Best Messaging Apps for Mac

The short answer. Slack if your team is on it, because a messaging app is chosen for you more often than by you. Signal if the conversation is private and you want end-to-end encryption on by default. Element if you specifically want a decentralised protocol rather than a company’s servers. Discord if you want persistent community spaces rather than one-to-one conversation. Telegram if you value its feature set and accept that only some conversations are end-to-end encrypted. WeChat if you need to reach people who are on it, which for many users is the whole reason.

This guide covers 9 messaging apps for macOS. Every fact below is drawn from the same verified records that back each app’s own page. The recommendations are our editorial judgment, not payment. Last verified 2026-10-05.

Quick comparison

What actually decides this

• Who else is on it. This is the real criterion. A messaging app is a network, and the best client for a network you are not on is worth nothing.
• What is encrypted, by default. The distinction that matters is between encryption that is always on and encryption you have to enable per conversation. A feature you must remember to turn on is a feature most conversations will not have.
• Protocol: open or proprietary. An open protocol means other clients can connect and the server can be run by someone else. A proprietary one means the vendor decides both.
• Native app or wrapped web view. Several Mac clients are a web interface in a window. That shows up in memory use, notifications and how well the app integrates with the system.
• Where the history lives. Local database, the vendor’s servers, or your own server. This decides what happens to your conversations when you stop using the app.

Our picks

• Signal Desktop — It applies end-to-end encryption to ordinary conversations without a per-chat switch, which is the difference between a feature existing and a feature being used. Choose it when the conversation is the point and you want encryption to be the default rather than an option.
• Element — It speaks an open protocol, so the server can be operated by someone else, including you. Choose it when you want the conversations to be independent of one company’s servers.
• Slack — For work, this is usually the only criterion that matters. Choose it when your organisation already uses it.
• Discord — Its structure is built around standing communities, which is a different shape from a chat app. Choose it when you want persistent spaces with roles and voice rather than one-to-one threads.

The apps

Adium

Adium is a messaging app for macOS. Free instant messaging application for Mac OS X. Connect to AIM, MSN, SMPP, Yahoo and more. It is free.

Adium is listed with current version 1.5.10.4.

Full profile and verified facts for Adium →

Caprine

Caprine is a messaging app for macOS. Third-party privacy-focused Facebook Messenger app. It is released under MIT.

What it does. Elegant Facebook Messenger desktop app.

Caprine is listed with current version 2.61.0.

Full profile and verified facts for Caprine →

Discord

Discord is a messaging app for macOS. Voice, text, and community chat platform. It is released under Proprietary. It is freemium.

Strengths. The core service is free; Nitro Basic and Nitro are optional subscriptions at $2.99 and $9.99 per month. According to the developer, voice, video and text chat live in one client, organised into servers and channels rather than separate apps. According to the developer, the same account works across macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android and consoles.

Trade-offs. Discord is a hosted service: the desktop app is a client for Discord’s servers and does nothing without a connection to them. Discord’s own macOS download link is labelled x64, and no first-party page Nuanyue checked states native Apple Silicon support. The minimum macOS version is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks.

Not for. Workplaces looking for team chat — Discord is aimed at communities, and Slack is the comparison. Anyone who needs to work offline — the desktop app is a client for Discord’s servers. People who want a self-hostable or open-source chat platform — Discord is a proprietary hosted service.

What it does. Servers divided into text and voice channels. Voice, video and text chat, including direct messages. Screen sharing and low-latency streaming. Custom emoji, stickers, soundboard and profile customisation.

Discord is listed with current version 0.0.414.

Full profile and verified facts for Discord →

Element

Element is a messaging app for macOS. Free and open-source Matrix client for Mac, Windows, Linux and the web, with end-to-end encryption on by default, decentralised rooms, threads and Element Call voice and video. It is released under AGPL-3.0. It is freemium.

Strengths. According to the developer, end-to-end encryption is on by default across the platform, including voice and video calls. Built on the Matrix open standard, so it interoperates with any other Matrix-based system and there is no vendor lock-in. Devices can be verified against each other with a QR code or an emoji string.

Trade-offs. Element’s paid server editions have no published prices; both the Enterprise and Sovereign tiers are ‘talk to an expert’. The decentralised model means an account lives on a homeserver, so choosing and trusting a server is part of getting started rather than something handled for you. The macOS build is a zip from the vendor’s own update server, so installation and updates are manual rather than handled by a store. The minimum macOS version is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks.

Not for. Anyone who wants a messenger where contacts are simply found by phone number, which Element deliberately does not require. People who do not want to think about which homeserver an account lives on.

What it does. Built on the Matrix open standard, an open network for decentralised communication. End-to-end encryption on by default across the platform, including voice and video. Cross-signed device verification using a QR code or an emoji string. Private, invite-only rooms.

Element is listed with current version 1.12.30.

Full profile and verified facts for Element →

Signal Desktop

Signal Desktop is a messaging app for macOS. Signal’s open-source desktop client for macOS, which links to Signal on a phone and encrypts messages and calls end-to-end. It is released under AGPL-3.0.

Strengths. Published under the AGPL-3.0, so the client source can be inspected and rebuilt independently. Messages and calls are end-to-end encrypted by default using the Signal Protocol. According to the developer, run by the Signal Technology Foundation, an independent nonprofit, and funded by donations rather than advertising.

Trade-offs. The desktop app cannot register on its own: it must be linked to Signal on an Android or iPhone device, so a phone number is required. Requires macOS 13 or later, which excludes Macs that cannot run Ventura. Fewer contacts already use Signal than WhatsApp, so it often ends up as a second messenger rather than the only one. The supported floor is macOS 13 (Ventura); Signal publishes no build for earlier macOS releases. The macOS download is a single universal build; no Signal page states Apple Silicon support in those words, so Nuanyue records that field as unknown.

Not for. Users who need a standalone account with no phone — Signal Desktop must be linked to a phone number. Macs running macOS 12 or earlier — the desktop build requires macOS 13 or later. People who need a messenger their whole contact list already uses — network effects favour WhatsApp and iMessage.

What it does. End-to-end encrypted messages and calls using the Signal Protocol. Linked-device sync with Signal on Android or iOS. Group chats and group calls. Voice and video calls.

Signal Desktop is listed with current version 8.29.0.

Full profile and verified facts for Signal Desktop →

Slack

Slack is a messaging app for macOS. A team messaging app with channels, threads, huddles and app integrations, distributed as a Mac desktop client and on the Mac App Store. It is freemium.

Strengths. According to the developer, conversations are organised into channels and threads rather than a single chronological stream. According to the developer, huddles provide audio and video with screen sharing without leaving the app. The Mac app is available both as a direct download and as a Mac App Store listing.

Trade-offs. The free plan keeps only 90 days of message history, so older messages become unsearchable until the workspace upgrades. The free plan caps integrations at ten apps and limits Slack Connect and huddles to one-to-one use. Paid tiers are billed per user per month, so cost scales directly with team size. The build’s CPU architecture is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks.

Not for. Teams that need more than 90 days of searchable history without paying — the free plan keeps only 90 days. Anyone who needs the app to work offline — it is a hosted service. Free-tier workspaces that need more than ten app integrations.

What it does. Channels and threads. Huddles with audio, video and screen sharing. Slack Connect for working with external organisations. Canvases and lists.

Slack is listed with current version 4.52.171.

Full profile and verified facts for Slack →

Telegram

Telegram is a messaging app for macOS. Cloud messaging app for macOS with groups, channels and large file sharing, where only Secret Chats are end-to-end encrypted. It is released under GPL-2.0. It is freemium.

Strengths. According to the developer, message history is stored in the cloud, so it is available on every signed-in device rather than only on the device that received it. Secret Chats add a second layer of client-to-client encryption on top of the cloud chat transport. Files can be sent up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with a Premium subscription.

Trade-offs. Cloud chats are encrypted between client and server, not end to end, so Telegram holds the keys to ordinary conversations. Secret Chats are tied to one device and are excluded from the cloud, so they do not sync to a Mac and a phone at once. The server code is not published, and Telegram argues that publishing it would not provide a verifiable security guarantee. The server code is not published, so the service side cannot be independently verified. The Telegram Premium price is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks.

Not for. Anyone who needs every conversation end-to-end encrypted by default — only Secret Chats are. Users who need to verify the service end to end, since the server code is not published.

What it does. Cloud chats that stay in sync across every signed-in device. Secret Chats with end-to-end, device-specific encryption. Private and group chats plus one-to-many broadcast channels. Groups that can hold up to 200,000 members.

Telegram is listed with current version 12.10.

Full profile and verified facts for Telegram →

WeChat

WeChat is a messaging app for macOS. Tencent’s official WeChat client for macOS, distributed as a universal installer from Tencent’s own servers and through the Mac App Store, where the build lags the direct download. It is released under Proprietary; free to use, published by Tencent with no licence text released. It is free.

Strengths. Free, with no paid tier, subscription or in-app purchase. The direct download is a universal build covering Apple Silicon and Intel. Available both from Tencent’s own servers and from the Mac App Store, so there are two ways to install it.

Trade-offs. The App Store build is 4.1.13 from September 2026 while the direct download is 4.1.15.22, so the store trails Tencent’s own installer. Closed source with no public repository, so nothing about the client can be audited. The App Store build requires macOS 12.0, which excludes older Macs. The macOS 12.0 floor comes from the App Store listing; the direct download publishes no system requirement of its own. Tencent publishes almost no product documentation for the Mac client, so feature claims cannot be verified from first-party pages.

Not for. Anyone on macOS 11 or earlier, since the App Store build requires macOS 12.0. Users who want an open-source client or any way to inspect what the app does. People who need the App Store build specifically, since it trails the direct download.

What it does. Universal installer covering both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, served directly from Tencent’s own download servers. Distributed both as a direct installer and through the Mac App Store, so there are two routes to install it. Published internationally by Tencent Mobile International Limited, the entity named on the App Store listing. Free to use, with no paid tier, subscription or in-app purchase.

WeChat is listed with current version 4.1.15.22.

Full profile and verified facts for WeChat →

WhatsApp Desktop

WhatsApp Desktop is a messaging app for macOS. WhatsApp’s messaging client for macOS, distributed through the Mac App Store as ‘WhatsApp Messenger’, free to use and requiring macOS 15.1 or later. It is released under Proprietary; free to use, published by WhatsApp with no licence text released. It is free.

Strengths. Free, with no paid tier or subscription for personal messaging. Installs from the Mac App Store, so it updates alongside the rest of your applications. The direct-download route is not needed; there is one canonical Mac listing to install.

Trade-offs. Requires macOS 15.1 or later, one of the highest floors of any messaging client in this catalogue. Closed source with no public repository, so the client cannot be audited. The listing the catalogue linked to has been delisted, so any bookmark to the old App Store id is dead. The App Store listing this entry originally used, id1147396723, has been delisted — it returns no result. The live listing is id310633997, ‘WhatsApp Messenger’, published by WhatsApp Inc. The current build declares macOS 15.1 or later, so it will not install on a Mac that cannot be upgraded that far.

Not for. Anyone on macOS 15.0 or earlier — the current build declares macOS 15.1, a high floor for a messaging client. Users who want an open-source client they can audit. People looking for a direct download; the Mac route is the App Store.

What it does. Installs from the Mac App Store rather than as a download from the vendor’s site. Free to use, with no paid tier or subscription for personal messaging. Ships as the same WhatsApp Messenger listing that covers the company’s other platforms. Published by WhatsApp Inc., the entity named on the App Store listing.

WhatsApp Desktop is listed with current version 26.38.74.

Full profile and verified facts for WhatsApp Desktop →

How to choose

• Free of charge. Adium, WeChat and WhatsApp Desktop — no payment is required.
• No licence fee, source available. Caprine and Signal Desktop — the source can be read and, under the terms of each licence, reused.
• Freemium. Discord, Element, Slack and Telegram — free to use, with paid tiers for additional features.

Open source: Caprine, Element, Signal Desktop and Telegram (4 of 9).

Common mistakes

• Reading “encrypted” as “end-to-end encrypted”. Transport encryption protects the message between you and the server; end-to-end encryption protects it from the server as well.
• Assuming a Mac desktop client is equivalent across these apps. Some are native applications and some are the web app in a window, and you will feel the difference in memory and notifications.
• Choosing a secure messenger and then using it to reach people who are not on it, which pushes you back to a less private app for exactly the conversations you cared about.
• Leaving history in a service you no longer use. What you can export, and in what format, varies a great deal between these apps.

How this guide was put together

Each app’s facts come from its own record: the developer’s own pages and repository, the App Store listing where one exists, and the documentation, each with a source grade and an access date. Where a fact rests on the developer’s own statement rather than on something we verified independently, the sentence says so. Where our data has no value for something, the guide says “not published” instead of guessing.

A price appears here only where the record carries one from a stated source; the guide never estimates one, and it records the pricing model alongside so the two can be read together. Prices change and vary by region, so each app links to its own page for the current detail.

The facts and the recommendations are kept apart on purpose. Everything in the app entries, the comparison table and the answers above is composed from the records. The short answer, the criteria and the picks are our editorial judgment: they reflect what we would choose and why, and they are not paid for. Where we make a recommendation we name the condition it applies under, because we do not call anything “the best” without explaining the criteria.

Verified 2026-10-05.