Naven
Comparison
Naven vs Signal
The short answer: Signal requires a phone number and an app install; Naven requires neither and runs entirely in a browser. Signal moderates after a report; Naven screens every message before it sends against ten published categories. Signal is end-to-end encrypted and Naven is not.
Naven vs Signal at a glance
| Naven | Signal | |
|---|---|---|
| Phone number required | Never. Google, email, or a guest session | Required to register (usernames now hide it from contacts) |
| App install required | Nothing. The whole product runs in a browser | App required; desktop links to the phone |
| End-to-end encrypted | No — and Naven says so. Pre-send screening and E2EE cannot both be true | Yes — the strongest implementation available, everything, always |
| Platforms | Any browser: Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS, iOS, Android | iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux |
| Communities | Public and invite-only channels, plus an AI newsroom | Groups to 1000; no community or channel layer |
| Age model | Age bands; under-13 accounts get the strictest screening, and are suspended pending guardian approval if it is repeatedly tripped | 13+ self-declared |
| Moderation model | Pre-send. Seven published categories, checked before delivery | None by design. Signal cannot see your content and does not want to |
What Signal does better
The gold standard for private messaging. Non-profit, open source, minimal metadata. If encryption is your first requirement, use Signal — we will not pretend otherwise.
Where Signal gets in the way
Nothing for a parent. No communities. Still phone-number-bound, and installation is mandatory. Signal deliberately offers no safety layer, which is the right call for its mission and the wrong one for a thirteen-year-old's first messenger.
Who should stay with Signal
Encryption is non-negotiable for you. Naven cannot match Signal here and does not claim to.
Who Naven is for instead
Naven is built for a group that spans devices and will not all install the same app — a family across iPhone and Android, a club with one member on a school Chromebook, friends in three countries with three different SIMs. It is also built for a parent who wants a real answer about safety: messages are screened before they send — slurs, strong language and ten kinds of conduct, all published in full — while ordinary disagreement is deliberately left alone.
Moving a group off Signal
The hard part of leaving Signal is never the software, it is the eight people who have to agree. Two things make that easier here. First, nobody has to install anything or hand over a number, so "I'll do it later" stops being a reason. Second, you do not have to move everything at once — start one group, keep Signal for the people who are staying, and let the rest follow when they see the link works.
- Open Naven in the browser you are reading this in and sign in with Google or an email address.
- Create the group and send the link into your existing Signal chat — that is where everyone already is.
- People open the link and they are in. On Signal they would first need the app installed and a phone number to hand over.
- Keep Signal for anyone who wants it. Naven does not need to be your only messenger to be useful.
Frequently asked
Is Naven a good Signal alternative?
It depends what you want from Signal. The gold standard for private messaging. Non-profit, open source, minimal metadata. If encryption is your first requirement, use Signal — we will not pretend otherwise. If that is the part you rely on, stay. If what bothers you is the phone number requirement, the device fragmentation, or the fact that harm is only handled after somebody reports it, then Naven is built for exactly that complaint.
Is Naven end-to-end encrypted like Signal?
No. Content that never reaches a server cannot be screened before it sends, so pre-send screening and end-to-end encryption cannot both be true. Naven chose screening because it is built to be usable by children. Naven is transport-encrypted throughout, publishes no member directory, and does not profile or sell what you send. If end-to-end encryption matters more to you, use Signal for those conversations.
Can I use Naven without downloading anything?
Yes. Messaging, group chats, channels, voice calls and video calls all run in a web browser on any operating system. There is no app to install and no app store account required.
Does Naven need my phone number?
No. You sign in with Google, with an email address, or as a guest with neither. There is no phone number field anywhere in Naven.
Is Naven free?
Yes — free, with no advertising, no paid tier, no algorithmic feed and no data sale.