This past spring, Apple demoed a version of FaceTime that would support group video chat for up to 32 people at once. The update was supposed to come with the official release of iOS 12 this fall—but it turns out that FaceTime will be a one-on-one video chat app for a while longer. In the latest developer release of the iOS 12 software, Apple said Group FaceTime has been removed from the upcoming public release of iOS 12. It’s now expected to launch later in the fall.
Personally, I don’t mind the wait: I have a hard enough time getting four friends together for dinner, nevermind coordinating a video chat for eight times as many people. And it’s almost certainly better to have the new feature work well when it launches, rather than launch with bugs. But some people were probably looking forward to seeing what an iOS-native application would bring to the group video chat experience.
Don’t worry, though. There are plenty of other group video chat applications you can use in the meantime. Here are a few alternatives to try.
Skype
Microsoft-owned Skype first brought group video chatting to its iOS and Android apps back in 2016, a couple years after it launched the feature on desktop. It’s easy to use, and free. To launch a group chat on Android, first tap the action button, then select the video icon. Add your friends, tap the video icon again, and your call will start right away. You can add up to 25 friends. The workflow on iOS is similar, except you first add your friends to the group chat, and then tap the video icon.
You can add more people to the Skype video chat while it’s in progress, switch between front and rear camera views, and switch between a grid layout or one that prioritizes the person who is speaking, with everyone else appearing in smaller thumbnails below.
Google Hangouts
Google’s messaging strategy has been a confusing mess over the past few years, but if there’s one app you can still rely on, it’s the stalwart Google Hangouts. The app allows group video calls with up to 25 people on both iOS and Android, as well as on the web. To start a call: Open the Hangouts app, scroll to the bottom, tap Add, then New Video Call, and then enter the contacts you want to include (whether by name, phone number, or Gmail address). Hit the video icon, and your call will start. If you want to create a name for your group chat, go to options in the upper right-hand corner of the group chat, and select “Conversation Name.”
Duo, one of Google’s other messaging apps, offers high-quality video chats between two people, but doesn’t currently support group video chats.
Facebook Messenger
Video chatting with 25 people isn’t enough? Try video chatting with 50 people. That’s what Facebook offers in Facebook Messenger, anyway. Up to 50 people can join in on one group chat, whether video or just using voice. The app experience is really optimized for six people; add more than that and only one speaking participant at a time is shown on camera. There’s another catch: You have to have the full version of Messenger, not Messenger Lite, to group video chat. To launch group video chat in Messenger, create a group first, then tap on the camera icon in the upper right-hand corner of the app (we’re spotting a theme here).
As with many of the other apps, you can name your group chat. Unlike many of the other apps, you can add AR filters to your face while you’re chatting in Messenger. You can also continue to send text-based messages while you’re group video chatting. Which leads us to….
Instagram’s recently-launched group video chat feature comes with a twist that only the world’s largest social network could have possibly come up with: It allows you to group video chat with up to four friends while you’re still scrolling through your Instagram feed. Who needs to choose between hearting your friends’ vacation photos and actually listening to what your friends have to say about the trip when you can do both at the same time? The new group video chat option isn’t super obvious; you have to first go to Instagram Direct, then form a group chat as if you’re texting, and then hit the video icon in the upper-right hand corner. If no one joins within 30 seconds, the call automatically stops.
Pro tip: Long-press on the group chat in Instagram Direct to see options to delete or mute the video chats.
Facebook-owned WhatsApp is the latest app in this bunch to roll out group video chatting, having just launched this feature at the end of July. It’s more limited than some of the others here—as with Instagram, you can only video chat with four people simultaneously. But it might still be the most convenient option for a lot of people, considering WhatsApp has more than 1.5 billion monthly active global users. WhatsApp says group video calls are end-to-end encrypted, and that feature has been designed to “work reliably around the world in different network conditions.” To start a group video call, launch a one-on-one video call first and then tap the “add new participant” button in the upper right corner of the chat.
Houseparty
When Houseparty launched in June of 2016, after changing its name from Meerkat and pivoting from that app’s live-streaming focus, it was less about organized video calls and more about serendipitous video hangouts with friends. When you opened the app, it showed you a list of friends who were already online and let you “drop in” on their video chats, as though you were just swinging by their college dorm room to say hi. But then last fall the company rolled out more of an organized chat function, one that let users video chat with up to 16 people simultaneously.
While this type of chat arguably dilutes the spontaneity that differentiates Houseparty from its competitors, it also means that the app serves a purpose even if you log on and none of your friends happen to be currently active on it.
Snapchat
Snapchat’s group video chat feature is similar to both Facebook Messenger’s and Houseparty’s offerings. Like Houseparty, it allows up to 16 friends to video chat simultaneously (and up to 32 friends if you’re just using audio). Like Facebook Messenger, it lets you apply filters and other effects while you’re video chatting. To launch a group video chat, create a new group or tap on a pre-existing group chat and then tap on the video icon. You can invite more people to join once you’ve started a group chat, and like many of the other apps, participants can choose to go audio-only if they’re not feeling up to video.
Snapchat’s standout feature in group video chat, though, is the same feature that sets the whole app apart: Its AR technology is uncannily good and helps create some hilarious imagery during group video chats. Try the llama filter; you’ll see what I mean.
