Every messaging app runs group chats differently, and the differences decide which one you should use for a given group. Here is what separates them.
iMessage
Apple only, up to 32 people, with no admins. Anyone can add or remove anyone, which works in small trusted groups and badly in large ones. End to end encrypted when everyone is on iMessage, and downgraded to group MMS the moment someone is not, which removes naming, leaving and threaded replies.
Cross platform, groups well past a thousand members, with proper admin controls. Admins can restrict who posts and who edits the group details, and messages are end to end encrypted by default. The most capable option for a large group where not everyone has the same phone.
Telegram
Cross platform and built for scale, with supergroups running to hundreds of thousands of members, plus bots, polls and detailed admin permissions. Ordinary group chats are encrypted in transit and stored on Telegram servers rather than end to end encrypted, which is the trade you make for the cloud sync and the scale.
Signal
Cross platform, around a thousand members, end to end encrypted including the group membership itself. Fewer features by design. The right choice when privacy is the point.
Messenger
Cross platform, tied to Facebook accounts, with admin roles and a few hundred members. Convenient if the group already exists as a Facebook circle.
Google Messages
Android first, and the behaviour depends on whether the group is RCS or SMS. RCS groups get typing indicators, read receipts, better media and encryption in supported cases. SMS groups get none of that, and behave like iMessage green groups.
Choosing by Situation
- Family or friends, all on iPhones: iMessage is fine and already there.
- Mixed phones: WhatsApp or Signal. Do not fight group MMS.
- A large community or an announcement channel: Telegram.
- Anything sensitive: Signal.
- A work team: none of these. Use a work tool with channels and search.
The Two Things That Actually Matter
First, whether the app has admins. Without them, a group over about fifteen people becomes unmanageable. Second, whether everyone is on the same platform, because a single mismatched phone can strip a group of half its features. Check both before you create the group rather than after.
