Meta is discontinuing Facebook Messenger for Windows and Mac

The service of the Facebook Messenger app will be discontinued starting December 15, 2025. This specifically affects only the standalone apps for Windows and Mac. This means the Messenger will still exist, but to use it, one will apparently have to go through Facebook again. This can be done both in the standalone Facebook app, which will remain, and in the browser via Facebook. The Facebook Messenger will also continue to exist as a mobile app.

Meta has confirmed to the magazine TechCrunch that the apps will no longer be supported. Starting December 15, it will also no longer be possible to log in via the apps. You will then be automatically redirected to Facebook. Meta recommends deleting the app. Those who want to back up their chats so they can still be read later should make the corresponding settings. To achieve this, you need to activate the “secure storage” in the privacy settings. Only then, however, will the end-to-end encryption be lifted and the chats will be visible on other devices; for this, Meta will then store them in further storage. If you want to ensure that no one else gains access to the account, you can secure your chat history with a PIN.

Meta had long been pursuing a dual strategy in the area of Messenger. Initially, Messenger was only the area for exchanging direct messages with Facebook contacts. Then it became a standalone service. At the same time, however, Meta acquired WhatsApp and further developed this messenger. The Facebook Messenger fell significantly into the background.

Facebook Messenger must become interoperable

Just a year ago, Meta announced that it would replace the native Messenger with a Progressive Web App (PWA). The Facebook Messenger is one of the most used messengers in the world. Due to its size and importance, it has been classified as a so-called gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act. This means Meta must make the service interoperable. Messengers must work with other messenger services, following the example of email. However, since other messenger providers have not yet shown any interest in connecting their services to Meta's, there is no lived interoperability yet. Signal, for example, is concerned about the security of chats and therefore does not want to establish a connection.

If, in the future, Facebook always has to be opened to use Facebook Messenger, at least on the desktop, this could lead to a significant decrease in user numbers.

(emw)