Open-source FaceTime alternatives

Jitsi Meet is a collection of open-source projects for hosting video conferences. It works in all current browsers and has Android and iOS apps, and it can be used as a ready-made service or embedded into other web applications through web and native SDKs. It is built on WebRTC with a selective forwarding unit to scale to larger meetings.

Meetings offer HD audio and video, content sharing, raised hands and reactions, chat with private conversations, polls and virtual backgrounds. The hosted service at meet.jit.si is free to use, and the README says you can start a meeting after signing in with an account from a major provider. Mobile users can use the browser or the full-featured apps, which are also available from F-Droid, and open beta programs let early adopters test features.

If you prefer control over your data, Jitsi can be deployed on your own infrastructure, with documentation for running your own instance. Jitsi Meet is Apache-2.0 licensed and written in TypeScript. It suits organizations, schools and communities that want an alternative to proprietary meeting software.

Signal Android is the source code of the Signal private messenger for Android. Signal describes itself as a simple and secure messenger that sends messages and places voice and video calls over WiFi or a mobile data connection, with privacy protections always switched on. The app is written in Kotlin and released under the AGPL-3.0 license, and it is free to use.

The app is available from the Play Store and signal.org, with versions for iOS and desktop as well. The repository explains how to report bugs on GitHub, join the beta channel on Google Play, contribute translations through the community forum, and submit code. New contributors are encouraged to start with small bug fixes, and larger ideas should be discussed on the community forum first. The client depends on Signal's own hosted service, so there is no self-hosted server option here.

SimpleX is a messaging network built around the idea that it should not assign identifiers of any kind to its users, not even random IDs, which the project says makes it private by design. The goal is to protect not just message content but also metadata, meaning who talks to whom and when.

Messages use double-ratchet end-to-end encryption with an additional encryption layer. Apps are available for Android and iOS, with an iOS TestFlight preview that gets new features a week or two earlier but is limited in the number of users, and a terminal client runs on Linux, macOS and Windows. The README invites readers to install the app, connect to the team and user groups, make a private connection with a friend, help with translations and donate. The core is written in Haskell.

SimpleX Chat is licensed under AGPL-3.0, and its protocol and server software are open so that others can host relays. It is aimed at people who need stronger privacy guarantees than mainstream messengers provide, such as journalists, activists and privacy-conscious individuals.

Element Web is a client for Matrix, the open protocol for decentralized messaging. It is the web and desktop application formerly known as Vector and Riot, and it lets people join rooms, chat in teams and communities, and collaborate across Matrix servers rather than inside a single vendor's network.

The client is built with TypeScript on top of the Matrix JS SDK. The README defines support tiers for browsers, covering recent versions of Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari on desktop, best-effort handling for ESR and extended-stable releases, and community support for mobile web. For phones and tablets the maintainers recommend the native Element X apps for Android and iOS.

It is released under the AGPL-3.0 license and is typically served from your own web host or used through the hosted app from the vendor, Element. Related products such as Element Call and the Enterprise Server Suite are mentioned as part of the wider Element offering. Changes are tracked on GitHub with regular release cycles.

Signal iOS is the iPhone and iPad client of Signal, a free and open-source messaging app made for simple, private communication with friends. The same service is also available on Android and as a desktop application, so conversations are not tied to a single platform.

The app is written in Swift. The maintainers state that it collects no analytics or telemetry, which is why they rely on bug reports sent through the Support Center to troubleshoot problems. Developers can follow BUILDING.md to set up a build environment and read the contribution guidelines, while ideas and discussion go through the community forum run for Signal Foundation projects.

The repository is released under the AGPL-3.0 license. Because the software includes cryptographic functionality, the README carries a cryptography notice reminding users to check their country's rules on encryption software and documents its export classification. Signal itself operates as a hosted messaging service rather than something you run on your own server.

Chitchatter is a free communication tool that aims to be the simplest way to connect with others privately and securely. It is peer-to-peer, using a TURN server only when a direct connection is not possible, and end-to-end encrypted through WebRTC. It is fully open source under the GPL v2 license.

Messages are ephemeral: content is never written to disk on either the client or a server. The tool is also decentralized, working without an API server, with only GitHub for static assets and public WebTorrent and TURN relay servers needed to establish connections. Its topics list video conferencing and the Trystero library.

A public instance runs at chitchatter.im, and since it is a static web app it can also be hosted elsewhere. Chitchatter suits people who want a quick private room for text, video, or file exchange without creating accounts, and developers interested in serverless WebRTC applications.

Linphone Desktop is an open-source softphone for voice and video calling and instant messaging over IP. It is based entirely on the SIP protocol and handles calling, presence and messaging features. The project is developed by Belledonne Communications, and this GitHub repository mirrors the official git repository.

Topics on the repository include conferencing, chat and messaging. The app is built with Qt 6, requires a C++17 compiler, and depends on the Linphone SDK, so building from source means installing the SDK dependencies and setting up the Qt environment. Supported features and RFCs are listed in the project documentation and wiki.

Linphone is dual licensed. It is free under GPL-3.0 for open-source use, and Belledonne Communications also sells a proprietary license for a fee to companies that want to use it in closed-source applications.

MiroTalk C2C is an open-source WebRTC application for private one-to-one video calls between two browsers. It uses direct peer-to-peer connections and supports screen sharing, and the project describes the calls as end-to-end encrypted.

It is aimed at consultations, coaching, customer support, telehealth and other situations where two people need a private browser-based call. The interface can be embedded into any website via an iframe. Settings include camera background options of off, blur or a custom image, processed locally in the browser, although the effects load MediaPipe files from external hosts.

You can start it with a few commands or run it with Docker and Docker Compose, then open it on localhost port 8080. A live demo, documentation and a Discord community are linked from the repository. The project is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and is written in JavaScript.

Briefing, running at Brie.fi/ng, is a secure group video chat that works directly in the browser using open technologies such as WebRTC. No extra software is needed, and a conversation can start immediately for free. A free iOS app also exists. Features include desktop sharing, text chat and simple invitation links, and the code can be extended with JavaScript and Vue knowledge.

Briefing is self-contained: it bundles the user interface, signaling and STUN components that a WebRTC video chat needs. There are several ways to use it in your own project. You can create a room on Brie.fi/ng and link it from your site, embed it in a frame with a configurator, run it on your own server through Docker or a cloud platform such as fly.io, Render, Google Cloud, AWS or Azure, or customize the source code.

The public license is AGPL-3.0 or later, and the author also offers a commercial license, particularly for white-labeling applications. Sponsorship through GitHub is also welcome. The project is written in TypeScript with Vue, and topics highlight end-to-end encryption and WebRTC signaling.