European Alternatives to Whatsapp

European alternatives to

The world's most used messaging app, owned by Meta.

WhatsApp LLC · Outside Europe

About WhatsApp

Company: WhatsApp LLC · Meta Platforms Inc.
HQ: United States
Zone: Outside Europe

Key concerns

Non-European ownershipSubject to US CLOUD Act

Wire

90 · Certified European

Switzerland · Team communication

Swiss end-to-end encrypted messaging and collaboration platform for enterprise and government use. Backed by Schwarz Group (Lidl/Kaufland), hosted in the EU, and used by security-conscious organisations across Europe.

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Freemium · from Free Free tier Open source EFTA

Signal

42 · Non-European

United States · Messaging & chat

The gold standard for encrypted messaging. Open-source and non-profit.

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Free · from Free Free tier Open source

Looking for all European Messaging & chat alternatives? Browse the full list →

Did you know? Storing data on European servers does not protect you from US law if the company is American-owned.

Why avoid United States-owned services?

CLOUD Act

Allows US authorities to compel American companies to hand over data stored anywhere in the world.

FISA Section 702

Permits mass surveillance of non-US persons' data held by US tech providers, without a warrant.

GDPR vs US law

Transferring personal data to US companies may conflict with EU data protection rules under GDPR.

These concerns apply to all United States tech companies — see our full analysis →