The best WhatsApp alternative (and to Signal, Telegram and Matrix)
An honest comparison with WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram and Matrix. Always verify for yourself: apps change.
| Feature | MILITAR | Signal | Telegram | Matrix | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No phone number required | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Anonymous use (an identity-free email is enough) | Yes | No | No | No | Partial |
| E2E encryption by default | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Private keys ONLY on your device (not on the server) | Yes | No | No | No | Partial |
| DECENTRALIZED network of nodes chosen or created by users themselves | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Self-hosting (your own node) | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Private off-grid node (the web cannot see it) | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Automatic node monitoring (watchdog) + 1-5★ user ratings | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Conversation metadata distributed, not centralized | Partial | No | Partial | No | Partial |
| Invite-only (club) | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| No ads or tracking | Yes | No | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| Ephemeral messages per conversation | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | Partial |
Anonimato (cuantos más NO, mejor)
| Característica | Militar.chat | Briar | Confide | Conversations | Delta Chat | Jami | Session | Signal | Silent Phone | SimpleX | Spike | SecureCrypt App | Telegram | Threema | Vault Chat | Viber | Wire |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verificación de identidad | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Exige teléfono/DNI/domicilio | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | NO | SÍ | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ |
| Exige método de pago | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO |
Seguridad y control (cuantos más SÍ, mejor)
| Característica | Militar.chat | Briar | Confide | Conversations | Delta Chat | Jami | Session | Signal | Silent Phone | SimpleX | Spike | SecureCrypt App | Telegram | Threema | Vault Chat | Viber | Wire |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Descentralizado | SÍ | SÍ | NO | SÍ | SÍ | SÍ | SÍ | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Importar/exportar claves | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Crear nodo propio | SÍ | SÍ | NO | SÍ | SÍ | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Compartir nodo | SÍ | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Elegir entre múltiples nodos | SÍ | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Multinodo (un nodo por conversación) | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Mensajes de urgencia | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Sonido específico para urgencias | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Dos conversaciones paralelas | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Certificar conversaciones | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Doble cifrado de mensajes | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO | NO |
| Protección anti-captura | SÍ | NO | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | NO | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | NO | SÍ | SÍ |
| Copia de seguridad en servidor cliente/sistema | SÍ | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | NO | NO | SÍ | SÍ | SÍ | SÍ | NO | SÍ | SÍ | NO | SÍ | SÍ |
What makes MILITAR different
No app is perfect and they all evolve. MILITAR's core difference is twofold: it doesn't tie you to a phone number, and it doesn't force your messages (or their metadata) through a central server, because the mailbox can live on a node you run yourself. And, being an invite-only club, it isn't a mass service open to anyone.
Where we're behind (and we say it plainly)
We'd rather you hear it from us than from someone else: today Signal is cryptographically more robust. We lack ratchet-style forward secrecy (a key leak could expose history) and we don't yet have an external audit or an iOS/desktop version. On the other hand, in-app key verification (an anti-impersonation safety number) is already available, and we've published the protocol specification. None of this is hidden: we detail it, with its real status, on the security page.
About "metadata": we mean CONVERSATION metadata (who talks to whom, when). To provide the service we ALWAYS need an email address, but that email does NOT have to reveal your identity: it can be an anonymous address. So, even on the free plan, you can use MILITAR hiding who you are entirely: no phone number and an identity-free email.
Indicative comparison (2026). "Partial" means the answer depends on the configuration or version. We are not affiliated with the other apps.