Alternatives
Best Signal alternatives
The gold-standard E2EE messenger: open-source, independently studied, post-quantum, and run by a nonprofit that has proven in court it holds almost no data — but it still ties your account to a phone number and runs on central servers. Here are the more private options, ranked honestly — with the tradeoffs named.
Why people leave Signal
- Signal requires a phone number to register, and that requirement is staying. You can now share an optional username instead of your number, and your number is hidden from contacts by default — but you still must hand a real, billable phone number to sign up, which is a non-starter for people who want true anonymity or can't easily get a SIM. (Signal Support — Register a phone number)
- Signal runs on central servers. The encryption is excellent, but message routing, your registration, and the directory all flow through Signal's US-based infrastructure — a single operator and a single jurisdiction that subpoenas can target, even if there's almost nothing to hand over. (Signal — Grand jury subpoena (District of Columbia))
- Some people simply want no phone number at all — not even a hidden one — and want metadata-hiding (IP, who-talks-to-whom) baked in by default rather than relying on a US nonprofit's policy promises. Signal's own username rollout exists precisely because the phone-number link is a recurring privacy complaint. (The Intercept — Signal's new usernames)
The alternatives, ranked
- 1 Session No phone number, IP and metadata hidden by default
An onion-routed, account-number-only messenger that needs no phone number and hides your IP — but note its currently-shipping protocol still lacks forward secrecy (a V2 with PFS + post-quantum is announced for 2026).
Compare with RVNT → - 2 SimpleX Chat Maximum anonymity — no identifiers of any kind
The only network here with no user IDs at all — not even random numbers — using disposable message queues, with a post-quantum-augmented Double Ratchet, though its UX is rougher than Signal's.
Compare with RVNT → - 3 Threema Polished, no-phone-number app from a privacy-friendly jurisdiction
A paid, audited, Swiss, open-source messenger that needs no phone number and encrypts everything by default — the most mature no-number option, but it runs on central servers and isn't post-quantum yet.
Compare with RVNT → - 4 RVNT Fully P2P, post-quantum, no account of any kind — if you'll accept young software
Peer-to-peer with hybrid post-quantum X3DH (X25519 + ML-KEM-768) and Double Ratchet, no phone number or email, Tor-by-default routing and a mixnet — but it's young, unaudited, and far smaller than Signal, so choose it for the architecture, not for proven maturity.
Get RVNT → - 5 WhatsApp Everyone you know is already on it
Signal-Protocol encryption for messages by default and a 2 GB file limit, but it's owned by Meta, closed-source, still tied to your phone number, and metadata-rich — a step sideways on architecture, not a privacy upgrade.
Compare with RVNT →
Switching from Signal: what to expect
Leaving Signal is mostly a downgrade in maturity and an upgrade in anonymity, so be clear-eyed about the trade. Signal is independently studied, court-tested (it has proven in practice that it holds almost no data), and now post-quantum end-to-end on both the handshake (PQXDH) and the message ratchet (the new SPQR / Triple Ratchet, ML-KEM-768) — you are walking away from the best-vetted protocol in the field. What you gain depends on where you go: drop the phone number with Threema or Session, drop every identifier with SimpleX, or drop the central server entirely with RVNT. What you lose almost everywhere is network size (your contacts are on Signal, not these) and, in several cases, audit history and reliability — Session currently ships without forward secrecy, and RVNT is young and unaudited. Practically, there's no chat-history export between any of these apps: messages stay on the device they were sent to, so a switch means starting fresh and re-adding the people you talk to. Keep Signal installed during any transition.
Frequently asked questions
Is anything actually more secure than Signal?
On raw protocol strength, no mainstream messenger clearly beats Signal — it's open-source, independently studied, court-tested, and now **post-quantum** on both the handshake (PQXDH) and the message ratchet (SPQR / Triple Ratchet). The honest reasons to switch are **architecture and anonymity**, not cipher strength: getting rid of the phone-number requirement (**Threema**, **Session**, **SimpleX**), removing all identifiers (**SimpleX**), or removing the central server entirely (**RVNT**). For most people, Signal is still the right default — leave only if a specific privacy property matters more than maturity.
Can I use Signal without giving it my phone number?
No. Signal lets you share an optional **username** instead of your number and hides your number from contacts by default, but you still must register with a real phone number, and Signal has said that requirement is staying. If a no-phone-number account is your goal, **Threema**, **Session**, and **SimpleX** are built without one, and **RVNT** has no account at all — your identity is a local keypair claimed by proof-of-work.