Monal vs DEF CON Forums
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Monal
This open-source messenger provides a fast and user-friendly way to connect to the XMPP public chat network. Enjoy private, ad-free communication with end-to-end encryption and features like group chats and file sharing.
- Open Source
- No Ads
- OMEMO encrypted chat
- Multi user chat (MUC)
- Audio/Video calls
- File sharing
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There has never been a better time to get into XMPP, a free public chat network no one controls or owns. Monal is a fast and user friendly way to use XMPP. Just download the app, login or register and you are ready to chat in minutes. It looks and works the way other apps do, so there is no need to “learn XMPP” or even care what it is. Notable features: - Open Source - No Ads! Strong focus on privacy. Does not phone home and does not have software "metrics" - Does not read any personal information - With a direct connection to your server, your password and all other info are never sent to a third-party - OMEMO encrypted chat - Will work with corporate XMPP servers that require VPN - Multi user chat (MUC) support for group chats - Audio/Video calls Implements certain XMPP extensions intended to improve mobile communication: - XEP-0357: Push Notifications - XEP-0280: Message Carbons keep messages in synch between clients - XEP-0198: Stream Management to quickly reconnect - XEP-0199: XMPP Ping to maintain connections - XEP-0313: Message Archive Management to download chat history - XEP-0352: Client State Indication for dramatic reduction on power use - XEP-0363: HTTP File Upload to send images in conversations
DEF CON Forums
Connect with the hacker and infosec communities. Discuss topics, plan for DEF CON conferences, and access the official forums directly through a streamlined interface. Supports multiple languages and prioritizes user privacy.
- Access DEF CON forums
- Connect with hacker community
- Infosec discussions
- Conference planning
- Multi-language support
- Privacy-focused
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DEF CON Forums are a place to talk with others in the hacker and infosec communities as well as help plan or play at the next DEF CON conference. This app gets you to https://forum.defcon.org/ without the web interface. Multi-language interface is now supported Privacy and Security Notes: - No AdMob - No Google Analytics - The app wants permissions for camera, etc, but seems to work find without them.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Monal at 58% against DEF CON Forums's 0%. Monal also leads on rating (3.7 vs 3.3) and ratings volume (141 vs 6). DEF CON Forums's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 14.0). On price, ads, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Monal holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Monal has 141 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Monal's written reviews are positive against 0% of DEF CON Forums's.
Monal ships an update every 5 weeks, DEF CON Forums every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and September 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Monal | DEF CON Forums |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (141 ratings) — better | 3.3 (6 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 57.7% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 141 — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks — better | Every 3 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 71 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Molitor und Dietzel, Inh. Thilo Molitor | DEF CON, Inc. |
Customer experience
Monal
DEF CON Forums
Bugs and requests
Monal
Reported bugs
4 issues- Disconnects frequently
- Incompatible with some XMPP servers
- Crashes when sending messages
- Issues with loading contact lists
Requested features
4 requests- Add OTR/PGP encryption support
- Improve group chat functionality
- Allow customization of sounds and notifications
- Optimize for older iOS versions
DEF CON Forums
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Monal
No in-app purchases
DEF CON Forums
No in-app purchases
