Comparison

微博 vs WeChat

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

Head to head
About

微博

Discover the world with our app, where you can stay updated on news, trends, and share your thoughts through text, photos, and videos. Join now to connect with people, explore various channels, and enjoy exclusive privileges!

Features
Read full description

Weibo will guide you through every splendid moment all over the world, and show you every story behind the screen. Share anything you want, let the whole world hear your voice. - Find the latest and the most comprehensive information here, whether it is from official news or grassroots’ gossips. - Learn about the up-to-date trend you’re following, in sports, movies, finance, food, amusement and all the areas that attract you. - Want to say something? Just post texts, photos, videos or anything you want, express yourself freely and lightheartedly. Feed: View photos, GIF pictures, videos, audios and texts posted from all the people you follow or from a certain group managed by you. Message: Receive @, comments, private messages in no time, and send voice messages, emoticons, pictures or location info to others. Discover: Check the hottest weibo and the most splendid content in the channels of Shopping, Movie, Music, Sports, Voyage, etc. You’ll find a whole new world here. Weibo VIP: Exclusive 30-plus privileges and federation privileges, custom sources, star avatar stalks, dynamic expressions, make your micro-blogging life more exciting! In-app you can buy Weibo members, and you can buy Weibo members in four ways: The first: 12 yuan / month to buy Weibo members, and automatically renew on a monthly basis. The second: 30 yuan / 3 months to buy Weibo members, and automatically renew every 3 months. Third: 60 yuan / half a year to buy Micro-blogging members, and automatically renew edgy by half year. The fourth: 118 yuan / year to buy Weibo members, and automatically renew edgy by year. What to know about buying: 1. The account will be automatically renewed and charged 1 day before expiration. 2. To cancel automatic renewals, please cancel in your personal account settings at least 1 day in advance. 3. No refund is available after the purchase takes effect. 4. After purchase, users can manage or turn off auto-renewal in their personal account settings. 5. If you are already a member of Weibo, you will extend the service time on the basis of the existing member service period after ordering 6. Weibo Membership Agreement http://new.vip.weibo.cn/newpay/protocol 7. Continuous subscription service agreement http://new.vip.weibo.cn/newpay/baoyueprotocol 8. Privacy Policy and Terms of Use https://m.weibo.cn/c/privacy Weibo Live provides 5 kind of gift bag. 6RMB 420 Gold 30RMB 2100 Gold 98RMB 6860 Gold 298RMB 20860 Gold 588RMB 41160 Gold After top-up, you can check your gold on the Live screen. Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.

About

WeChat

Connect with friends and family through messaging, voice, and video calls. Discover news, local services, and games within the app. Features mobile payment and health tracking capabilities.

Highlights
  • Text, photo, voice, and video messaging
  • Group chats up to 500 members
  • High-quality voice and video calls
  • Real-time location sharing
  • Moments for sharing photos and videos
  • Official Accounts for news and content
  • Mini Programs for third-party services
  • Mobile payment with Weixin Pay
Features
Read full description

WeChat is more than a messaging and social media app – it is a lifestyle for one billion users across the world. Chat and make calls with friends, read news and use local services in Official Accounts and Mini Programs, play games with friends, enjoy mobile payment features with Weixin Pay, and much more. Why do one billion people use WeChat? • MORE WAYS TO CHAT: Message friends using text, photo, voice, video, location sharing, and more. Create group chats with up to 500 members. • VOICE & VIDEO CALLS: High-quality voice and video calls to anywhere in the world. Make group video calls with up to 15 people. • REAL-TIME LOCATION: Not good at explaining directions? Share your real-time location with the tap of a button. • MOMENTS: Never forget your favorite moments. Post photos, videos, and more to share with friends on your personal Moments stream. • STICKER GALLERY: Browse thousands of fun, animated stickers to help express yourself in chats, including stickers with your favorite cartoon and movie characters. • CUSTOM STICKERS: Make chatting more unique with custom stickers and selfie stickers. • OFFICIAL ACCOUNTS: Tons of accounts to follow with original content and news for your reading pleasure. • MINI PROGRAMS: Countless third-party services all within the WeChat app that don't require additional installation, saving you precious phone storage and time. • TOP STORIES: See the latest articles your friends are reading and discover all kinds of interesting content. • GAMES: Have fun and compete with friends in a huge selection of WeChat Mini Games and Tencent Games (available in select regions). • WEIXIN PAY: Enjoy the convenience of world-leading mobile payment features with Weixin Pay and Wallet (available in select regions). • WECHAT OUT: Make calls to mobile phones and landlines around the globe at super low rates (only available in select regions). • WERUN: Use Healthkit and Health app data to sync your step count on WeRun, where you can compete against friends with daily step rankings. Enable WeRun in “Settings” > “General” > “Plug-ins”. • LANGUAGE SUPPORT: Localized in 20+ different languages and can translate friends' messages and Moments posts. • BETTER PRIVACY: Giving you the highest level of control over your privacy, WeChat is certified by TRUSTe - view our privacy policy for more information. • EASY MODE: Clearer and larger text and buttons for better readability.

Screenshots

微博4 screens
WeChat4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: WeChat at 3.9 against 微博's 2.3. WeChat also leads on ratings volume (81K vs 7.7K) and chart position (#17 vs #149). 微博's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 3 weeks) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On price, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases 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. 微博 sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and WeChat 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

WeChat holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 2.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: WeChat has 81K ratings behind it against 7.7K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 27% of 微博's written reviews are positive against 24% of WeChat's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

微博 ships an update weekly, WeChat every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
微博 versus WeChat: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter微博WeChat
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.3 (7.7K ratings)3.9 (81K ratings) — better
Positive reviews27.0% of reviews — better24.0% of reviews
Number of ratings7.7K81K — better
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
Monetization—Free with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#149#17 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch, Vision Pro — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size407 MB887 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperSINA CorporationWeChat

Customer experience

微博

All ratings7,654 ratings
Positive30.7%
Neutral4.2%
Negative65.1%
Written reviews1,666 reviews
Positive27.0%
Neutral7.3%
Negative65.8%

WeChat

All ratings80,670 ratings
Positive72.6%
Neutral4.6%
Negative22.8%
Written reviews2,065 reviews
Positive24.0%
Neutral6.3%
Negative69.7%

User reviews

微博

From 7.7K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Entertaining and educational content
  • 👍 User-friendly interface

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Buggy and inconsistent
  • 💩 Excessive ads and monetization
  • 🤫 Censorship and lack of transparency
  • 🤬 Poor customer service and account management

WeChat

From 81K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great all-in-one app
  • 👍 Convenient features like payments and mini-programs
  • 💡 Useful translation and sharing functions
  • 🔒 Secure and private

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Accounts getting blocked for no reason
  • 🔒 Strict security measures and verification requirements
  • 👎 Poor customer support and unresponsive to user issues
  • 🔋 High storage and battery consumption
  • 🤔 Censorship and monitoring concerns

Bugs and requests

微博

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Frequent crashes and freezes
  • Unreliable login and verification process
  • Inconsistent behavior across devices and platforms

Requested features

3 requests
  • Improved translation and language support
  • Better content moderation and user control
  • Enhanced privacy and data protection

WeChat

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Frequent app crashes and connectivity issues
  • Syncing problems between devices
  • Incompatibility with newer iOS versions
  • Unreliable voice/video call quality

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add dark mode option
  • Improve chat organization with folders and pinning
  • Allow editing of posted content
  • Provide better translation and language support
  • Simplify account recovery and unblocking process

In-app purchases

13 purchases

微博

Subscriptions6
  • 连续包月会员$1.991 Month
  • 按月订阅微博高级会员2 variants$3.991 Month
  • 按月订阅微博高级会员1 Month trial$3.991 Month
Show 3 more
  • 连续季度会员$4.993 Months
  • 半年微博会员$8.996 Months
  • 连续包年会员$17.991 Year
One-time7
  • 微博问答一元围观$0.99
  • 1个月微博会员$1.99
  • 升级1个月微博会员$1.99
Show 4 more
  • 稀缺装扮1个$1.99
  • 3个月微博会员$3.99
  • 高级会员1个月$3.99
  • 1年微博会员$17.99
10 purchases

WeChat

One-time10
  • WeChat Out Top-Up Card$0.99
  • 42 WeBeans$0.99
  • WeChat Out Top-Up Card$1.99
Show 7 more
  • 126 WeBeans$2.99
  • WeChat Out Top-Up Card$3.99
  • 350 WeBeans$6.99
  • WeChat Out Top-Up Card$9.99
  • WeChat Out Top-Up Card$14.99
  • 896 WeBeans$19.99
  • 9086 WeBeans$199.99

Questions

Is 微博 free?
微博 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is WeChat free?
WeChat is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, 微博 or WeChat?
WeChat is rated higher. 微博 averages 2.3 out of 5 from 7.7K ratings, while WeChat averages 3.9 from 81K ratings.
Do 微博 or WeChat have ads?
Both 微博 and WeChat show ads.
Which is updated more often, 微博 or WeChat?
微博 ships an update weekly, and WeChat every 3 weeks. Most recently, 微博 was updated on September 25, 2026 and WeChat on September 25, 2026.
Which is more popular, 微博 or WeChat?
微博 currently peaks at #149 in the App Store charts, and WeChat at #17. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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