Comparison

Nextplus vs Session

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

Head to head
About

Nextplus

Get a free US phone number for unlimited texting and calling to US and Canadian numbers. Works over WiFi and allows you to communicate without sharing your personal number. Offers inexpensive outbound calls and can turn devices like iPod touch into phones.

Highlights
  • Free US phone number with selectable area code
  • Unlimited free texting (SMS, MMS, group chat)
  • Free inbound phone calls
  • Toll-free calling worldwide
  • Inexpensive outbound calls
  • WiFi calling and texting
  • No contracts or surprise costs
Features
Read full description

Nextplus lets you stay in touch with people around the world without giving out your real number. With Nextplus you'll get: - A free US Phone number so friends can call & text you (you pick the area code) - Free texting (SMS, MMS + group chat) to any US or Canadian mobile number - Free inbound phone calls - Toll-free calling from anywhere in the world with no restrictions! - Inexpensive outbound phone calls - Works great over WiFi so you don’t even need a 3G/4G connection. - No contracts, no “surprise” costs. - Turn your iPod touch into a phone! HOW IT WORKS Unlike other app-to-app messengers, we let you call and text ANY phone number! Nextplus works across all your devices so you'll never miss a message. All you need is WiFi - no 3G/4G connection required! Your friend’s phone company charges us small fees to deliver texts and calls on their networks. Rather than force you to pay, we let you view a few banner ads or watch a quick video. If you choose, you can pay a buck or two and make those ads disappear. The choice is yours! IN APP SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS - Keep Your Number for 1 year $1.99 / Remove Banner Ads for 1 month $0.99 / Remove Banner Ads for 1 year $5.99 / Unlimited Ad-Free calls to Mexico (landlines) for 1 month $6.99 / Unlimited Ad-Free Calls to Mexico (mobile) for 1 month $29.99/ Unlimited Ad-Free calls to US & Canada for 1 year $19.99 - If you choose to subscribe to a plan, you will be charged a price according to the plan selected in your country. The price will be shown in the app before you complete the payment. - Payment will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of purchase - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of your current period - Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, at the purchase price listed above - You may manage your subscriptions and turn off auto-renewal by going to your iTunes Account Settings and then "Manage Subscriptions" - No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription * IMPORTANT: - We do not support 911 in the US - In order to place most outbound phone calls you will need to purchase credits within the App - If push notifications are not enabled, you may not receive messages and calls Terms of Use: https://textplus.com/textplus-terms-of-use/ Privacy Policy: https://textplus.com/textplus-privacy-policy/ Subscription Products: • Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication

About

Session

This secure messenger prioritizes your privacy with a decentralized network and end-to-end encryption. It offers anonymous account creation, IP address protection, and private group chats without collecting any metadata. Share messages and files with confidence, knowing your communications are truly private.

Highlights
  • Anonymous account creation
  • Decentralized server network
  • No metadata logging
  • IP address protection
  • End-to-end encrypted group chats
  • Secure file sharing
Features
Read full description

Session is a new breed of private messenger, built on a unique network of user-operated servers spread all over the world. With no central servers, Session can’t leak or sell your data. And with Session’s private routing protocols, your messages are completely safe. No trackers, no leaks — send messages, not metadata. • Fully private account creation: No phone number or email needed to create an Account ID • Decentralized server network: No data breaches, no central point of failure • No metadata logging: Session doesn't store, track, or log your messaging metadata • IP address protection: Device IP addresses are never exposed to the person you're talking to or the servers holding your data • Closed groups: Private, end-to-end encrypted group chats for up to 100 people • Secure attachments: Share voice snippets, photos, and files with Session's secure encryption and privacy protections • Free and open-source: Don’t take our word for it — check Session's code yourself Session is free as in free speech and free as in free of ads and trackers. It is stewarded by the Session Foundation, a Swiss-based foundation dedicated to advancing digital rights and innovation. Take back your online privacy today — download Session. Want to build from source, report a bug, or just take a look at our code? Check out Session on GitHub: https://github.com/session-foundation/session-ios Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Session Terms of Service: https://getsession.org/terms-of-service

Screenshots

Nextplus4 screens
Session4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Session at none against Nextplus's shown. Session also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and review sentiment (61% vs 44%). Nextplus's advantage is rating (4.6 vs 4.4) and ratings volume (89K vs 5.4K). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and chart position 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. Nextplus sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Session sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Nextplus holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Nextplus has 89K ratings behind it against 5.4K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 44% of Nextplus's written reviews are positive against 61% of Session's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Nextplus ships an update every 3 weeks, Session fortnightly. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Nextplus versus Session: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNextplusSession
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (89K ratings) — better4.4 (5.4K ratings)
Positive reviews44.5% of reviews61.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings89K — better5.4K
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksFortnightly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#110#105 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.6
Further details — not scored
Size201 MB92 MB
Age rating17+17+
DevelopertextPlus, Inc.The Loki Project

Customer experience

Nextplus

All ratings90,022 ratings
Positive89.5%
Neutral4.1%
Negative6.4%
Written reviews1,055 reviews
Positive44.5%
Neutral8.2%
Negative47.4%

Session

All ratings5,186 ratings
Positive84.0%
Neutral4.3%
Negative11.7%
Written reviews1,242 reviews
Positive61.3%
Neutral12.1%
Negative26.7%

User reviews

Nextplus

From 89K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great service
  • 👍 Customizable user profile and message threads
  • 👍 Different ringtones to choose from
  • 👍 Personalized settings
  • 👍 Free app with no sign-up or hidden fees

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Calls sometimes drop or become inaudible
  • 🐛 Unclear how call credits are applied
  • 🐛 Messages sometimes don't deliver
  • 🐛 Photos and videos don't always work
  • 🐛 Notifications and message sync issues

Session

From 5.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🔒 Secure and private messaging
  • 👍 Clean and intuitive user interface
  • 🚀 Fast and responsive
  • 🔒 No phone number or personal data required
  • 💡 Innovative use of blockchain and Tor network

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Unreliable notifications and message delivery
  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
  • 🐛 Slow media file transfers
  • 🔋 High battery consumption
  • 👎 Limited features compared to competitors

Bugs and requests

Nextplus

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes after updates
  • Unable to create account
  • Number reclamation issues
  • Inability to send/receive texts and calls

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to log out of the app
  • Improved notification system
  • Better message delivery reliability
  • Streamlined user interface

Session

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Messages not syncing across devices
  • Inability to join or view group chats
  • Attachments and media not loading properly
  • Frequent app crashes and freezes

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add voice and video calling
  • Implement self-destruct/ephemeral messaging
  • Allow customization of chat backgrounds and themes
  • Improve group chat functionality
  • Add support for multiple accounts/identities

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Nextplus

Subscriptions5
  • Premium Bundle Monthly$4.991 Month
  • Keep My Number$9.991 Year
  • Premium Number Bundle 6-Month$24.996 Months
Show 2 more
  • Premium Number Bundle Annual7 Days trial$39.991 Year
  • Unlimited Calls to US & CA$44.991 Year
One-time6
  • Remove Ads + Quick Reply for 1 Month$0.99
  • 100 Credits2 variants$0.99
  • $1.99 in Calling Credit$1.99
Show 3 more
  • 500 Credits2 variants$4.99
  • 1,000 Credits$9.99
  • 2,000 Credits$19.99
3 purchases

Session

Subscriptions3
  • Session Pro$4.491 Month
  • Session Pro$11.993 Months
  • Session Pro$35.991 Year

Questions

Is Nextplus free?
Nextplus is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Session free?
Session is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Nextplus or Session?
Nextplus is rated higher. Nextplus averages 4.6 out of 5 from 89K ratings, while Session averages 4.4 from 5.4K ratings.
Do Nextplus or Session have ads?
Nextplus shows ads; Session does not.
Which is updated more often, Nextplus or Session?
Nextplus ships an update every 3 weeks, and Session fortnightly. Most recently, Nextplus was updated on November 1, 2026 and Session on November 1, 2026.
Which is more popular, Nextplus or Session?
Nextplus currently peaks at #110 in the App Store charts, and Session at #105. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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