Although chat apps have made communication easier than ever, choosing between them is difficult. Before downloading an app, it is best to ensure that it does not take up too much space on your phone and meets your needs. Ask yourself these questions first:
- Does this app allow me to video and voice chat?
- Can I use it on my desktop?
- Isn’t it filled with annoying ads?
- Can I set up a chat group?
- Will I be able to send and receive any files?
- How secure will this app be?
- Is it free to use?
As a freelancer and digital nomad, I need to connect with clients, friends, and family worldwide. I have used almost all the important chat applications. Of course, your needs may differ from mine, but the desire to connect with the people who matter to you is essentially the same.
So let’s take a look at the best chat apps this year.
1. WhatsApp – has the most users around the world
Most of you have probably heard of WhatsApp before. WhatsApp allows you to make voice and video calls and send instant messages for free through a simple and understandable user interface on iOS and Android devices.
You can use WhatsApp Web on any browser or even download the desktop version for Windows and Mac.
Since most people use WhatsApp more than any other chat app, your friends and colleagues already have the app installed. If someone is saved as a contact on your phone, you will be automatically connected to this person as long as the person in question has an account.
Select WhatsApp if…
Do you have a special person you would like to talk to many times? If you are using an Android device, WhatsApp allows you to create a direct shortcut to talk to a person or group.
- You need to connect with a large group of people. With the ability to publish a message to several people on WhatsApp, you can send messages to up to 256 people.
- You are a fan of group chat but do not always want to receive messages. WhatsApp lets you chat silently for 8 hours, a week, or even a year.
- You live or work in countries like Saudi Arabia, where 73% of the population uses WhatsApp.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Windows, macOS.
Secondary costs: Other than using the Internet, data is free when you are not connected to WiFi.
Popular in Mexico: Mexico, Brazil, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Mozilla, Uruguay, Paraguay, Saudi Arabia, India, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Finland, Spain, England, Morocco, Indonesia, Germany, Yemen, Oman, Israel, Chad, South Africa, Nigeria, Niger, Tanzania
Voice chat: Yes
Video Chat: Yes
Group chat: Yes
Global encryption: Yes
Receive/send a file: Yes
2. Facebook Messenger – Used by most Americans
Facebook is not only the largest social network in the world but also the second-largest chat app for monthly active users. In the United States, 105 million Facebook Messenger users make the most of this chat app.
With this program, you can chat for free with anyone with a Facebook account. You do not even have to be a Facebook user to use this app. Just upload it and create a messenger account.
Like WhatsApp, Messenger lets everyone chat over text, voice, or video on the same messaging system. You can make calls from PC to phone and vice versa. So you can keep in touch with others no matter what device you are using.
Select Facebook Messenger if…
- Were you looking for an interesting way to connect with your audience? There are many games that you can play through these messengers. You can challenge your friends or play alone if you like solo games.
- You want to share recipes, flight details, news updates, or other details. This is possible through many third-party messenger application plugins.
- You are interested in an interesting new technology. With the Facebook code scanning feature, you can add other messenger users by scanning their unique code.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Windows 10; an unofficial version is Messenger for Mac for macOS.
Secondary costs: Other than using the Internet, data is free when you are not connected to WiFi.
Popular in: USA, Canada, Algeria, Greenland, Norway, Sweden, Australia, Madagascar, Mongolia, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Poland, Peru, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ireland.
Voice chat: Yes
Video Chat: Yes
Group chat: Yes
Global encryption: Yes
Receive/send a file: Yes
3-Line – has extensive capabilities
The line has an official name for itself in East Asia. With more than 200 million users, this app is the chat app of choice for the people of Thailand, Taiwan, and Japan.
Although not as popular as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, this full-featured chat app includes several value-added features. These features include online games to play with your friends, Line Pay to send and receive money, Line Taxi to call a taxi, and Line Today to get the top news.
Select the line if…
You love interesting stickers for messengers. The line has a wide range of stickers that are not available in other chat applications.
Would you like to send quality photos? Line allows you to share your photos in high resolution. If this feature is not important to you and you want to save on your internet volume, you can send the photo with a lower resolution.
You want a chat app that has some social media capabilities. The line provides you with a dedicated timeline where you can post and share your posts for all your audience to view.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Windows, macOS
Secondary costs: Voice and video messaging to other online users are free, except when using the internet. There are costs associated with specific line capabilities (such as contacting offline members or landlines, which vary by location).
Popular in: Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, Turkmenistan
Voice chat: Yes
Video Chat: Yes
Group chat: Yes
Global encryption: Yes
Receive/send a file: Yes
4-Snapchat – full of attractive filters
The Snapchat app is an efficient and interesting messenger for Android and iOS users. What makes this program different from other things is the sending of multimedia files stored for a limited time before they disappear forever.
With Snapshot, you can send a message specifically to a specific recipient or be seen by a select group of followers. Alternatively, you can use this app for live video or audio chat.
Snapshot is one of the first apps that let you add augmented reality filters to your submitted images. These fun filters can make you look like a space creature or your cute moving clothes and put storm clouds in the sky behind you.
Select Snapchat if…
You’re in business, and you want to promote your brand. This program has been successfully used by brands such as Taco, Kraft, Bell, and Gatorade and has proven to be a great way to attract a young audience.
You want to send your personalized Bitmoj avatars. Snapshot lets you embed them in your multimedia messages.
You want to share your daily events with your friends, family, or clients using Snapshot stories. This feature uses a set of snapshots that cover up to 24 hours in advance, and you can share them with your followers.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS
Secondary costs: Free of charge, except when you use the Internet.
Popular in: USA, France, UK, Saudi Arabia, India, Mexico, Germany, Brazil, Canada, Australia
Voice chat: Yes
Video Chat: Yes
Group chat: Yes
Global encryption: Yes
Receive/send a file: Yes
5. WeChat – Most popular in China
With over one billion users, WeChat is the most widely used Chinese messaging app and the third most popular globally. Since other popular chat programs in China are blocked, WeChat is the best option for you if you are calling your friends in this country.
WeChat is referred to as an all-in-one program. This application has many capabilities that go beyond a simple chat. These include social media activities, location sharing, sending media files to multiple recipients, and mobile payment features.
WeChat’s mobile payment capabilities are so powerful that it is considered a top competitor to MasterCard, Visa, and American Express.
Use WeChat if…
Find a marketer and try to reach people who live in China. Because many important chats and other social networking apps are not readily available in China (e.g., Facebook, Google, Snapchat, WhatsApp, Line, etc.) WeChat ads and websites allow brands to reach a larger market.
You want to send custom e-cards. WeChat lets you send these personal messages for any occasion, such as birthdays, Valentine’s Day, or Chinese New Year.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Windows, macOS
Secondary costs: Free of charge, except when you use the Internet. Costs are associated with a particular feature set, such as games and sticker packs.
Popular in China: Mongolia
Voice chat: Yes
Video Chat: Yes
Group chat: Yes
Global encryption: Yes
Receive/send a file: Yes
6. Skype – great for calling the phone line
Skype is one of the oldest and most well-known chat apps on the market, another great option. This application also allows you to send text messages to other users and chat videos and voices. All this is free.
In addition to the free features provided by Skype, there are other options. You can call an old phone number (both landline and mobile). However, this feature is not free, and costs vary depending on your call location.
Do you want to talk to more than one person at a time? The free version of this program allows you to have a conference call with up to 25 people at a time.
Select Skype if…
You want to expand the reach of your business by using one of Skype’s international digital numbers. Although this feature is not free, it makes it easy for customers to reach you from one of the 27 countries that support it (it also makes it easy to connect with friends and family living abroad).
You want to share your screen with a friend, family member, or co-worker. With the Skype screen sharing feature, you can explain the process to someone or show them what you are working on.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux
Secondary costs: Apart from using the Internet, data is free to send voice or video messages to other Skype users. There are costs associated with other special features such as calling a landline or non-Skype members (costs depend on location)
Popular in: Iceland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Moldova
Voice chat: Yes
Video Chat: Yes
Group chat: Yes
Global encryption: Yes
Receive/send a file: Yes
7. Google Hangouts – a business application
Google recently announced that Google Hangouts for G Suite customers (businesses that pay for Google apps) would expire in October 2019. The timeline has not yet been announced for regular users, but many people estimate that this will happen sometime in 2020.
This seems like a classic ending for Google Hangouts. Instead, Google changed Hangouts to a new name called Hangouts Meet and Hangouts Chat.
These two apps are currently only available to Google Suite users. Google has announced that free versions of Meet and Chat will be available to the public as soon as these users switch to new applications, although these new applications are more business-focused.
In addition, Google has a text-based chat app called Google Message, and a video-based chat app called Google Duo to stay in touch with friends and family. However, until this is completed, Google has assured users that it will continue to support Google Hangouts. So right now, Google Classic Hangouts is still a pretty good option.
Use Google Hangouts if…
- You are an organization, and you want to have a meeting with up to 100 participants. This is a new feature recently released on Hangouts Meet.
- You want to connect with customers who do not use the new Hangout chat app. Google has announced that with the new version of Hangout Chat, you will be able to invite users who do not use Hangout to your chat. This means you can connect with partners, customers, vendors, and anyone who is not a hangout user in one place.
- We want to send messages to your friends, family, and colleagues directly from your Gmail account. With Classic Hangouts, you can easily check your emails, easily send messages through your browser, or
- have video or voice chats with other Gmail or Hangouts users.
- You want to video chat with up to 10 friends at a time. This feature is also available in the classic application.
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Google Chrome extension.
8- Telegram – an application without ads
The lesser-known app, with 200 million users worldwide, has few fans. Of course, it is one of the most popular chat programs in Iran and Uzbekistan.
Telegram is a free application that allows users to send voice, text, and video messages to others worldwide. This application has attracted the audience by sending a security message, but only the Secret Chat feature uses universal encryption. Other chat functions do not have universal encryption, but other encryption measures are used that are relatively secure.
Use Telegram if…
- You want to connect with thousands of people at once. Telegram allows its users to create large groups with up to 200,000 members, much more than any other application.
- You want to get rid of ads and costs associated with other apps. The Telegram website claims that the program will remain ad-free in the future.
- You are looking for an application that is supported by almost any platform. Unlike many chat applications, Telegram is a native application for most platforms.
Conclusion
All of the chat apps mentioned in this article are great, but if I were to choose based on my personal experience, I must admit that I never used the line before spending a lot of time in East Asia. Of course, this program will come in handy when I travel to this part of the world again.
Facebook Messenger is still my favorite option to chat with my friends in North America. Without WhatsApp, this popular Latin American app, I would not be able to connect with my friends. And if I travel to China, I may use WeChat.