Signal
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An open-source messaging app emphasizing privacy with encrypted communication. Share texts, calls, photos, and videos without ads or trackers, available across major platforms. Developed by Signal Technology Foundation and praised globally for security measures.
Cost / License
- Free
- Open Source (GPL-3.0)
Application typeApplication types
Platforms
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Android
- iPhone
- iPad
- Snapcraft
- Android Auto
- Flathub
- F-Droid
- Ubuntu
- Debian
- OpenAPK
Features
Highlights All activities
Signal News & Activities
Recent News
- Mauricio B. Holguin published news article about Signal
- Mauricio B. Holguin published news article about Signal
- Mauricio B. Holguin published news article about Signal
Recent activities
How to live without Google
For many the Internet is Google: Search, mail, videos, web browser, cloud services, mobile OS, etc. – Google is the major player in all these fields. But Google uses all data it gathers across its services to post targeted ads, and to massively profit from the data many share so freely with the Internet giant. Your personal data can also be subpoenaed by lawyers, including for civil cases like divorce. Google answered over 200,000 such data requests in 2020 alone.
More and more people are also realizing the risk of relying on one company for so many personal services. So, the time has come to stop this unlimited data mining and to take back our right to privacy. Here's a quick guide as to how you can use the Internet without sharing all your data with Google.
The ultimate F-Droid setup (300+ Apps)
WHAT IS F-DROID ?
F-Droid is an awesome app repository for FOSS (Free & Open Source Software) android apps. From productivity apps to games, f-droid has (almost) everything you need.
Hope you will discover useful FOSS apps to free your phone from Big Tech^^
REPOSITORIES :
This list includes apps from the official f-droid repo but also from IzzyOnDroid and some customs repositories which will be always linked so you can add them easily.
CATEGORIES :
F-Droid clients
Utilities
Social & Communication / 8 subcategories
Health / 7 subcategories
Customization / 3 subcategories
Gaming / 3 subcategories
Internet / 6 subcategories
Productivity / 15 subcategories
Privacy / 5 subcategories
Security / 4 subcategories
Media apps / 10 subcategories
If you care about privacy check :
Privacy focused OS for everyone
My privacy and user friendly setup
For more FOSS Android apps check : Beautiful Open Source Apps for Android
DISCLAIMERS :
Adding custom repo might not be as secure as the official one so I'm not responsable if you encounter any problems with them ! I encourage you to do your own research about it !
Also while open source is great for privacy and security it is not perfect. So keep that in mind before downloading any apps.
Most apps that I've listed are privacy friendly but some might be not be perfectly private and secure. I again encourage you to do your own research about them.
I am not a privacy and security expert. I'm also don't consider myself as a developper so I do not have any technical knowledge and so I didn't look into any source code of any apps in this list !
English is not my mother tongue ^^'
The Windows setup for everyone (with freeware only) Will make Windows suck less
This is the apps for Windows 11 that I would recommend to anyone who just got a PC !
The same list for
macOS :
Linux kernel (GUI apps only) :
Official Links
Install from the command line
winget install -e --id OpenWhisperSystems.Signalbrew install --cask signalflatpak install flathub org.signal.Signal
Developed by
Signal Technology Foundation Licensing
Open Source (GPL-3.0) and Free product.Rating
Average rating of 4.5Alternatives
265 alternatives listedNews
28 news article related to SignalBadge
Get an embeddable badge for SignalSupported Languages
AlternativeTo Categories
Social & Communications, Security & Privacy, File Sharing, Video & MoviesApple AppStore
- Updated
- 4.73 avg rating
Comments and Reviews
I love Signal because of the automatic end-to-end encryption. Even though Whatsapp now has that, too, I still prefer Signal because it's more transparent about key handling. I would love them to add an opportunity to use it without a phone number. This is the only thing I don't like because you can't stay anonymous when using Signal.
I have never heard about it! But i'm gonna try it
Regardless of who endorses him, Moxie is hostile to anyone that threatens his control over the project. He also has a very high opinion of the Google Play store despite that coming with Google's ToS and Google Play Services. He does everything he can to shutdown alternative modes of distribution. I would read this before installing and contributing to Signal's userbase, especially if open source and/or F-Droid are things you care about.
I am not an expert but i appreciate the thought that you put into your criticism. Most importantly i appreciate the alternatives that you listed. I'm checking into Tox right now.
Technically, F-droid is less secure than Google Play. The most secure way to download would be from the source at Github.
If someone is worried about Google Play, just load GrapheneOS or CalyxOS on their Android.
F-Droid is not a binary distribution, like Google Play. It builts releases from sources - from GitHub, GitLab etc etc. So it is much safer than Google Play.
There's regular upgrades and it feels like they actually care about security. It also works on all of my devices, and in more recent times they have enabled message syncing with new devices from conversation backups.
Not a fully open source and decentralized messaging. Just use tox or any soft with recent updates & P2P messaging. Maybe Retroshare or others too. . Edit 11/08/26: My bad, it's not fully decentralized from what i understand. But it's open source. From what i knew, it has been partially closed source before and most probably opened fully it's sources throughout the years. A quick search helped by ai directed me to this post, who seems very well done by proton (same enterprise as proton vpn/mail/etc ...) \[https://proton.me/blog/is-signal-safe\](https://proton.me/blog/is-signal-safe) Other alternatives who seems worth checking out to escape the centralized open source (and not free) tech: Session (seems to be a good fork of signal), Matrix (Check element also, who uses matrix but has more of a centralized and simple approach). Basically, just tinker and use the filters from the alternative to website to find an app alternative to signal with theses filters: all open source, f-droid, linux, android, iphone, mac, windows. And always be careful that even if it's open source, it doesn't mean it's automatically libre and decentralized. And yes, i know, the apps cannot be filtered with that many filters on alternative to. And yes, it's a shame but, as frank sinatra and the frenchies once said: that's life ! For what is worth, i still think it must be better for the security of everyone to have a decentralized AND libre AND open source messaging. A centralized mean of communication is always a risk, what if Trump or any other chief (dictators, elected or not) simply decide to seize the servers, even if they don't fully have the rights to do so ? Viva libre, viva decentralization, libre internet shall never die !
I’ve been using Signal for years, and I still think it’s the gold standard for private messaging. What I love most is its simplicity—no gimmicks, no ads, just rock-solid end-to-end encryption that works effortlessly. I also deeply appreciate Signal’s commitment to open-source transparency and its refusal to compromise user data.
That said, I’ve recently started experimenting with ETHOS for quick, ephemeral conversations. What fascinates me about ETHOS is its radically different approach: no phone number, no account, and no sign-up—just a browser-based, quantum-safe chat that starts with a shared "peer ticket." It’s not a Signal replacement (and it’s still experimental), but for situations where I want to chat without linking anything to my identity, it’s an intriguing tool to have in my back pocket. For my daily driver, though? Signal remains unbeatable.
I don't see ETHOS in the alternativeto.net list. Do you have a link?
https://arstechnica.com/security/2026/01/signal-creator-moxie-marlinspike-wants-to-do-for-ai-what-he-did-for-messaging/
Reduce security and eliminate privacy?
“Trust me, bro, i just like need your mobile number for privacy”
Sus
Not having my mobile number is better privacy