# Alternatives to Skype The internet-calling icon, retired by Microsoft. Skype has been discontinued; the active alternatives listed here are maintained products you can switch to. None of its 12 checklist rows are verified yet. Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/skype/ Category: Personal messaging ## Overview - **Who it's for**: People and small businesses who needed free or low-cost voice/video calling, instant messaging, and international calls to phones — a mainstream choice for personal and remote-work communication through the 2000s and 2010s. - **What you get**: Voice and video calls (one-to-one and group) and instant messaging between Skype users at no cost, plus screen sharing and file transfer. Paid Skype Credit or subscriptions let users call landlines and mobile numbers worldwide. Microsoft retired consumer Skype in May 2025, shutting down the service and directing remaining users to Microsoft Teams (Free) as its replacement. - **How it works**: Users created a Skype account and username, added contacts by username or phone number, and started calls or chats directly from the desktop or mobile app. As of May 2025 the consumer app no longer functions, since Microsoft discontinued the service in favor of Teams. ## Profile - **Status**: discontinued (verified 2026-07-11) ## Ranked alternatives | # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms | |---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------| | 1 | [Beeper](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/beeper.md) | building | Proprietary | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 2 | [Delta Chat](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/delta-chat.md) | building | GPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 3 | [Jami](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/jami.md) | building | GPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 4 | [Session](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/session.md) | building | GPL-3.0 | Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS | | 5 | [Signal](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/signal.md) | building | AGPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 6 | [SimpleX Chat](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/simplex-chat.md) | building | AGPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 7 | [Telegram](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/telegram.md) | building | GPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 8 | [Threema](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/threema.md) | building | AGPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 9 | [Viber](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/viber.md) | building | Proprietary | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 10 | [WhatsApp](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/whatsapp.md) | building | Proprietary | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | | 11 | [Wire](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/wire.md) | building | GPL-3.0 | iOS, Android, Windows, macOS | Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/ ## Sources Sources for Skype. Each alternative is sourced on its own page. - **Status**: discontinued — (verified 2026-07-11) - Quote: “As of May 5th, 2025, Skype is retired.” --- Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/