LINE messaging app
Shares rank 31 of 48 messaging apps by recommenders
Entrenched messenger in Japan with encrypted chats and voice and video calls. Critics cite heavy ads, weak security reputation and clunky UX.
Entrenched messenger in Japan with encrypted chats and voice and video calls. Critics cite heavy ads, weak security reputation and clunky UX.
21 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 8
- criticize it
- 13
- approval share
- 38%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 8 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 0.6 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Dominant messenger in many countries
“In most countries, the most used messenger app is Whatsapp or Wechat or LINE or KakaoTalk”
Comment from 13 Feb 2026 in “Apple, fix my keyboard before the timer ends or I'm leaving iPhone” “Some places have regional messengers that are very entrenched, like Line in Japan”
Comment from 13 Apr 2026 in “Apple's accidental moat: How the "AI Loser" may end up winning” Voice and video calls, texting
“I was booted from the network”
Comment from 16 Feb 2026 in “Running My Own XMPP Server” “It is like FaceTime but better.”
Comment from 19 Dec 2025 in “Why Do We Still Pay for International Calls in 2025?”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Heavy advertising, even on paid tiers
“tons of advertisements and hateful contents. It's the worst chat app imaginable.”
Comment from 16 Nov 2025 in “Seed. LINE's Custom Typeface” “The Japanese account is covered with ads EVERYWHERE on the home screen”
Comment from 16 Mar 2026 in “The 49MB Web Page” “even the highest tier subscription doesn't reduce ads”
Comment from 13 Aug 2026 in “uBlock Origin Is Giving Up the Fight to Keep Ads Off Facebook” Clunky UX and layout bugs
“I hate the expiring photos/videos in message threads too. Overall the UX is clunky.”
Comment from 13 Nov 2025 in “Seed. LINE's Custom Typeface” “their front page also opens with the font control overlapping the text paragraph”
Comment from 13 Nov 2025 in “Seed. LINE's Custom Typeface” Described as worst messaging app
“tons of advertisements and hateful contents. It's the worst chat app imaginable.”
Comment from 16 Nov 2025 in “Seed. LINE's Custom Typeface” “Line is by far the worst messaging app I've ever used”
Comment from 13 Nov 2025 in “Seed. LINE's Custom Typeface”
Other messaging apps people recommend
The four most recommended other messaging apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 48 messaging apps, rankedWhat people said
21 of the 22 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“even the highest tier subscription doesn't reduce ads”
“WhatsApp and LINE both support encrypted chats but all the encryption keys are stored on your phone”
“They have, however, now removed the connection to a phone number. Good.”
“Some places have regional messengers that are very entrenched, like Line in Japan”
“The Japanese account is covered with ads EVERYWHERE on the home screen”
“light/dark theme, E2EE, texting, voice/video calls”
“I was booted from the network”
“In most countries, the most used messenger app is Whatsapp or Wechat or LINE or KakaoTalk”
“These things are monumental wastes of human effort”
“It is like FaceTime but better.”
“Line isn't known for their cryptography/security skills.”
“the corporate interests of WhatsApp/Line/WeChat/Telegram/etc.”
“tons of advertisements and hateful contents. It's the worst chat app imaginable.”
“they would better work on simple case chats backup that's doesn't work if you move the app cross OS”
“LINE miniapps are booming now that the yen is so weak”
“Yes, it's very bad. And it's not organic. People in this very thread say that they have no choice but to use LINE.”
“their front page also opens with the font control overlapping the text paragraph”
“I hate the expiring photos/videos in message threads too. Overall the UX is clunky.”
“some features are now blocked (e.g. you cannot unsend photos anymore unless you pay for Premium)”
“I also have to use LINE every day, and I can't say I love it”
“Line is by far the worst messaging app I've ever used”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.