Messaging
Signal
Signal Foundation · US · since 2014-07
End-to-end encrypted messenger with the Signal Protocol. Default for journalists, activists, and security pros. No ads, no tracking, no backdoors. Tied to a phone number which is the main complaint.
Open sourceAuditedE2EEAGPL-3.0Free
Pros
- + Battle-tested cryptography
- + Funded by nonprofit, no VC pressure
- + Works on every platform
Cons
- − Requires a phone number to register
- − Centralized server (US jurisdiction)
- − No multi-account on mobile
Highlights
- ▸Signal Protocol (industry standard E2EE)
- ▸Disappearing messages
- ▸No phone number visible to contacts (usernames since 2024)
Specs at a glance
- License
- AGPL-3.0
- Open source
- Yes
- E2EE
- Yes
- Audited
- Yes
- Self-host
- No
- HQ
- US
- Pricing
- free
- Platforms
- 5 platforms