Its chats are not end-to-end encrypted by default, meaning that Facebook could access your chats if it wanted to. And because Facebook thrives on collecting as much data as possible, you're probably not comfortable with the company spying on what you say to your friends.
So, with that in mind, we have compiled a list of Facebook Messenger alternatives which allow you to chat privately with family and friends. Once you've chosen one you'll just have to convince your friends to sign up to it too.
1. Signal
If you're looking for a super secure messaging client that's also easy to use, Signal could be the one for you. Signal is an open source messaging service available on Android, iPhone, Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Signal is developed by Signal Foundation, a successor to Open Whisper Systems. The best part about Signal's privacy is that the backend code is also open source and verifiable. A lot of secure messaging services only open source the frontend application code ("client-side") while keeping the backend platform proprietary ("server-side").
2. Telegram
Telegram has arisen as a hugely popular alternative to the more mainstream messaging apps. With over 400 million monthly active users at the time of writing, there's clearly lots to love about Telegram.
3. Threema
Threema is a paid messaging app with a focus on privacy and gimmick-free features. It includes all of the essentials you'd expect, like group chats, voice calls, media sharing, and more. In addition to these standard tools, Threema lets you protect sensitive chats with a PIN, agree or disagree with messages using reactions, and choose whether to sync your contacts.
4. Wire
Wire is intended for business-level collaboration, but features a basic free tier for personal use. It's completely open source and features end-to-end encryption across all communication. The service has received independent audits from many security firms, so you can trust that it's secure.
5. WhatsApp
With over two billion monthly users, WhatsApp is certainly the biggest messaging platform in the world. It's owned by Facebook which may rightfully give you pause for thought. But for now, the app has managed to stay mostly independent from Facebook.
WhatsApp's Status feature isn't in your face all the time. There are no ads in the app. And even its business features are tastefully implemented.
There are two big reasons WhatsApp makes for a solid alternative to Facebook Messenger. First, WhatsApp uses end-to-end AES 256-bit encryption by default on all chats. As long as you (and the person you're talking to) are running the latest version of WhatsApp, your chats are encrypted.
6. Messenger Lite (Android) or Friendly (iOS)
If you can't pull yourself away from Facebook Messenger because all your friends and family use it, you could try Messenger Lite instead.
The lightweight version of Messenger gives you all the essential messaging features (including media sharing) but does away with everything unnecessary. There are no ads, Messenger Day stories section, third-party apps, sticker store, or other such nonsense.
After switching to Messenger Lite, make sure you're not continuously uploading your contact book to Facebook by going to Profile > People > Sync Contacts
