Messages

Replace your Messages. Start with these.

As of 17 Oct 2026, 71 apps can replace the Messages on Android. These 8 are where we'd start.

The top 3

Best overall

Textra SMS

Delicious

Fast and good-looking, with colours, bubbles and fonts you can set per chat, plus scheduled and delayed texts.

Checked 17 Oct 2026—

Get it on Google PlayDetails
Best for no-fuss texting

Texts and MMS with blocking, scheduling and backups, no ads and no account, in a calm, tidy layout.

FreeUpdated 15 Oct 2026Android 8.0+

Get it on F-DroidDetails
Best minimal design

QUIK SMS

octoshrimpy

A quiet, uncluttered inbox with colour themes, scheduling and backup, for people who just want their texts.

FreeUpdated 23 Sept 2026Android 6.0+

Get it on F-DroidDetails

Also great. Five more.

Picked by hand, 17 Oct 2026
See all 71 appsShow the top 8 only
AllFreeUpdated this year
40 apps · sorted by name
All 40 apps
App ▲ What it does Price Updated ▼ Min Android ▼ Get it
baresip+Juha Heinanen
 VoIP and mobile calling and messaging app based on baresip library Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 9+ F-Droid
Call LimiterThirumalai K G
 Limit call duration per contact and automatically hang up when time is up Free 17 Sept 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
CallScopeClint Moyer
 Local-first call log analytics Free 24 Jun 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
CHRONOS
 Schedule your SMS in advance, without replacing your default messaging app Free 10 Aug 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
Clear SMSTop 8Clear SMS
 Sorts personal, OTP and bank texts into a tidy inbox Free 14 Oct 2026 Android 6.0+ F-Droid
ContactPublic Emergency Codes
 Calling and messaging with built-in emergency tools Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
Deku SMSTop 8Afkanerd
 SMS with optional encryption between Deku users Free 14 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
Ethic One CallIDEH Labs
 Lend your phone for one call while keeping the rest private Free 6 Oct 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
Flash Alert (Calls & SMS)JNDA
 Blink the terminal when receiving a call, SMS or an application notification Free 14 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
Fossify MessagesTop 8Fossify
 and Ad-free SMS/MMS messaging app Free 15 Oct 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
HomeTileskicker
 A big-button home screen that can be your phone and SMS app Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
IM2SMSGoldmaster
 A simple app to import IM chat histories into Android’s SMS storage Free 14 Aug 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
JemRecYevhen Yemchynskyi
 Call recorder for unrooted Android: both sides, no root, no companion app Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 12+ F-Droid
JMP SIM Manager
 Companion app for the JMP eSIM Adapter Free 15 Sept 2026 Android 9+ F-Droid
Keep Alive
 Notify others if you haven't used your device in a given period of time Free 1 Jul 2026 Android 5.1+ F-Droid
Keep Alive Lite
 Notify others if you haven't used your device in a given period of time Free 1 Jul 2026 Android 5.1+ F-Droid
Keep SIM AliveDymitr Kotowski
 Scheduled keep-alive SMS so prepaid, roaming or backup SIMs stay active Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
Launch ChatVinay Gopinath
 Start a WhatsApp, Signal or Telegram chat without saving a number as a contact Free 10 Feb 2026 Android 6.0+ F-Droid
LoggerSanmeet Singh
 Track, Analyze, and Manage Your Calls Free 15 Feb 2026 Android 5.0+ F-Droid
Message487Andrey Prokopyuk
 Read phone SMS on your computer via n8n; forward selected notifications Free 12 Oct 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
MessagesTop 8Anindra
 A Material 3 SMS app with pin, archive and scheduling Free 14 Oct 2026 Android 10+ F-Droid
MessagesSaalim Quadri
 A fast messaging app designed to make conversations simple and effortless Free 27 Jan 2026 Android 6.0+ F-Droid
MisgaMirarr
 Smart SMS app with regex filters to eliminate spam in Iran Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
MsgGoYztz
 lightweight, and modern bulk SMS tool for Android Free 26 Sept 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
NightblastDubsterDev
 Send urgent alerts to your contacts using encrypted SMS messages Free 12 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
Parcelshareven
 Extract the address and pickup code from SMS automatically Free 14 Oct 2026 Android 10+ F-Droid
Privacy CellSoren Stoutner
 Verify that a phone is using the most secure cell protocols Free 4 Apr 2026 Android 11+ F-Droid
QUIK SMSTop 8octoshrimpy
 A calm inbox with themes, scheduling and backup Free 23 Sept 2026 Android 6.0+ F-Droid
Signetdigital-grease
 Verify calls from family, colleagues, sources against deepfake impersonation Free 14 Jun 2026 Android 9+ F-Droid
SmartFindErinyLTD
 Find your phone with an SMS from a trusted contact Free 27 May 2026 Android 8.0+ F-Droid
SMS Import / Exporttmo1
 Imports and exports SMS and MMS messages and other data Free 15 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
SMS to URL ForwarderKonstantin Bogomolov
 Simple incoming SMS to URL forwarder Free 11 Jun 2026 Android 4.0+ F-Droid
SMS2Email34j
 Forwards SMS messages to SMTP (Email) server Free 3 Sept 2026 Android 6.0+ F-Droid
SMSecureTop 8Jimvixx
 An SMS app with encrypted conversations Free 15 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
SmsReplyZoltán KADA
 Automatic SMS replies with customizable templates Free 23 Aug 2026 Android 10+ F-Droid
SOS RingLorenzo Marci
 Make VIP calls and messages audible even in Silent/DND Free 16 Oct 2026 Android 10+ F-Droid
ViewCarousel
 Circular carousel of user configurable views Free 11 Jan 2026 Android 12+ F-Droid
WhatsOpenHarshal Bhatia
 Open WhatsApp chats with any number, no contact needed Free 30 May 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid
WiVeWa
 Client for the WiVeWa system Free 31 May 2026 Android 10+ F-Droid
Wristotle CompanionLazy Devs
 Voice control for Pebble watches — on-device by default, no account Free 8 Oct 2026 Android 7.0+ F-Droid

'Top 8' marks the apps above. Data from F-Droid and hand-checked entries, as of 17 Oct 2026.

Guides for this

Setups using these apps

None yet.

How we pick the top 8: a person tries the apps and checks each maker's page, then writes the labels down with a date. How we choose