The Best Franz AlternativesTop Instant Messengers and other similar apps like Franz

Franz is described as 'Free messaging app / former Emperor of Austria and combines chat & messaging services into one application. Franz currently supports Slack, WhatsApp, WeChat, HipChat and many more. You can download Franz for Mac, Windows & Linux' and is a very popular instant messenger in the social & communications category. There are more than 50 alternatives to Franz for a variety of platforms, including Mac, Windows, Linux, Android and Web-based apps. The best Franz alternative is Rambox, which is free. Other great apps like Franz are Station, Beeper, Ferdium and ElectronIM.

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Alternatives list

  1. Rambox icon

    Rambox

     139 likes

    A digital workspace organizer that allows you to unify as many applications as you want, all in one place. It is perfect for those who care about productivity while working with many business and personal apps.

    35 Rambox alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Snapcraft
    Rambox screenshot 1
     
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    9
    Rambox vs Franz Comments
    Top Positive Comment
    syntax
    10

    Very similar concept. Rambox is also open-source and supports more applications.

    javaorca
    Positive
    -1

    Doesn't have problems with notifications for whatsapp and google chat as Franz has

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    RemovedUser
    Positive
    -3

    It's better, open-source, and cheaper.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 9 comments
    • Rambox is Freemium and ProprietaryFranz is Freemium and Open Source
    • Rambox is CustomizableFranz is not according to our users
  2. Station icon

    Station

     114 likes

    Station is the first open-source smart browser for busy people. A single place for all of your web applications.

    27 Station alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Microsoft Edge
    • Google Chrome
    • Brave
    Station screenshot 1
     
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    4
    Station vs Franz Comments
    Guest
    Positive
    3

    Beautiful design and more easy to configure, right. A lot of apps, right. But, no languages support (only english) and really not consume less ram. On my test : 4 services connected on both (Franz and Station), Station takes about 2,1 Go of Ram ! Franz consume 700 mo. In comparision, I have also 30 opened tabs in Chrome and it consume about 1 Go of my Ram.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    400+ apps. Very modern design. It has also a notifications manager.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Had the services I wanted that Franz didn't, even with its recipes some apps were impossible to add.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 4 comments
    • Station is Free and Open SourceFranz is Freemium and Open Source
  4. Beeper icon

    Beeper

     74 likes

    Access all your messaging in one place with a universal app connecting WhatsApp, Messenger, and more across Android, iOS, and desktop. Enjoy real-time sync and intuitive management.

    22 Beeper alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • Chrome OS
    Beeper screenshot 1
     
  5. Ad
  6. Ferdium icon

    Ferdium

     66 likes

    All your services in one place, built by the community.

    29 Ferdium alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • PortableApps.com
    • Flathub
    • Snapcraft
    Services
     
    |
    2
    Ferdium vs Franz Comments
    marcolopes
    Positive
    2

    I tested a bunch of them after too many unsolved problems with Franz...

    All of them FAILED on memory usage and sluggish performance, except for Ferdium!

    Been using it for the past years almost without any problem (except few hours downtime when the server was down - Ferdium should not need a connection to a server to work!)

    Galactic Man
    Positive
    1

    It's Ferdi after the Ferdi developer threw a wobbly and walked away (Ferdi being forked from Franz after THAT developer started pricing a little too aggressively). If you liked Ferdi you'll like Ferdium 'cos it's the same, innit. Ferdium seems to be still getting updates but its future is anyone's guess at this point.

    • Ferdium is Free and Open SourceFranz is Freemium and Open Source
    • Ferdium is Lightweight and Privacy focusedFranz is not according to our users
  7. ElectronIM icon

    ElectronIM

     6 likes

    Free open source Electron based multi instant messaging (IM) client.

    Combine all your IM applications (or whatever you want) in a single browser (Electron) window.

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Twitter in ElectronIM
     
  8. Freeter icon

    Freeter

     30 likes

    The smartest way to work on your computer. Freeter is a productivity app that allows you to gather everything you need for work in one place, organized by projects and workflows, and have a quick access to them.

    285 Freeter alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Freeter screenshot 1
     
  10. IM+ icon

    IM+

     110 likes

    One app for all your messaging.

    WhatsApp, Messenger, Telegram, Skype, Zoom, Google Hangouts, Gmail, Slack, Facebook, Facebook Pages, Instagram, Twitter, Outlook, SnapMap, WeChat, LinkedIn, HipChat, and ChatWork.

    95 IM+ alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Mac
    IM+ screenshot 1
     
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    1
    IM+ vs Franz Comments
    Guest
    Negative
    -1

    Does not support the same range of messengers

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • IM+ is Freemium and ProprietaryFranz is Freemium and Open Source
  11. Ripcord icon

    Ripcord

     30 likes

    Ripcord is a desktop chat client for group-centric services like Slack and Discord. It provides a traditional compact desktop interface designed for power users. It's not built on top of web browser technology: it responds quickly to input, sips gently from computer...

    167 Ripcord alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Discord
    • Slack
    Ripcord screenshot 1
     
  12. Empathy icon

    Empathy

     157 likes

    Empathy is a messaging program which supports text, voice, video chat, and file transfers over many different protocols. You can tell it about your accounts on all those services and do all your chatting within one application.

    135 Empathy alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • BSD
    Empathy screenshot 1
     
  13. Hamsket icon

    Hamsket

     20 likes

    Hamsket is a fork of Rambox that was started when Rambox moved from being totally free to a "freemium" model.

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Hamsket screenshot 1
     
    |
    1
    Hamsket vs Franz Comments
    RemovedUser
    Positive
    0

    This is the tracker-free version of Rambox which is the best alternative for Franz

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • Hamsket is Free and Open SourceFranz is Freemium and Open Source
  14. Wavebox icon

    Wavebox

     41 likes

    Productivity browser featuring unified webmail, website, and web app management, isolated multi-account support, vertical sidebar with grouping, memory-saving tab sleeping, app-to-app linking, built-in chat and screenshare, collaboration workspaces, and strong security.

    31 Wavebox alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    Browse the app directory
     
  15. matterbridge icon

    matterbridge

     6 likes

    Bridges between a growing number of protocols: mattermost, IRC, gitter, xmpp, slack, discord, telegram, rocketchat, steam, twitch, ssh-chat, zulip, whatsapp, keybase, matrix, microsoft teams, and more with REST API (mattermost not required!).

    Cost / License

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Self-Hosted
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Android Tablet
    • BSD
    • Flathub
    matterbridge screenshot 1
     
12 of 71 Franz alternatives