Advantages of Telegram Messenger Over WhatsApp

Two hours ago, my friend and colleague Paul Herwarth added me to a WhatsApp group when preparing for our ski trip to Austria next week. I like how Paul ties people together. He is the best networker in our company, and, for good reasons, a shareholder of our company. But he made me very angry with this invitation. Actually, I even left a message that read "Have fun without me here," and then I left the group.

I thought for a minute about uninstalling WhatsApp altogether, but decided it wasn't the right measure. Then I realized, it was quite rude of me to drop out of the group. So I set out to explain myself. I have been asked for years now, why I hate WhatsApp so much, and why I advocate for Telegram heavily. This blog post will explain my reasons.

I do not like WhatsApp because it is an inferior solution. I do not care much about privacy stuff - I don't worry about whether Facebook, as the owners of WhatsApp, are spying on me. But it is revealing that Facebook's Messenger is outsmarting WhatsApp, getting many more features, and is simply the better instant messenger. But that would be another comparison.

To make my point about why you should switch to Telegram:

  • See my comparison table on our website. It has more than 30 features - Telegram has them, WhatsApp doesn't.
  • It is easy to switch. If you want see if it's a better messenger to use with your spouse, you only need them to try it with you. That's it. If you do not like it, you can switch back. There is really no cost of switching instant messengers.
  • Life is too short to use bad software. Telegram is much faster, it has better usability, and it is more fun, especially for leisure usage.

The reason why Paul uses WhatsApp, is the only reason most people use it. Almost everyone seems to use it. Those network externalities led to Facebook paying for the service, spending about 19 billion US Dollars. But I feel it is my duty to fight against bad and cumbersome solutions. WhatsApp is exactly that.

Paul and the rest of you: Please stop using WhatsApp. Please start talking to your friends about better options like Telegram. Do not take the easy way out. Good software needs our attention. It needs to be appreciated.

Telegram is the best messenger for private use at this point. I would not recommend it as a group chat for companies. Here is a comparison of company messaging solutions like HipChat, Slack and Skype for Business.

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