Safest messaging app for iPhone: Signal, iMessage or other
The safest messaging app for iPhone is Signal for private talk. iMessage works with Apple friends. For strangers, pick an app that verifies identity first.
The safest messaging app for an iPhone, if you mean private messages between people who know each other, is Signal. iMessage is a good second choice when everyone in the chat has an iPhone. Both use end-to-end encryption, which means the company running the service cannot read what you send. If you mean meeting new people, encryption is only half the story, and you want an app that checks who is on the other end. I built Hashti for that second case, so I will tell you where it fits and where it does not.
Two different questions hiding in one search
When people search for the safest messaging app, they usually mean one of two things.
The first is privacy. Can anyone read my messages? Can the company, a hacker, someone on the same Wi-Fi? This is about encryption and about how much data the app keeps on you.
The second is people. Can a stranger message me? Can someone harass me and come back with a new account? Can I tell who is real? This is about identity and moderation.
Most articles only answer the first question. I think you should answer both before you pick an app, because the right app is different for each.
For private talk with people you know
Here is my honest opinion, and it is an opinion, not a lab result.
Signal is the one I would send my own family to. It is built around encryption and it keeps very little about you. It is run by a nonprofit and its code is open for anyone to inspect. It works well on iPhone, including calls and group chats.
iMessage is already on your phone. Between two iPhones it is encrypted and it needs no setup. The catch is that when someone on Android is in the chat, the messages fall back to plain text messaging, which is not private in the same way. So iMessage is safe for Apple-to-Apple talk and weaker for mixed groups.
WhatsApp also encrypts messages by default and almost everyone already has it. People who care most about privacy often dislike that it belongs to a big advertising company and that it collects more information around the messages than Signal does. Whether that matters to you is a personal call.
Telegram is popular, but its normal chats are not end-to-end encrypted by default. You have to start a special secret chat for that. Group chats do not get it. I would not call it the safest choice for private talk, whatever else it does well.
If you want one answer: use Signal for anything sensitive, and iMessage when it is only iPhones.
What encryption does not protect you from
Encryption stops people reading messages in transit. It does not do these things.
It does not stop someone from taking a screenshot of what you send.
It does not protect you if your phone is unlocked and in someone else's hand.
It does not stop a stranger from messaging you, or from being someone other than who they claim to be.
It does not help if you click a link in a message that leads to a fake login page.
So a few habits matter as much as the app. Turn on a passcode and Face ID. Keep iOS updated. Do not tap links from people you do not know. Never send a verification code that arrives by text to anyone, even if they say they work for the app.
For meeting new people, the risk is different
This is the part most lists skip, and it is why I built Hashti.
When you chat with strangers, nobody is reading your messages. The danger is the person. A fake account, someone who harasses you and then makes a new profile, someone who pretends to be a friend. An encrypted app does not solve any of that, because in an open app the stranger is the one reading the messages.
For this case I think three things matter more than encryption.
One, does the app check that a real person is behind each account?
Two, when someone behaves badly, does the app actually remove them, and can they simply come back?
Three, can strangers message you without limits, or are there controls?
How Hashti handles it
I will describe what Hashti does and then what it does not do.
Hashti is free, for adults only, and out now on the App Store. Android is in its closed test. You verify your identity once against a government document. The photo of the document is deleted afterward. What stays is a fingerprint, so the same document cannot be used to open a second account. That is how a banned person is stopped from returning with a new profile.
Accounts that are not verified cannot host rooms, speak in voice rooms or message strangers. They can look around, but they cannot be the source of trouble in a conversation.
If twelve verified people report an account, it is closed permanently. Because the reporters are verified too, it is harder to abuse reports with a pile of fake accounts.
The app has public rooms with names and topics, plus private chats, calls and a walkie-talkie. You can read more on the rooms page and the safety page.
Where Hashti is not the right choice
I do not want to oversell it.
If you want private messages with friends and family, use Signal. Hashti is built for meeting people, not for being your private messenger.
Hashti is for adults only. It is not a place for teenagers, and I do not market it to them.
It is not a dating app, and I do not want it to be one.
The identity check asks for a government document. Some people will not be comfortable with that, and that is a fair reason to skip it. I think the trade is worth it for a place where strangers talk, but I understand people who disagree.
The app itself is in English today. A Farsi version is being built. Live translation across 29 languages exists, but it is part of Hashti Plus, which costs $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year. Everything else is free.
A simple way to choose
Ask yourself who you are talking to.
If you already know them, choose Signal, or iMessage if it is all iPhones.
If you are talking to people you will never meet in person, choose an app that verifies identity and removes repeat offenders, and read how it does it before you trust it.
If you want both, it is fine to have both. I use Signal for people I know and Hashti for people I am just getting to know. They do different jobs.
A short checklist before you install anything
Check who owns the app and how it makes money. If it is free and you cannot tell how, you are probably the product.
Read what it asks permission for. A chat app does not need your full contacts list to work.
See whether it explains how it handles reports and bans in plain words.
Look at when it was last updated. A messaging app that has not been updated in a year is a risk.
Test it with a throwaway conversation before you put anything private in it.
The honest summary
For private messages on iPhone, Signal is the safest pick I know of. iMessage is fine within the Apple world. For meeting strangers, look for identity checks and real consequences for bad behavior, because encryption alone does not protect you from a person.
I am Armenian-Iranian, and I live in Los Angeles. I wanted a place where people from my community, and any community, could meet without being worried about who was behind the screen. That is the whole reason Hashti exists. If that sounds like what you need, take a look at the public rooms. If you only want private chat with people you know, I will happily tell you to go use Signal.
Hashti is free, and it is 18+. Hashti Plus — live translation, writing help and catch-ups — is $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year, and nothing else costs anything. How rooms work is on the rooms page, and how reports and the ID check work is on the safety page.