What is Telegram?
Telegram is a messaging app built on a cloud model: messages live on Telegram's servers, so every device sees the same history, and only Secret Chats are end-to-end encrypted. Ordinary cloud chats — private and group — use client-server encryption, which means Telegram holds the keys. The service is free with no ads in private chats, and files can be sent up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with the optional Premium subscription. Telegram publishes the source for its client apps, including the Mac client, and offers verifiable builds for iOS and Android, but it does not publish the server code. It suits people who want fast, feature-rich messaging with large groups rather than end-to-end encryption by default.
Verified product facts
- Type
- messaging appEditorially reviewed
- Platform
- macOS
- Pricing
- FreemiumDeveloper-stated
- Open source
- Yes
- Relationship to Nuanyue
- Third-party product — not published by NuanyueEditorially reviewed
- Licence
- GPL-2.0
- Current version
- 12.10Developer-stated
- Official website
- telegram.org/
Last updated . Facts marked developer-stated come from the developer and are not independently confirmed; editorially reviewed marks a Nuanyue judgement.
Key features
What Telegram does at a glance.
Cloud chats
Stay in sync across every signed-in device
Secret Chats
With end-to-end, device-specific encryption
Private and group chats
Plus one-to-many broadcast channels
Groups
Can hold up to 200,000 members
File sharing
Up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with Premium
Encryption based
On 256-bit AES, 2048-bit RSA and Diffie–Hellman key exchange
Client apps published as open source
With verifiable builds for iOS and Android
Sponsored messages limited to certain public channels rather than private chats
What you can use Telegram for
- Messaging across several devices while keeping one shared history
- Sending files larger than the caps other messengers impose
- Running a large group or a one-to-many broadcast channel
Who is Telegram for?
- People who want one message history shared across phone and Mac
- Users who need to move large files inside a chat
Who is Telegram not for?
- Anyone who needs every conversation end-to-end encrypted by default — only Secret Chats are
- Users who need to verify the service end to end, since the server code is not published
Limitations
- Cloud chats use client-server encryption, not end-to-end; only Secret Chats are end-to-end
- Secret Chats are device-specific and are not part of the cloud, so they do not appear on other devices
- The server code is not published, so the service side cannot be independently verified
- The Telegram Premium price is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks
- Apple Silicon support is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks
Strengths and trade-offs
What Telegram does well, and what to weigh before choosing it. Points marked developer-stated come from the developer’s own material and have not been independently confirmed.
Strengths
- Message history is stored in the cloud, so it is available on every signed-in device rather than only on the device that received it.Developer-stated
- Secret Chats add a second layer of client-to-client encryption on top of the cloud chat transport.Developer-stated
- Files can be sent up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with a Premium subscription.Developer-stated
- Private messaging carries no ads and needs no subscription, with sponsored messages confined to certain public channels.Developer-stated
- Client apps are open source, and iOS and Android builds are verifiable against the published code.Developer-stated
Trade-offs
- Cloud chats are encrypted between client and server, not end to end, so Telegram holds the keys to ordinary conversations.
- Secret Chats are tied to one device and are excluded from the cloud, so they do not sync to a Mac and a phone at once.
- The server code is not published, and Telegram argues that publishing it would not provide a verifiable security guarantee.
- Verifiable builds cover iOS and Android only, not the desktop clients.
First-use experience
What the app asks of you when you set it up. Only established facts appear here; anything we could not confirm is left out rather than guessed at.
- Installation
- Direct download from telegram.org; a macOS build is published for desktop.
- First launch Derived
- Chats live in the cloud and are reachable from any signed-in device, so a newly installed client shows existing history rather than an empty list.
- System integration Editorially reviewed
- The desktop client is a packaged app for the same cloud service, so it depends on a connection to Telegram's servers.
What it does
Telegram keeps conversations in the cloud rather than on the device that received them, so the Mac client, the phone and any other signed-in session show the same history. It supports private chats, groups and broadcast channels, and it moves large files: up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with a Premium subscription.
What is and is not encrypted end to end
This is the part most often misread. Telegram supports two layers of encryption, and only the second one is end to end.
Cloud Chats — which covers both private and group conversations — use server-client encryption and are stored encrypted in Telegram’s cloud. Telegram holds the keys. Secret Chats add a client-to-client layer on top, so only the two participants can read them, but they are device-specific and are deliberately left out of the cloud, which means a Secret Chat started on a phone is not readable from the Mac.
Telegram’s own documentation states the position plainly: cloud chats use client-server encryption, and Secret Chats use an additional layer of client-client encryption. If end-to-end encryption by default is the requirement, that is a different product.
Source and cost
All Telegram client apps are open source, including the Mac client, and Telegram publishes verifiable builds for iOS and Android so that the shipped app can be checked against the published code. The server code is not published — Telegram’s stated reason is that there is no way to verify that the same code runs on the servers, so publishing it would not provide a guarantee.
Private messaging is free, with no ads in private chats and no subscription fee. Sponsored messages appear only in certain public channels. An optional Premium subscription exists and adds features such as the 4 GB upload limit, but the pages Nuanyue checked do not state its price, so this entry does not guess one.
Questions about Telegram
Is Telegram end-to-end encrypted?
Only Secret Chats are. Cloud Chats — both private and group — use server-client encryption and are stored encrypted in Telegram's cloud, which means Telegram can decrypt them. Secret Chats add a client-to-client layer that only the two participants can read.
Is Telegram free?
Yes. Telegram states that private messaging is free and will stay free, with no ads in private chats and no subscription fees. An optional Premium subscription adds extras such as 4 GB uploads.
How large a file can I send on Telegram?
Up to 2 GB per file. With a Telegram Premium subscription the limit rises to 4 GB per file.Developer-stated
Is Telegram's source code available?
The client apps are open source and Telegram offers verifiable builds for iOS and Android. The server code is not published; Telegram argues that publishing it would not provide a security guarantee, because there is no way to verify the same code is running on the servers.
Alternatives to Telegram
Apps that could replace this one — the same job, a different trade-off.
Signal Desktop
Open-source, end-to-end encrypted Mac messenger.
Both are free messaging apps with published clients, but Signal encrypts messages end to end by default while Telegram's cloud chats do not.
Element
Open-source Matrix chat client with end-to-end encryption by default.
Both offer group messaging and large file transfer, but Element runs on the decentralised Matrix network while Telegram runs on its own centralised cloud.
Similar apps
Related in purpose, but not a straight swap.
Discord
Voice, text, and community chat platform.
Both organise communities into persistent groups with channels, though Discord is built around voice and gaming while Telegram is primarily a messenger.
WeChat
Official WeChat client for macOS.
Both are messaging apps with large group support and a strong presence in Asian markets, but WeChat bundles payments and services while Telegram stays a messenger.
Links
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the sources below. Last updated .
- Telegram on the Mac App StoreGrade A
- Telegram — official websiteGrade B
- Telegram — documentationGrade C
- Telegram — source repositoryGrade D
