Comparison

WhatsApp vs Telegram 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

Telegram Messenger

A fast, secure, and powerful instant messaging app that syncs across all your devices. It offers unlimited media and file sharing, robust encryption, and advanced features like group chats for up to 200,000 members and bots.

Highlights
  • Fast and secure instant messaging
  • Cross-device synchronization
  • Unlimited media and file sharing
  • Large group chats and bots
  • End-to-end encrypted secret chats
  • Customizable themes and stickers
Features
Read full description

Pure instant messaging — simple, fast, secure, and synced across all your devices. One of the top 5 most downloaded apps in the world with over 1 billion active users. FAST: Telegram is the fastest messaging app on the market, connecting people via a unique, distributed network of data centers around the globe. SYNCED: You can access your messages from all your phones, tablets and computers at once. Telegram apps are standalone, so you don’t need to keep your phone connected. Start typing on one device and finish the message from another. Never lose your data again. UNLIMITED: You can send media and files, without any limits on their type and size. Your entire chat history will require no disk space on your device, and will be securely stored in the Telegram cloud for as long as you need it. SECURE: We made it our mission to provide the best security combined with ease of use. Everything on Telegram, including chats, groups, media, etc. is encrypted using a combination of 256-bit symmetric AES encryption, 2048-bit RSA encryption, and Diffie–Hellman secure key exchange. 100% FREE & OPEN: Telegram has a fully documented and free API for developers, open source apps and verifiable builds to prove the app you download is built from the exact same source code that is published. POWERFUL: You can create group chats with up to 200,000 members, share large videos, documents of any type (.DOCX, .MP3, .ZIP, etc.) up to 2 GB each, and even set up bots for specific tasks. Telegram is the perfect tool for hosting online communities and coordinating teamwork. RELIABLE: Built to deliver your messages using as little data as possible, Telegram is the most reliable messaging system ever made. It works even on the weakest mobile connections. FUN: Telegram has powerful photo and video editing tools, animated stickers and emoji, fully customizable themes to change the appearance of your app, and an open sticker/GIF platform to cater to all your expressive needs. SIMPLE: While providing an unprecedented array of features, we take great care to keep the interface clean. Telegram is so simple you already know how to use it. PRIVATE: We take your privacy seriously and will never give any third parties access to your data. You can delete any message you ever sent or received for both sides, at any time and without a trace. Telegram will never use your data to show you ads. For those interested in maximum privacy, Telegram offers Secret Chats. Secret Chat messages can be programmed to self-destruct automatically from both participating devices. This way you can send all types of disappearing content — messages, photos, videos, and even files. Secret Chats use End-to-End Encryption to ensure that a message can only be read by its intended recipient. We keep expanding the boundaries of what you can do with a messaging app. Don’t wait years for older messengers to catch up with Telegram — join the revolution today. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

WhatsApp4 screens
Telegram Messenger4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: WhatsApp at 4.7 against Telegram Messenger's 4.0. WhatsApp also leads on ratings volume (19M vs 286K) and review sentiment (50% vs 34%). Telegram Messenger's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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 Telegram Messenger sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

WhatsApp holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: WhatsApp has 19M ratings behind it against 286K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of WhatsApp's written reviews are positive against 34% of Telegram Messenger's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

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

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
WhatsApp versus Telegram Messenger: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWhatsAppTelegram Messenger
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (19M ratings) — better4.0 (286K ratings)
Positive reviews50.4% of reviews — better34.1% of reviews
Number of ratings19M — better286K
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterWeekly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#3#2 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS15.115.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size392 MB244 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperWhatsApp Inc.Telegram FZ-LLC

Customer experience

WhatsApp

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

Telegram Messenger

All ratings285,330 ratings
Positive73.3%
Neutral6.2%
Negative20.5%
Written reviews8,949 reviews
Positive34.1%
Neutral8.9%
Negative57.0%

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

Telegram Messenger

From 286K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast and efficient
  • 🔒 Secure and private
  • 👍 Customizable and user-friendly
  • 💡 Innovative features like channels and bots
  • 🌟 Great overall messaging experience

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy and unstable at times
  • 🔋 Battery life issues
  • 🚫 Lack of video calling feature
  • 📂 Issues with media uploads and downloads
  • 🔍 Inadequate search functionality

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

Telegram Messenger

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Keyboard issues and cursor placement problems
  • Frequent app crashes, especially in large group chats
  • Inaccurate 'last seen' timestamps
  • Notification issues and duplicate messages
  • Problems with media auto-save and download

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add video calling feature
  • Improve search capabilities
  • Implement a story/status feature
  • Allow more customization options
  • Segregate channels, bots, and individual chats

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

Telegram Messenger

Subscriptions2
  • Telegram Premium$4.991 Month
  • Telegram Premium Annual$35.991 Year
One-time8
  • 1x Telegram Premium (One Week)$1.19
  • 100 Telegram Stars$1.99
  • 250 Telegram Stars$5.09
Show 5 more
  • 500 Telegram Stars$9.99
  • 750 Telegram Stars$14.99
  • 1000 Telegram Stars$19.99
  • 1500 Telegram Stars$29.99
  • 2500 Telegram Stars$50.90

Questions

Is WhatsApp free?
WhatsApp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Telegram Messenger free?
Telegram Messenger is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, WhatsApp or Telegram Messenger?
WhatsApp is rated higher. WhatsApp averages 4.7 out of 5 from 19M ratings, while Telegram Messenger averages 4.0 from 286K ratings.
Do WhatsApp or Telegram Messenger have ads?
WhatsApp shows ads; Telegram Messenger does not.
Which is updated more often, WhatsApp or Telegram Messenger?
WhatsApp ships an update every 4 days, and Telegram Messenger weekly. Most recently, WhatsApp was updated on November 9, 2026 and Telegram Messenger on November 9, 2026.
Which is more popular, WhatsApp or Telegram Messenger?
WhatsApp currently peaks at #3 in the App Store charts, and Telegram Messenger at #2. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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