The Definitive Guide to Choosing a Chat App
Find out which chat apps you should be using. Compare and Contrast to get yourself the best chatting experience!
Whether it be to make new friends or talk to your old ones, online chatting is the way to go! But getting started in the world of chatting can be a bit overwhelming. Where are your friends, how do you find new friends, what apps should you use? You probably have tons of questions that you want to be answered before you start, and we'll help you out with that. So for this guide, we'll walk you through a variety of different chat apps and tell you about them!
It's important to note that not all chat apps are the same, although many of them have similar features. Similarly, there is no 'better' chat app compared to others, as they all have their strengths and weaknesses, or are made for different uses. So when following this guide, keep this in mind and make the decision yourself for which chat app you think will suit your needs and preferences better.
Without any further ado, let's get started with the biggest competitors in the chatting world!
Facebook Messenger
Since Facebook is an already-massive social network, they naturally have different ways of communicating online. Sure enough, they have their messaging app for people to communicate efficiently. It's a very feature-rich app so that you can use it for:
- Texts
- Pictures
- Videos
- GIFs
- Files
- Stickers
Stickers are like small reaction images that Facebook uses, which is a unique feature from other apps. It's better for data than sending a picture, but the list of stickers available is a bit limited, and you need to download packs every time, unlike only using emojis.
Speaking of emojis, Facebook Messenger also has its collection of emojis, with the ability to send them in different sizes as well. On top of this, you can set nicknames for people, change the colors of your chats (with individual people,) and create group chats or rooms with up to 150 people! It's great to organize events and get-togethers with friends, or just keeping in touch in this rich environment!
There are a few cons to using Facebook Messenger. Every user must have a Facebook account, not just a messenger account. On top of this, to send messages to new people, you must have them added as a 'Friend' on Facebook, or else they may not even see your message. So it's not the best platform for meeting new people, better for you and your friends.
You can find Facebook Messenger on the Play Store or download it from the App Store!
Snapchat
Snapchat is an app that's super popular with today's youth since its purpose isn't just to send texts to your friends. The concept behind Snapchat is the ability to send pictures to people comfortably, and you can choose how long that person can see it until it deletes itself.
So Snapchat's features include:
- Images
- Videos
- Texts
- Secrecy
Since Snapchat deletes all messages and texts after a while (unless saved), it offers an unparalleled level of confidentiality to messages. Of course, you can save messages and screenshot pictures, but the person who they are sent to, or who sends them, will know. If you're talking about a relatively sensitive matter, this could be a handy feature to have, but it's not the most ideal for messaging information that should be kept.
On top of this, the option to record videos on Snapchat is somewhat limited, only a certain length is allowed (up to 10 seconds), so if you want to upload a video of your beautiful singing for a minute, it will be cut short.
But don't be too alarmed, since these features are all part of the bigger picture. The main goal for Snapchat is to be able to give people a glimpse into your life quickly and easily. You can take a snapshot of yourself on the bus, the food in front of you, or when you're watching TV. Add a little caption or small drawing with it, and it lets you share and keep in touch with people, without the need to write messages.
You can find Snapchat on the Play Store or download it from the App Store!
Kik Messenger
For fewer features and more simplicity, Kik may be the ideal messaging app for you! It boasts its simplicity with limited functionality, but that doesn't mean it lacks in any department. Signing up is as easy as typing in your email address, and voila! You're all set to start chatting away!
Since Kik is so simple, it isn't as feature-rich, but it still has the major ones, like being able to send:
- Images
- Videos
- Texts
But it does have some unique options as well, like the use of bots and games.
Kik doesn't have any good ways of finding new friends within the app, unless you, by chance, find a group randomly and join it. But there are lots of communities online dedicated to finding new friends, and since the community is so large, it makes a great app for meeting new people!
And despite being a bit limited, it never gets boring. As mentioned, Kik has Bots and Games, so you can challenge your friends to certain games if you'd like, or if you're a bit lonely, you can talk to chatbots, which can either hold a conversation or take you on a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure style journey!
It might not be as feature-rich as Facebook Messenger, but it's still a fantastic app for all kinds of uses!
You can find Kik Messenger on the Play Store or download it from the App Store!
iMessage
The tech giant Apple also has its messaging system called iMessage. This messaging app is fantastic, the only real limitation it has is the fact that Android users are not able to use it, and, as a result, cannot communicate with people over that app. So if you're using an Android phone and have no intention of buying yourself a Mac, iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, then you can probably skip this section.
iMessage ties everything to your Apple ID, so it has full iCloud support. You can backup and save your messages for the case you lose your phone or if you want to get more space on your device. You can share images and pictures from your iCloud drive directly, and you can meet new people by using their Apple ID information, such as the email.
iMessage acts like a regular texting app, except it, has more features, similar to Facebook Messenger. The only main difference is that one of them is linked to Facebook accounts, and the other is connected to Apple ID and iCloud. So for Apple device users with friends who also use Apple devices, iMessenger may be better than using Facebook.
iMessage should already be installed on your Apple device by default so that you can find it there!
Last but not least, we have WhatsApp, another incredibly popular chat app that is also owned by Facebook. It boasts fewer features than Facebook's Messenger, but it offers a more texting-like experience for the app.
To sign up and send messages to people with WhatsApp, you can use a phone number so that it can resemble a texting alternative at first. Sure enough, it will send SMS text messages whenever it can, as long as it doesn't rack up any extra charges. But when phone signal isn't available, or if it's a long-distance text, WhatsApp will also let you use Wifi or Data to send messages, making it an excellent choice for people either locally or across the world!
But WhatsApp doesn't stop there, and it offers quite a few features on its own as well:
- Security
- Group Chats
- Calls over Wifi
- File Sharing
The main selling feature of WhatsApp is that it uses wifi, or internet connections, when possible. This means that you won't need to pay extra on your phone bill when you choose to make a long call, or if it's long-distance. It applies to texts, files, pictures, and calling, so if you always have access to the internet, it's a great choice!
On top of that, it has excellent security. All messages and calls are encrypted, meaning that no one can intercept them when you're sending important information.
Along with most of the other apps here, you can easily share files and documents with others, so creating a group chat with your coworkers could be useful for sharing reports among each other. Keep yourself productive throughout the day with their seamless communication!
You can find WhatsApp on the Play Store or download it from the App Store!
Conclusion
Each app has its purposes, and each user who wants to chat online has its intentions. So choosing an app might be overwhelming at first, but once you understand how the apps differ, it'll be much easier to choose between them. You can browse your app store to find new apps as well, maybe ones that aren't as mainstream. Look at their features and if it suits your needs.
Our list of the top chat apps should be enough to get you started, so have a look through and check out the feature outlines. But if you're just getting started with online chatting, any of these apps will do, since you might not be using all the features immediately.
If you're looking to find new people to talk to on any of these apps, remember to check out our community boards here! We're very welcoming to any new users and would love for you to join us!