Telegram Alternatives

Telegram is described as 'Experience instant messaging with remarkable speed and robust security. Join massive group chats or channels. Enjoy free and advanced features' and is a leading instant messenger in the social & communications category. There are more than 100 alternatives to Telegram for a variety of platforms, including Android, Windows, Mac, Linux and iPhone apps. The best Telegram alternative is Signal, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like Telegram are Element, Tox, Wire and Matrix.

filter to find the best alternatives

Telegram alternatives are mainly Instant Messengers, but if you're looking for Group Chat Apps or Encrypted Chat Apps you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Android + Free. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Telegram.
Telegram iconTelegram
  2051
  • ...

Experience instant messaging with remarkable speed and robust security. Join massive group chats or channels. Enjoy free and advanced features.

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Telegram alternatives page was last updated Jun 13, 2025
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  1. Plus Messenger icon

    Plus Messenger

     18 likes
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    Plus Messenger is an messaging app that uses Telegram 's API. Plus Messenger has all of Telegram's features plus themes. Plus Messenger is free for android devices.

    58 Plus Messenger alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android
    • iPhone
    Plus Messenger screenshot 1

    Plus Messenger Features

    1.  Self Destructing Messages
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  End-to-End Encryption
    4.  Supports Telegram
    5.  Based on phone number
    6.  File Storage
    7.  Telegram
    8.  Voice Chat
    9.  Secure Chat

    Plus Messenger VS Telegram

     
    Comments about Plus Messenger as an Alternative to Telegram
    K0RR
    Negative Mar 12, 2022
    1

    They are violating Telegram's license - Plus Messenger is a Telegram fork so the code needs to be public.

    Telegram Icon
    Plus Messenger icon

    • Most users think Plus Messenger is a great Telegram alternative.

    • Plus Messenger is Free and ProprietaryTelegram is Freemium and Proprietary
  2. nheko icon

    nheko

     5 likes
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    The motivation behind the project is to provide a native desktop app for Matrix that feels more like a mainstream chat app (Element, Telegram etc) and less like an IRC client.

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    Start

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  End-to-End Encryption
    2.  No Tracking
    3.  Decentralized
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  VoiP Calls
    7.  Support for @mentions
    8.  Matrix Protocol
    9.  Voice Chat
    10.  QT Based

    nheko VS Telegram

     
  4. SchildiChat icon

    SchildiChat

     14 likes
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    SchildiChat is a Matrix client based on Element with a more traditional instant messaging experience.

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • Flathub
    • F-Droid
    • Flatpak
    SchildiChat screenshot 1
    SchildiChat screenshot 2
    SchildiChat screenshot 3

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  End-to-End Encryption
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  Screen Sharing
    4.  Matrix Protocol

    SchildiChat VS Telegram

     
  5. Ad
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    Talkroute icon
    Talkroute

    Talkroute turns ANY Phone into a Virtual Phone System!

    Talkroute is a virtual PBX phone system dedicated to giving entrepreneurs and small business owners the tools they need to run their business efficiently, professionally and...

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  6. Off-the-Record Messaging icon

    Off-the-Record Messaging

     47 likes
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    Off-the-Record (OTR) Messaging allows you to have private conversations over any instant messaging (MSN,Gtalk, Facebook and so on) by providing encryption, authentication, deniability, perfect forward...

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • CA flagCanada

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Java Mobile
    Discontinued

    The last version is from March 2016.

    Off-the-Record Messaging Features

    1.  Private Chat

    Off-the-Record Messaging VS Telegram

     
    Comments about Off-the-Record Messaging as an Alternative to Telegram
    arndtadler
    Negative May 10, 2018
    1

    OTR is a chat protocol and not a specific app.

    Telegram Icon
    Off-the-Record Messaging icon
    • Off-the-Record Messaging is Free and Open SourceTelegram is Freemium and Proprietary
  7. Tinode icon

    Tinode

     10 likes
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    Fully open source instant messaging server and clients. No proprietary components or non-free dependencies. Backend in pure Go (GPL 3.0), with a command-line administration tool in python + gRPC. Clients for Android, iPhone, and Web - ReactJS (all licensed under Apache 2.0).

    172 Tinode alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Self-Hosted
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    iOS client

    Tinode Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Support for MarkDown
    3.  Real time collaboration
    4.  VoiP Calls
    5.  No Tracking
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  Command line interface
    8.  React

    Tinode VS Telegram

     
  8. Unigram icon

    Unigram

     10 likes
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    The Telegram client optimized for the Windows 10 platform, built by the community for the community.

    36 Unigram alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Windows Mobile
    • Windows Phone
    • Xbox
    One-to-one chat in Unigram on Desktop

    Unigram Features

    1.  Supports Telegram
    2.  Cloud Sync
    3.  Telegram
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Channels
    7.  Anonymous Secure Filesharing
    8.  Stickers
    9.  Chat Bot

    Unigram VS Telegram

     
  10. Telegram Web A icon

    Telegram Web A

     4 likes
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    This project won the first prize 🥇 at Telegram Lightweight Client Contest and now is an official Telegram client available to anyone at web.telegram.org/a.

    55 Telegram Web A alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
    Telegram Web A screenshot 1

    Telegram Web A Features

    1.  Telegram

    Telegram Web A VS Telegram

     
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