Secretly vs Secure Chats
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Secretly
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Secretly is a private messenger that needs no phone number and no email. Your account is a cryptographic key created on your device, and you get a random Secretly ID โ nothing that ties your account to your name or your SIM card. NO PHONE NUMBER. NO EMAIL. โข Create an account in seconds โ no SIM card, no email, no personal details โข Add contacts by Secretly ID, QR code or profile link โข Your address book is never uploaded โข Messages from people you don't know arrive as requests โ you decide who can reach you END-TO-END ENCRYPTION โข Messages, voice messages and files in private and group chats are end-to-end encrypted with the Double Ratchet algorithm, which provides forward secrecy โข One-to-one voice and video calls are end-to-end encrypted โข Verify a contact in person by scanning their QR code or comparing security codes; Secretly warns you when a contact's keys change โข Your chat database is encrypted on your device YOU DECIDE WHO SEES WHAT โข Choose who can see your last-seen time, profile photo and forwarded messages, and who can call you: everyone, your contacts or nobody โข Auto-delete messages in any chat after 24 hours, 7 days or 30 days โข Lock Secretly with a password, a pattern or Face ID / Touch ID โข Keep private conversations in a separately locked "Personal" section โข Hide chat content in the app switcher โข Delete your account at any time, or let it delete itself after a period of inactivity you choose EVERYTHING YOU EXPECT FROM A MESSENGER โข Groups with admins and moderators, invite links, @mentions and pinned messages โข Group voice and video calls โข Replies, reactions, editing, delete for everyone, forwarding and search โข Scheduled and silent messages, chat folders โข Voice messages, photos, videos and files โข Stickers, including a sticker maker that cuts the subject out of your photo on the device (iOS 17 or later) โข Link previews are created by the sender, so your device doesn't fetch links you receive โข On-device message translation โข Encrypted backups protected by your password, plus a recovery kit to restore your account โข A Mac app, linked to your iPhone with a QR code OPEN AND HONEST โข No ads, no analytics or advertising SDKs โข Open source under AGPL-3.0 โ anyone can review the code on GitHub โข We publish a threat model listing what Secretly protects against and its known limitations โข An independent security audit has not been completed yet โ we'd rather tell you than let you assume SECRETLY PREMIUM Secretly is free. Premium is optional and adds voice-message transcription on your device, larger files, bigger groups and group calls, premium sticker packs, and personalisation: themes, accent colours, animated wallpapers, avatar frames, profile covers, app icons and ringtones. Security features are never part of Premium. Premium is available as a monthly or yearly auto-renewing subscription, or as a one-time lifetime purchase. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm the purchase. A subscription renews automatically unless it is cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period, and your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends. You can manage or cancel subscriptions in your App Store account settings. Any unused part of a free trial is forfeited when you buy a subscription. Secretly works only between Secretly users. It does not send SMS or MMS and does not call phone numbers. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.secretlyapp.com/privacy-policy
Secure Chats
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SecChats is a private, end-to-end encrypted messenger for one-to-one and group conversations. Every text and photo you send is encrypted on your device with AES-256-GCM under a key derived from an ECDH handshake with the recipient. The server only sees ciphertext. No phone number. No email. No ads. No tracking. Why SecChats โ True end-to-end encryption. Messages are encrypted on your device before they leave it and only decrypted on the recipient's. The SecChats server cannot read them. Neither can we. โ No phone number or email. Sign up with a display name. The server assigns you an opaque user ID; share that with friends to start chatting. โ Private by design. The on-device database is wrapped in an additional AES-256-GCM layer, so a stolen or seized device does not hand over your conversation history. โ Add friends face-to-face by scanning a QR code โ keys never touch a server. โ Photos, text, groups. Send messages and images to friends or groups; create groups and share QR-code invitations; scan a QR code to join a group you were invited to. โ Seven languages. Switch the interface between System default, English, Romanian, Japanese, French, German, Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese from Settings. โ Open API and reference client. The protocol is documented and shipped alongside an open-source Java reference client, so you can audit or rebuild the messaging stack yourself. SecChats does not lock you in. What's in the app โ Friends tab โ your contacts, groups, pending requests, and group invitations. New activity is flagged with a small dot. โ Chat tab โ bubble-style conversations with copy/delete on each message, clickable URLs, and full-screen image previews. โ Settings tab โ language picker, message and account wipe, Banned Channels ledger for anyone you have reported and removed. Security details โ Wire format: AES-256-GCM under an ECDH-derived shared secret. โ At-rest format: AES-256-GCM with a per-install key, layered over every text payload and every image payload before SQLite ever sees the bytes. โ Profanity filter on display names and group names, backed by a curated word list. โ Open verification: the protocol and reference client are public. About the company Secure Chats is built by Secchats Ltd. All conversation content is end-to-end encrypted. The company cannot read your messages and does not retain content beyond the time needed to deliver it. Support Help and documentation: https://secchats.com/howto.html Open API documentation: https://secchats.com/api.html Contact support: support@secchats.com
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Secure Chats at none against Secretly's 3. Secure Chats also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs weekly). Secretly's advantage is iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Secretly sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Secure Chats asks for nothing beyond the download.
Secretly ships an update weekly, Secure Chats every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 25, 2026.
| Parameter | Secretly | Secure Chats |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Every 3 days โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No โ better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod โ better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.5 โ better | 17.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 176 MB | 5 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Secretly SIA | Secchats Ltd |
In-app purchases
Secretly
- Secretly: Premium Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
- Yearly subscription$14.991 Year
- Secretly Lifetime Premium$24.99
Secure Chats
No in-app purchases









