If you have an iPhone, an iPad, or a Mac, you've probably wondered more than once whether it's better to use iMessage or Telegram for your daily conversationsBoth services are highly polished, have tons of features, and integrate differently into your daily life, so choosing one or the other isn't always as simple as installing the latest app.
In addition to all this, there is an increasingly common concern: Privacy, security, and how your data is protectedEspecially since Apple offers Advanced Data Protection for iCloud, many users are wondering if iMessage is now more secure than Telegram, what happens to backups, or which one is better to use for talking to your partner, family, or friends when everyone has Apple devices.
Basic differences between iMessage and Telegram on Apple devices
The first thing is to understand that iMessage is not a standalone app, but an integrated service in Apple's Messages app, while Telegram is a third-party messaging app downloaded from the App Store that also works on many other platforms like Android and Windows. There is no Official client for AndroidTherefore, the experience can vary greatly if your environment mixes systems.
In the case of iMessage, Messages always travel over the Internet (Wi-Fi or mobile data) and appear in blue bubbles when the chat is between Apple users. If the message appears in green, you are sending a traditional SMS or MMS through your carrier, with the corresponding costs depending on your plan.
Telegram, on the other hand, It sends all messages through its cloud servers.Always with an internet connection, regardless of the type of device you use. There is no visual distinction between "network messages" and "SMS messages," because it simply doesn't use your carrier's network to send conventional text messages.
In practice, iMessage works as a mix between old-fashioned SMS and a modern app like WhatsApp or Telegram, while Telegram is directly a cloud-based messaging platform., with a model highly focused on synchronization between devices and massive groups.
Compatible devices and ecosystem: where you can use each service
One of the key points when choosing between iMessage and Telegram is What devices do you use and what devices do the people you talk to use?There is a big difference here that has a significant impact.
iMessage can only be used officially in Apple devices: iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple WatchThere's no official client for Android or Windows, and Apple has made it quite clear that it has no intention of opening up the platform, beyond the future adoption of RCS to replace SMS, something that doesn't change the internal workings of iMessage. If you use an Apple Watch, here's how. Send and receive messages on your Apple Watch.
AirPods and HomePod don't have their own iMessage interface, but They can send and receive messages through Siri They rely on your Apple account, so they work as an extension of your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Watch when you speak or give voice commands.
Telegram, on the other hand, was designed from the beginning as a multiplatform app: It works on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, Android, Windows, and also via the web.With the same account linked to your phone number and an alias, you can log in on multiple devices at once, and your entire history syncs almost instantly.
This means that if your environment mixes iPhone and Android or several desktop systems, Telegram has an advantage due to pure compatibility.iMessage shines when the whole group is within the Apple ecosystem and communication stays "in-house".
Cost, activation, and daily usage on iPhone, iPad, and Mac
Regarding cost, both iMessage and Telegram are free to use under normal conditionsHowever, in the case of iMessage, it is necessary to distinguish between the use of the service and some specific activation or SMS costs.
Apple doesn't charge anything for sending messages with iMessage: Each iMessage costs 0 eurosJust like a Telegram message. Activating iMessage with your phone number may incur a cost, as some carriers charge for a silent international SMS when you register for the service, usually between 60 and 80 cents, though it's best to check with your provider; you can see more details about whether iMessage is free or paid.
There may also be charges if, for any reason, a message is sent as a green SMS instead of a blue iMessage, for example. if the recipient doesn't have iMessage enabled or if you lose your internet connection and the system decides to send the message over the traditional mobile network.
In contrast, Telegram does not have an activation phase with an associated cost: You verify your number with a standard SMS And from there, everything is done over the internet. The limitation is your data plan or Wi-Fi, but the app itself doesn't have mandatory subscriptions for basic chatting (beyond its optional Premium plan with extras).
On the Mac, iMessage is integrated into the macOS Messages app, but for it to work properly You need to have a paired iPhone or iPad. with your Apple account. Telegram, on the other hand, offers Telegram Desktop and Telegram for macOS with considerably more independence, although some users comment that New emoji collections take a little longer to arrive the desktop app rather than the iOS version. In fact, there is a New iMessage update which aims to improve the cross-platform experience.
User experience: features, stickers, audio, and quick response
When we talk about comfort and "feelings" when chatting, details such as audio quality come into play, the way messages are answered, the stickers, or the speed when using quick reply. from notifications on iPhone and Mac.
Some users prefer Telegram for their conversations with their partner or friends because The quality of voice messages is noticeably better Telegram is better than iMessage, especially if you're someone who sends long voice messages. Furthermore, Telegram has a very polished dark mode and an extremely extensive sticker system, which is free and doesn't require installing additional apps for most sticker packs.
In iMessage, stickers also exist and can be animated, in addition to featuring the famous Memoji, but Many stickers rely on additional apps. or from packs that you have to download separately from the mini App Store integrated into Messages, which can be a bit more cumbersome. If you want to know how Add emojis, Memoji, and stickers On your iPhone, this guide helps you step by step.
Another area where the difference is noticeable is the speed of interaction: on iOS, iMessage's quick response from the notification is very polished.This allows users to see more context and follow the conversation without fully opening the app, while in Telegram some users consider the quick reply system to be less convenient and less integrated with the system.
On macOS, things change a bit: the Messages app for Mac is somewhat more limited and feels like Quite basic compared to Telegram DesktopIt is frequently updated, has more visual and chat management options, and is better suited to intensive keyboard and mouse use.
Advanced iMessage features: much more than blue bubbles
Beneath that simple appearance, iMessage hides a good arsenal of modern features that have been arriving with each version of iOS, iPadOS and macOS, and that are further enhanced with iOS 18.
Among the most notable features of iMessage we find the reading confirmation with exact time, the sending of rich text with emojis, GIFs, images and videos, and the ability to send voice notes that can even self-destruct after playing, if you configure it so.
You can also send and receive files such as PDFs or other documents Stored in the Files app or iCloud, share your real-time location for a specified period, send hand-drawn images with Digital Touch, and send Animoji and Memoji if your iPhone has Face ID. If you're interested in sending multimedia without losing quality, here's a guide on how. send high-quality photos and videos from iPhone.
In iOS 18, Apple has taken a big leap forward with iMessage, adding advanced text formatting (bold, italic, underline, strikethrough) and animated effects to highlight specific words or phrases. In addition, you can schedule messages to be sent at a specific date and time, which is very useful for reminders or messages you want to arrive at a particular moment. The following are also discussed: option to edit in iMessage as part of future improvements.
Another powerful new feature is the ability to use any emoji or sticker as a reaction to a message, making conversations much more expressive. Apple is also preparing smart reply features and writing tools with different tones (friendly, professional, etc.), linked to Apple Intelligence, which will start arriving from 2025 onwards.
What Telegram offers: speed, groups, cloud storage, and secret chats
Telegram has built a reputation for being fast, lightweight and very versatileAnd in practice, that reputation is quite justified, especially if you use multiple devices at once and participate in large groups.
Telegram's architecture is based on a decentralized infrastructure of data centers distributed around the worldThis ensures you always connect to the nearest server. This results in very fast message sending and receiving, even with poor connections.
Being cloud-oriented, Telegram allows Sync your entire chat history and groups across all your devices automatically. You can start typing on your Mac, continue on your iPhone, and finish on your iPad, without worrying about transferring chats or juggling backups, something that iMessage relies more on iCloud for.
In terms of features, Telegram allows you to create groups of up to hundreds of peopleIt allows you to send broadcasts to many people at once, share long videos and files of virtually any type and reasonable size (.doc, .ppt, .zip, etc.). It also offers one-way broadcast channels, bots, hashtags to find messages within groups, and highly granular notification options.
For those seeking an extra layer of privacy, Telegram includes the secret chats with end-to-end encryptionThese chats can self-destruct on all participants' devices. In these chats, you can send messages, photos, videos, or files that disappear after a certain time and are not saved to the platform's cloud. If you're interested in sending more private communications from your iPhone, see how. send private messages.
Privacy and security: iMessage vs Telegram (and the role of iCloud)
The big question that many people are asking is: Which is more secure, iMessage or Telegram, if I'm talking about regular chats? Here, encryption, metadata, and storage model must be clearly separated.
iMessage encrypts all messages between Apple devices with end-to-end encryption by defaultThis means that, in transit between sender and receiver, neither the carrier, nor third parties, nor even Apple itself can read the message content. The key to decrypting it lies solely on your devices and the other person's.
SMS and MMS messages, which also arrive in the Messages app, do not have end-to-end encryption and They travel in plain text over your carrier's networkTherefore, they are inherently less secure. This duality of blue (iMessage) and green (SMS/MMS) bubbles isn't just aesthetic; it marks the difference between end-to-end encryption and a lack of robust encryption.
Telegram, on the other hand, only applies end-to-end encryption to its secret chatsRegular chats are encrypted between the client and Telegram's servers (client-server encryption), meaning the company could technically access the content in the cloud if it wanted to or was forced to. Furthermore, the server code is not completely open source, so it cannot be fully audited.
This means that, purely at the level of default content protection, iMessage offers stronger security than standard Telegram chatsOnly when you use secret chats in Telegram do you approach the same theoretical level of confidentiality that iMessage automatically offers in all its conversations between Apple devices.
Advanced Data Protection in iCloud and Backups
One aspect that is sometimes overlooked is what happens to your messages when they are saved to the cloud. Before the Apple Advanced Data ProtectioniMessage messages stored in iCloud were not end-to-end encrypted, which meant that Apple theoretically had access to those backups.
Since you activate Advanced Data Protection, Many more iCloud features, including messages, will now have end-to-end encryption.In that scenario, not even Apple can access the content of your conversations stored in the cloud: only you, with your devices and recovery keys, can decrypt them.
In Telegram, the approach is different: messages from regular chats are saved in Telegram's own cloudThey are encrypted, but with keys under the company's control. This allows for immediate synchronization across multiple devices, but means there is no end-to-end encryption for the entire history.
Secret chats on Telegram are indeed end-to-end and they don't sync between devicesThey remain on the phone where they originate and on the recipient's phone, which increases privacy but limits convenience if you frequently switch devices or move between several on a daily basis.
If you highly value the fact that not even the platform provider can access the content of your messages and you are within the Apple ecosystem, iMessage with Advanced Data Protection enabled comes out on top of the regular Telegram chats, although the latter offer a reasonable balance between convenience and security for many users.
Metadata, the company behind the service, and perception of trust
Beyond the content of the messages, there is the question of the metadata: who is talking to whom, when and from approximatelyThis data is very valuable and, in many situations, just as or even more sensitive than the chat text itself.
WhatsApp, for example, offers very robust content encryption (Signal protocol), but it collects quite a bit of metadata and belongs to MetaA company with a complicated history regarding privacy. That's why many people view it with some distrust, even though its end-to-end encryption is well implemented.
In the case of Telegram, the company also manages and stores activity metadataIn addition to the content of chats on its servers for non-secret conversations, the fact that part of its infrastructure is not completely open or audited makes some security experts cautious about recommending it as a first choice for absolute privacy.
Apple, for its part, has built much of its public image around the user privacy protectionAlthough it also manages metadata, its business model is not based on the advertising exploitation of personal data, and it has adopted measures such as broader end-to-end encryption in iCloud, restrictions on cross-app tracking, and transparency controls for developers.
If we focus exclusively on the security of message content and relative trust in the company, many analyses indicate that iMessage offers one of the best balances between strong encryption and privacy policiesprovided that all participants are in the Apple ecosystem.
Using iMessage and Telegram when traveling: data, eSIM and internationalization
When you travel abroad, the choice of messaging app also depends on how each service behaves with international data connectionsroaming or eSIM, and what about traditional SMS?
iMessage works outside your country just like at home: as long as you have a data or Wi-Fi connectionYou can continue sending messages, photos, videos, and audio to other Apple users at no extra cost beyond your regular plan. The blue bubble still indicates a free iMessage, while the green bubble indicates it was sent as an SMS, which may incur charges depending on your carrier.
This is especially interesting if you use a Data eSIMs, like those from HolaflyFor travel without worrying about roaming. You configure the data plan in Settings, activate iMessage, and communicate with your Apple contacts as if you were in your home country, without paying for international SMS messages as long as everything goes through iMessage.
Telegram, for its part, does not distinguish between national or international messages, since Everything is done via the Internet. And it doesn't use SMS to send content. If you have a stable data plan abroad or are always connected to a Wi-Fi network, the behavior is the same regardless of the country you're in.
In both cases, the critical factor is having a good data connection: with a well-configured eSIM and sufficient coverage, You can stay in touch via iMessage and Telegram without any surprises.The difference is that iMessage, to communicate with users who don't have Apple devices, uses unencrypted SMS, while Telegram continues to use its own system and maintains encrypted client-server traffic.
Practical day-to-day functions: groups, editing, deleting, and location
Both iMessage and Telegram offer very useful features that make a difference in everyday use, from group management to message editing or... real-time location sharing with your partner to let them know you're arriving.
In iMessage you can create group chats of up to 32 peopleYou can pin important conversations to the top of the list to keep them handy and react to messages with different emoticons or stickers. You can also share your real-time location for a period of time (for example, an hour) so the other person can see your progress on the map. For related features, see the mode of notice of arrival on iPhone.
However, some users miss the fact that when If they share their location for a while, a notification won't be as clear. As in Telegram, where the location is sent as a message within the chat, making it more obvious to the recipient that you are sharing it.
Regarding editing and deletion, since iOS 16 iMessage allows Edit messages within 15 minutes of sending. and undo sending within that same time frame. Additionally, you can set up automatic message deletion every 30 days or every year, reducing the digital footprint you leave on both your own and the other person's devices.
Telegram has had an advantage in this field for some time, since It allows you to edit and delete messages more flexibly.This applies to both private chats and group chats, and it tends to be more permissive with the time limits and options available. This has led many users to become accustomed to correcting mistakes or deleting messages with complete ease.
In both apps, it's important to keep in mind that even if you delete a message or it self-destructs, The other person may have taken a screenshot or saved the content in some way. No technical system can completely prevent these kinds of manual actions; if you're interested in how copy and paste a screenshot Without saving it, here's a guide.
Interoperability, RCS and the future of cross-platform messaging
The European Union is increasingly pressing for major messaging platforms should be interoperable with each otherso that you're not chained to a single app because your environment uses it, and you can write from iMessage to someone who only has WhatsApp, or from another app to a person who hasn't installed it.
In the case of WhatsApp, there have already been hints of this interoperability, such as an experimental section called "Third-Party Apps" in beta versions for Android, designed to receive messages sent from other platformsThe idea is to have a common "inbox" where messages from different messaging services arrive.
Apple, for now, has been quite reluctant to open up iMessage, but has been forced to Adopt the RCS standard to improve messaging between iPhone and AndroidRCS is gradually replacing SMS. However, RCS is not iMessage: it's a different protocol that adds encryption and advanced features to the old SMS, but it doesn't mean opening Apple's blue platform to third parties.
While this legislation is being fully implemented, it is most likely that you still need to decide which app you use as your main oneTelegram has the advantage of being cross-platform and very flexible, while iMessage offers a very well-integrated environment if you only use Apple devices and especially value privacy and simplicity.
The choice between iMessage and Telegram on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac will depend on how much weight you give to default security, compatibility with other systems, user experience, and the ecosystem where your people are active. If all your important contacts use Apple devices and you enable Advanced Data Protection, iMessage gives you a level of security and convenience that's hard to match.If you interact with people who use both iPhones and Androids, or if you rely heavily on desktop computers, Telegram offers you enormous freedom and versatilityespecially if you take advantage of its secret chats when you need maximum privacy.
