Comparison

WhatsApp vs Messenger

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

WhatsApp

Connect with friends and family through messaging, voice, and video calls. Organize groups, share moments, and make plans with features like polls and live location sharing. Enjoy private conversations with end-to-end encryption across multiple devices.

Highlights
  • Group messaging and calling
  • End-to-end encryption
  • Live location sharing
  • Polls for decision making
  • HD photo and video sharing
  • Disappearing messages
  • Cross-device compatibility
Features
Read full description

Bring your group together on WhatsApp. WhatsApp from Meta is a free messaging and calling app for the people and groups in your life. Bring your best friends, parent group, study group, or neighborhood together to chat, make plans, and share moments. Get everyone into the conversation Invite people with a link or QR code. Names and profile photos help you know who's who, and shared message history helps new members catch up. Make plans together Create events and track RSVPs. Use polls to choose a date or make a decision. Share your live location to find each other, and send documents up to 2GB. Keep your group organized Pin important messages. Admins can approve requests to join, and set group permissions. Have several related groups? Bring their chats and announcements together in a Community. Share more than messages Send HD photos and videos, voice messages, and short video notes. Make conversations your own with custom stickers, reactions, GIFs, and chat colors and backgrounds. Share everyday moments through Status-updates that disappear after 24 hours. Get together on a call Make unlimited voice and video calls with up to 32 people, with screen sharing, effects, and reactions. Speak freely Your personal messages and calls—including group chats and calls—stay private with end-to-end encryption. Not even WhatsApp can read or listen to them. Turn on disappearing messages to choose when your messages disappear. WhatsApp works on your phone, computer, tablet, and supported watch, including on slower connections. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have any feedback or questions, please go to WhatsApp > Settings > Help > Contact Us Terms of Service: https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/terms-of-service Learn more about messaging privately: https://www.whatsapp.com/privacy Learn more about WhatsApp safety: https://www.whatsapp.com/security

About

Messenger

Connect with friends and family through text, audio, and video calls. Share photos in high definition, create shared albums, and send large files directly in chat. Features an AI assistant for instant answers and creative image generation.

Highlights
  • Text, audio, and video calls
  • High-definition photo sharing
  • Shared photo albums
  • Large file sharing up to 100MB
  • AI assistant for questions and creative tasks
  • Disappearing messages
  • Customizable chat themes
Features
Read full description

Messenger is a free messaging app that helps you connect with anyone, anywhere. Stay in touch with your friends and family, explore your interests with people like you, build your community, and share your vibe beyond words, all in one app. CHAT AND CALL ANYONE, ANYWHERE
 Find and connect with your friends and family on Facebook and Messenger, no phone number needed. GET INSTANT ANSWERS FROM YOUR AI ASSISTANT* Meta AI is your assistant that can answer any questions, give you advice, help with homework, and more. SEND YOUR PHOTOS IN HIGH DEFINITION Send and receive clearer, crisper picture of your favorite moments with Messenger. CREATE SHARED ALBUMS From a recent summer vacation to your grandma’s 80th birthday, create albums of photos and videos to share, organize and reminisce over important moments in your group chats. EASILY ADD NEW CONNECTIONS WITH QR CODES Connect with people you meet in real life by scanning their Messenger QR code or sharing yours via a link. SHARE LARGE FILES DIRECTLY IN CHAT Whether it’s a Word, PDF, or Excel doc, you can send large files up to 100MB right inside of Messenger. EDIT AND UNSEND MESSAGES Hit send too soon? You can edit the message up to 15 minutes after sending DISAPPEARING MESSAGES Some things aren’t meant to last forever. Choose how long your end-to-end encrypted chats stick around after they’ve been read. COME TOGETHER WITH YOUR COMMUNITIES Meaningfully connect with people like you from your school, neighborhood, and interest groups. GET IN YOUR FAVORITE CREATORS’ INNER CIRCLE Stay in the know with creators by joining their broadcast channels for authentic and casual content. UNLEASH YOUR IMAGINATION W/ META AI* Tap into your go-to creative partner to create, edit, animate images and more. CAPTURE EVERYDAY MOMENTS ON STORIES Highlight moments of your day using photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours in Stories. DROP A NOTE WITH YOUR THOUGHTS Stay connected with your friends by sharing quick updates that disappear after 24 hours. BRING YOUR VIBE TO YOUR CHATS Sometimes words just don’t cut it. Tap into more ways to express yourself with animated stickers, GIFs, reactions and more. SET THE MOOD OF YOUR CHAT WITH THEMES Customize your chat with a large and constantly evolving list of themes featuring popular artists, holidays, and more. *Meta AI is available in select languages and countries only, with more coming soon.

Screenshots

WhatsApp4 screens
Messenger4 screens

Verdict

The call

WhatsApp and Messenger both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 66% of Messenger's written reviews are positive against 50% of WhatsApp's. WhatsApp's advantage is device support (5 vs 3) and chart position (#3 vs #9). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. WhatsApp sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.00 per month and Messenger sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for WhatsApp against 4.7 for Messenger. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 19M and 14M respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 50% of WhatsApp's written reviews are positive against 66% of Messenger's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

WhatsApp ships an update every 4 days, Messenger weekly. Both last shipped on November 9, 2026.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
WhatsApp versus Messenger: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWhatsAppMessenger
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (19M ratings) — better4.7 (14M ratings)
Positive reviews50.4% of reviews66.1% of reviews — better
Number of ratings19M — better14M
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterWeekly
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#3 — better#9
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size392 MB283 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperWhatsApp Inc.Meta Platforms, Inc.

Customer experience

WhatsApp

All ratings18,930,169 ratings
Positive92.2%
Neutral3.0%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews17,534 reviews
Positive50.4%
Neutral8.2%
Negative41.4%

Messenger

All ratings13,949,982 ratings
Positive91.6%
Neutral3.1%
Negative5.3%
Written reviews13,461 reviews
Positive66.1%
Neutral5.5%
Negative28.4%

User reviews

WhatsApp

From 19M App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💬 Great communication tool
  • 🌍 Connects people globally
  • 🔒 Secure and private messaging
  • 📱 Versatile features (calls, video, groups)
  • 🆓 Free to use

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches (freezing, crashing, notification issues)
  • 🔒 Privacy concerns with data sharing
  • 🙈 Lack of customization and control (status, groups)
  • 📤 Backup and restore issues
  • 🚫 Arbitrary account bans

Messenger

From 14M App Store ratings

What we love

  • 📱 Useful for staying connected with friends and family
  • 🗣️ Enables easy communication through text, voice, and video
  • 💬 Convenient group chat features
  • 🌐 Works across multiple devices and platforms

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🔒 Privacy and security concerns
  • 🔄 Unnecessary updates that remove useful features
  • 📤 Issues with message delivery and notifications
  • 🗂️ Cluttered interface and poor organization of chats

Bugs and requests

WhatsApp

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App freezing and crashing issues
  • Notification problems (missing, delayed)
  • Backup and restore failures
  • Arbitrary account bans with poor support

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add dark mode option
  • Improve group management features
  • Allow more customization of status and notifications
  • Enhance backup and restore functionality
  • Provide better customer support and appeal process

Messenger

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Unable to log in or access account
  • Messages failing to send or receive
  • Unexpected app crashes and freezes
  • Syncing issues between devices

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add option to delete or unsend messages
  • Improve search functionality for chat history
  • Introduce customizable notification settings
  • Bring back old features like emoji reactions and location sharing

In-app purchases

3 purchases

WhatsApp

Subscriptions3
  • No ads (1 account)$4.001 Month
  • No ads (4 accounts)5 variants$21.991 Month
  • No ads (5 accounts)4 variants$26.991 Month
10 purchases

Messenger

One-time10
  • Avatar Item$0.99
  • Avatar Item$1.99
  • Avatar Item$2.99
Show 7 more
  • Avatar Item$3.99
  • Avatar Item$4.99
  • Avatar Item$6.99
  • Avatar Item$7.99
  • Avatar Item$8.99
  • Avatar Item$9.99
  • Avatar Item$10.99

Questions

Is WhatsApp free?
WhatsApp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Messenger free?
Messenger is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, WhatsApp or Messenger?
WhatsApp is rated higher. WhatsApp averages 4.7 out of 5 from 19M ratings, while Messenger averages 4.7 from 14M ratings.
Do WhatsApp or Messenger have ads?
Both WhatsApp and Messenger show ads.
Which is updated more often, WhatsApp or Messenger?
WhatsApp ships an update every 4 days, and Messenger weekly. Most recently, WhatsApp was updated on November 9, 2026 and Messenger on November 9, 2026.
Which is more popular, WhatsApp or Messenger?
WhatsApp currently peaks at #3 in the App Store charts, and Messenger at #9. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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