Rún vs Sova
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Rún
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Rún is a secure messenger built for people who refuse to compromise on privacy. Every message is end-to-end encrypted before it leaves your device, and the keys ratchet forward as you chat — so even if one key were ever exposed, the rest of the conversation stays sealed. No server, no company, and no government can read your conversations. Rún requires no account, no phone number, and no email address. There is nothing to link back to your identity. Contacts are added in person by scanning QR codes, or through a vouched introduction from someone you already trust — no central directory, no contact discovery, no social graph. All traffic is routed through the Tor network, hiding your IP address and location even from Rún's own relay. An observer monitoring your network sees only encrypted Tor traffic — they cannot tell who you are talking to or what you are saying. Messages are padded to fixed sizes, so not even the length of a message leaks. Messages live in memory only — they are never written to disk. Leave a chat or close the app, and they are gone. There is no message history to scroll through, no archive to subpoena, and no backup to leak. The relay stores only temporary encrypted blobs it cannot read, in inboxes that expire on their own. Your vault is encrypted at rest with AES-256 via SQLCipher, its key derived with Argon2id and protected by the device keychain, tied to this device only. You choose how hard it is to reach: • Decent — quick PIN unlock, with relaxed auto-lock and self-wipe timers. • Secure — the vault key is also bound to the Secure Enclave, behind Face ID or Touch ID. A seized phone strongly resists offline attacks. • Maximum — the PIN is replaced by a strong passphrase and the timers are at their tightest. Even a fully imaged phone stays shut. At every level Rún locks itself when idle, wipes after too many wrong unlock attempts, and self-destructs after a long stretch of inactivity — how strict is set by the level you choose. A wipe erases the encryption keys themselves, leaving nothing recoverable. Group chats live only on their members' phones — no group account, no member list. Each message goes privately to every member: the relay sees one message reach several inboxes, never who they are or a word of it. No analytics. No tracking. No advertising. No crash reporting. No cloud backups. By default it stays silent — no notifications — and you simply see your messages when you open the app. You can optionally turn notifications on; if you do, a content-free wake-up signal routes through Apple's push servers, which learn only that something arrived and when — never who it is from or what it says — and Rún tells you exactly this before you enable it. Rún is built for journalists, activists, whistleblowers, and anyone who believes private conversation is a fundamental right. Key features: - End-to-end encryption with forward secrecy (AES-256-GCM + Double Ratchet) - All traffic over Tor — your IP and location stay hidden - No account, phone number, or email required - In-person QR contact exchange and vouched introductions - Group chats with no group account or member list - Messages held in memory only — never stored on disk - Encrypted local vault (SQLCipher, Argon2id, device keychain) - Three protection levels: Decent, Secure, Maximum - Secure Enclave-bound vault key behind Face ID or Touch ID (Secure) - Passphrase instead of PIN (Maximum) - Auto-lock, wipe on repeated wrong attempts, self-destruct on inactivity - Message padding hides even message sizes - No analytics, tracking, ads, or crash reporting - Move phones with a sealed transfer, never a cloud backup - Available in 13 languages
Sova
A modern messenger for private chats, group conversations, and calls. Stay connected with channels, a personalized feed, and share stories. Enjoy a fast and user-friendly interface for all your communication needs.
- Personal and group chats
- Audio and video calls
- Voice and video messages
- Channels and communities
- Personalized feed
- Stories with reactions
- File sharing
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Sova — это современный мессенджер, который объединяет личное общение, звонки и социальные функции в одном приложении. Переписывайтесь один на один и в группах, созванивайтесь по аудио и видео, подписывайтесь на каналы, читайте ленту и делитесь историями — всё в быстром и удобном интерфейсе. Возможности: • Личные и групповые чаты с мгновенной доставкой сообщений • Аудио- и видеозвонки • Голосовые сообщения и видеосообщения-«кружочки» • Каналы и сообщества: публикации, комментарии и реакции • Лента «Для вас» с вертикальной прокруткой • Истории с реакциями и статистикой просмотров • Стикеры и эмодзи • Обмен фото, видео, музыкой и файлами • Совместный просмотр видео в общих комнатах • Карта присутствия и геолокация (по желанию) • Темы оформления и гибкие настройки уведомлений • Приватность: вы решаете, кто видит ваш телефон, время захода и истории Sova создана для тех, кто хочет общаться свободно и держать всё важное в одном месте. Присоединяйтесь!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Sova at none against Rún's 4. On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. Rún sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Sova asks for nothing beyond the download.
Rún ships an update every 3 days, Sova every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Rún | Sova |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Positive reviews | — | 0.0% of reviews |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 31 MB | 64 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Vikstrom Group AB | Tatjana Ozolnieks |
In-app purchases
Rún
- Buy me a coffee$0.99
- Tip$3.99
- Generous tip$7.99
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- God like tip$79.99
Sova
No in-app purchases









