Wire vs Element Classic
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Wire
Securely communicate and collaborate with end-to-end encryption. This app offers a unified platform for calls, chats, file sharing, and video conferences, designed for both small teams and large organizations. It prioritizes privacy with features like self-deleting messages and guest links.
- End-to-end encryption
- Secure calls and video conferences
- File and document sharing
- Self-deleting messages
- Guest rooms for external collaboration
- Cross-device synchronization
- Customizable interface
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Communicate and collaborate securely and easily. From anywhere. Always. Wire is secured with end-to-end encryption and makes life easier. Get everything done in one app. • Simple to use and beautifully designed • A single tool to make small teams and complex organizations more productive • Security and privacy at the core Wire offers a free version for friends and family. Work securely, wherever you are • Communicate and share information easily – call, chat, send pictures and files, audio and video messages – and be protected by the industry's most secure end-to-end encryption • Stay in control of your data • Increase privacy through self-deleting messages for sensitive information, device fingerprints, and guest links with passwords • Eliminate risks with constant bitrate in calls Stay connected and work productively • Communicate with your teams through private or group conversations to bring the right people together • Share and collaborate with files, documents, and links • Enjoy high-quality calls and video conferences • Invite partners, customers, and suppliers to collaborate through the unique guest rooms – perfect for one-time conversations • Set up meetings quickly • Use formatting options to write clear and structured messages • Collaborate smoothly with the help of mentions, replies, and reactions • Send a ping to get someone's attention • Use QR codes to connect with people • Share your location in a conversation • Add conversations to a custom folder helps you organize your conversations by topics • Archive conversations to keep your list clean • Rely on full administrative controls Get things done and enjoy it • Customize the app to your needs: choose your favorite color, theme, and suitable text size • Draw a sketch in any conversation • Send audio messages if you are on the go or too busy to type • Use animated GIFs – text, select, share • Use emojis to make your messages more fun • History backup lets you take all the conversations, pictures, videos, and files when upgrading to a new phone • Use Wire on up to 8 devices. Messages are separately end-to-end encrypted for each device. Your conversations are in sync across devices. • Use up to 3 different Wire accounts on your device simultaneously — all without logging in and out wire.com
Element Classic
This app is a legacy version of a communication platform, offering secure messaging and collaboration. It will receive security updates until the end of 2025 but no new features.
- Secure messaging
- Collaboration
- Legacy version
- Security updates
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Element Classic is the previous-generation of Element mobile app. Friends, family and communities should use the free and open source Element X app which is faster, easier to use, and more powerful. New users of public sector organisations, enterprises and professional teams users should use the Element Pro app that is built for work and organizations. Element Classic is available at least until the end of 2025 and will receive critical security updates but no further enhancements or new features.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Wire at fortnightly against Element Classic's monthly. Element Classic's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 17.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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.
Element Classic holds the better App Store score, 3.3 against 3.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 917 and 578 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 39% of Wire's written reviews are positive against 44% of Element Classic's.
Wire ships an update fortnightly, Element Classic monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Wire | Element Classic |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.1 (917 ratings) | 3.3 (578 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 38.8% of reviews | 43.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 917 — better | 578 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.1 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 124 MB | 172 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Wire Swiss GmbH | Vector Creations Limited |
Customer experience
Wire
Element Classic
User reviews
Wire
From 917 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and smooth
- 🔒 Secure and private
- 👍 Elegant and intuitive design
- 👍 Great voice and call quality
- 👍 Useful features like drawing, GIFs, and file sharing
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy, crashes, and freezes
- 🐛 Unreliable notifications and message delivery
- 🐛 Laggy performance on older devices
- 🐛 Confusing user interface
- 🔋 High battery consumption
Element Classic
From 578 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and efficient
- 🔒 Secure and private
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 💡 Innovative features
- 🌐 Decentralized and open-source
Room to improve
- 🐛 Buggy and unstable
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 📚 Steep learning curve
- 🤔 Confusing user experience
- 🚫 Lack of key features
Bugs and requests
Wire
Reported bugs
5 issues- Messages getting stuck on 'Sending'
- Inability to delete call history
- Crashes on app launch after updates
- Incompatibility with older iOS versions
- Issues with photo/video sharing and playback
Requested features
5 requests- Add read receipts
- Allow customizable notification sounds
- Improve contact management and group chat features
- Add support for Apple Watch
- Provide backup and restore options for chat history
Element Classic
Reported bugs
5 issues- Constant crashes and freezes
- Issues with message decryption and verification
- Unreliable notifications and sync issues
- Inability to leave or delete empty rooms
- Problems with image and video sharing
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to pause notifications
- Option to set messages to disappear after a certain time
- Improved search functionality
- Better integration with other apps and services
- Customizable font size and notification sounds
In-app purchases
Wire
No in-app purchases
Element Classic
No in-app purchases





