capyrate
Privacy, Proxies & Anonymity62Email6Affiliate & Media Buying11Crypto23Productivity & Creators5

Element vs Signal

Pricing, features, platforms and who each one suits — side by side.

EElementFreemiumVisit site
SSignalFreeVisit site
VS
E

Choose Element if…

  • you need self-hosting / federation
  • you're in its core audience: government and public sector, defence organisations
S

Choose Signal if…

  • you need e2EE by default
  • you need phone number required
  • you're in its core audience: privacy-conscious individuals, families and friend groups

Side by side

Feature Element Signal
Entry price$0.00$0.00
Free to useYesYes
E2EE by defaultNoYes
Encryption protocolOlm/MegolmSignal Protocol (PQXDH/X3DH + Double Ratchet)
Phone number requiredNoYes
Open sourceClients and serverClients and server
Latest security auditLeast Authority, 2022—
JurisdictionUnited KingdomUnited States (Signal Messenger LLC, Mountain View, California)
Max group size—1,000
PlatformsAndroid, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux, WebAndroid, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux
Self-hosting / federationYesNo
Disappearing messages—Yes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux, Self-hostedAndroid, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux
CompanyElement Creations LtdSignal Technology Foundation
Full feature lists

E Element

  • End-to-end encrypted messaging by default
  • E2EE voice and video calls via Element Call
  • Federation with any Matrix-based system
  • Self-hosted and air-gapped deployment
  • LDAP/AD, SCIM and OIDC single sign-on
  • Retention policies, auditing and data export
  • Helm charts for Kubernetes and OpenShift support
  • Whitelabelled mobile app and custom domains

S Signal

  • End-to-end encryption on by default for all messages and calls
  • Open source Signal Protocol
  • Encrypted voice and video calls
  • Group chats
  • Sharing of text, voice messages, photos, videos, GIFs and files
  • Encrypted stickers and custom sticker packs
  • No ads or trackers

Their home pages

What each vendor shows first: the pitch, the plans and the sign-up.

Element home page
E Element · element.io
Signal home page
S Signal · signal.org

What you'd pay

The cheapest plan that fits, per month, billed yearly where the plan offers it.

Element

CommunityFree
EnterprisePriced per seat/month
SovereignPriced per deployment

Signal

FreeFree

Strengths and limitations

Element

  • Open source under AGPL with a free self-hosted edition
  • No personal phone number required
  • Certified to ISO/IEC 27001:2022 and Cyber Essentials Plus
  • Supports air-gapped deployments
  • Enterprise and Sovereign pricing only through sales
  • Community Synapse is not meant for production use
  • Whitelabelled app and cross domain gateway are paid add-ons

Signal

  • Completely free, with no ads or tracking
  • Encryption is always on, not opt-in
  • Run by a nonprofit that cannot be acquired
  • Apps for mobile and all major desktop systems
  • Depends on donations rather than paid plans, so there is no paid support tier

More comparisons

TElement vs Threema
TSignal vs Threema

Other options to consider

T
Threema websiteT

Threema

Swiss end-to-end encrypted messenger for individuals, companies and authorities

From $3/mo
T
Threema website
From $3/mo
T

Threema

Swiss end-to-end encrypted messenger for individuals, companies and authorities

Encrypted messengersAPIOpen source

Facts from each vendor's public pages, prices checked Nov 8, 2026. Editorial policy