messenger app for chatting and calling. The app makes text or voice chat faster and easier.
You can make group videos and audio chats for up to 20 members. imo has optimized multimedia sharing features for document, images, audio, and video sharing. It is a cloud-based app, where you can back up all your chat history and media on the imo cloud.
Features:
- Faster and secure chats, voice, and video calls.
- Multimedia support and cloud backup.
- Available on smartphones and PC.
- Customize your profile with hundreds of avatars and background images.
- Connect with contacts from your address book via your phone number.
- International mobile phone calls or landline calls with cheaper rates.
imo has additional features like imo Big Group, imo zones, imo live streaming, chat rooms, and more. It has some In-App purchases.
7. Line
Line makes its entry to the list of free messenger apps for Android and iOS. The app allows you to send messages, and make voice or video calls with people across the globe.
Line’s multimedia feature allows you to share images, videos, audio, files, stickers, and location via chat. The app’s latest features involve group video calls with up to 200 friends and polls to see people’s opinions.
Line has a smart wallet for secure payments.
Features:
- Free chat, voice, and video calls across the globe.
- International calls at a cheaper rate with 5 minutes of free talk time.
The app is free, but it contains ads. If you want to use an ad-free international call feature, you can buy a 30-day plan or credits.
8. WeChat
WeChat has been helping people stay connected with friends and family worldwide for over a decade. The app is one of the best messenger apps to chat, make voice calls, and video calls.
WeChat is not just a messenger; it offers many more features like a WeChat Pay wallet, daily news, and updates. It has a touch of social media called Moments where you can post stories and pictures.
Billions of users are using WeChat to get in touch with friends and family. It has some In-App purchases to unlock additional features.
Features:
- Easy, Secure, and high-quality voice and video calls.
- Group chats with up to 200 members.
- Multimedia sharing and location sharing.
- Social Media feature.
- Custom stickers and emojis to send via chat
- Encryption for all your chats.
- WeChat pay wallet, games, Daily news, and more such features.
WeChat is available on smartphones, PC, and Web versions.
What Other Best Messenger Apps Are You Using?
So, what other best messaging apps do you know? Which is your favorite messenger app, and why?
You must already be comfortable with your current messenger apps. But the list of messaging apps shared above has impressive features and might be best for work purposes too.
Do let us know your thoughts and share your suggestions too. We would love to hear that.
TechyOceans is a tech community blog for tech lovers. The objective of the blog is to educate users with the latest technology.
