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XenRooms vs WhatsApp
WhatsApp is a messenger for people: each account belongs to a phone number, chats live on the phones, and the app can read the phone’s address book. XenRooms is a team chat for the company: people join with their work email, an administrator invites and blocks them, and the chat stays on the company’s own server in Germany.
| XenRooms | ||
|---|---|---|
| Account | a phone number | the work email |
| Company admin: invite, block, manage channels | No | Yes |
| When someone leaves | the chats stay on their phone | blocked at once, messages stay with the company |
| Channels, threads, direct messages | groups, communities | Yes |
| On the computer | linked to the phone | browser and app, on their own |
| Reads the phone’s address book | yes, to find contacts | No |
| End-to-end encryption | Yes | no – search, AI and admin read the chat |
| Hosted in Germany | Meta’s servers | yes (Hetzner), or your servers |
| Free plan | Yes | up to 10 people, 5 GB |
As of 31 October 2026, from the providers’ own websites. Features and plans change; please check the details there. Whether WhatsApp at work is allowed under the GDPR depends on how it is used; we do not give legal advice – ask your data protection officer.
XenRooms fits better if …
- The company, not each phone, should own the chat
- People should be able to work without sharing their phone number
- You need channels, threads and search for work
WhatsApp fits better if …
- You talk to customers who are all on WhatsApp
- You need end-to-end encryption above search and admin control
More comparisons: XenRooms vs Slack · XenRooms vs Microsoft Teams · XenRooms vs Mattermost · XenRooms vs Element · Overview
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