Macaroni Messenger
Shares rank 34 of 48 messaging apps by recommenders
Single-file chat app that stores messages on GitHub, with no server to run. Caveat: critics say it only works with GitHub, not standard git.
Single-file chat app that stores messages on GitHub, with no server to run. Caveat: critics say it only works with GitHub, not standard git.
14 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 7
- criticize it
- 7
- approval share
- 50%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not 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
- 7 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 1 recommender for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not 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
Fixes data loss and key custody
“This pretty much solves the "Discord is not documentation" and the dataloss in forum problems.”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” “It fixes who holds the keys — and who gets sued.”
Comment from 14 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Locked to GitHub, not standard git
“GitHub is the only working write provider right now. GitLab, GitVerse, Gitea, Forgejo, and other git hosts are protocol targets for future adapters.”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” “it's using GitHub specific APIs to read/write files. It's not standard git so any remote wouldn't work”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” Still needs GitHub as a backend
“Saying that this doesn't use a backend is like saying serverless app doesn't run on a server”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” “requiring the use of GitHub for your application to work is a dead end.”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” “The whole app you write revolves around Github's HTTP endpoints.”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” Proof of concept, not for serious use
“we're going to use git, html and json", I had a panic attack as soon as I read that.”
Comment from 13 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger” “a humorous proof of concept more so than anything someone should seriously use”
Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “Macaroni – a single HTML file messenger”
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
17 of the 18 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It fixes who holds the keys — and who gets sued.”
“we're going to use git, html and json", I had a panic attack as soon as I read that.”
“This pretty much solves the "Discord is not documentation" and the dataloss in forum problems.”
“The whole app you write revolves around Github's HTTP endpoints.”
“It is a cool project from a tech standpoint, but it's not practical when we have, well, email?”
“Saying that this doesn't use a backend is like saying serverless app doesn't run on a server”
“it's an interesting and valid way of "packaging" a tool / service”
“It introduces a new weakness in that the third party being relied on here never intended for their infrastructure to be used in this way.”
“That’s fair criticism of the current implementation.”
“requiring the use of GitHub for your application to work is a dead end.”
“This is talking politics without talking politics.”
“GitHub is the only working write provider right now. GitLab, GitVerse, Gitea, Forgejo, and other git hosts are protocol targets for future adapters.”
“it's using GitHub specific APIs to read/write files. It's not standard git so any remote wouldn't work”
“a humorous proof of concept more so than anything someone should seriously use”
“"Single file" is a bit misleading when it requires Github to do anything.”
“knowing how popular messenger apps are getting blocked in Russia”
“wrapped in an easy to use language that leverages many different Python libraries like opencv, pyautogui, pynput etc.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.