Arattai vs WhatsApp: The Battle Between India's Rising Star and the Global Giant

Background: The Rise of Arattai Messenger and WhatsApp

WhatsApp has owned the global messaging space since 2009. It has 10 billion+ downloads, where families connect, businesses operate, and news spreads. Meta's acquisition in 2014 only strengthened its grip.

Arattai Messenger by Zoho Corporation was launched quietly in 2021. This "Made in India" app stayed under the sheets until recently. Then something shifted, and sign-ups exploded, because of the Indian government's backing, as Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan publicly endorsed Arattai as an alternative to WhatsApp. 

WhatsApp vs Arattai: Feature-by-Feature Comparison

Now let's get into the specifics. Here's how Arattai and WhatsApp stack up across eight crucial categories that actually impact your daily messaging experience.

1. Messaging and Calling

Both apps deliver solid text, voice, and video messaging. WhatsApp provides full audio and video calls, and text message encryption. However, WhatsApp has marginally poor audio and video quality when on a slow network connection. Moreover, group video calls support up to 8 participants at stable quality on its infrastructure.

Arattai offers HD voice and video calls that are specifically designed to work with low-bandwidth networks, which are more dependable on the weak 2G/3G networks prevalent in remote areas. It has an in-built conference call service that allows group communication with the encryption of all calls. However, text messaging, as of now, does not have complete end-to-end encryption that WhatsApp offers with chats.

2. Unique Features

Arattai offers a pocket feature that offers dedicated self-storage for notes, photos, videos, and reminders. You can access this pocket storage across devices. Next, Arattai is built for both personal and corporate usage. It has a unique meetings tab that enables scheduling video calls similar to Microsoft Teams. Additionally, the mentions tab helps users track where they're tagged in conversations.

Contrastingly, WhatsApp has a smooth Meta AI integration that assists with queries and tasks. Plus, WhatsApp’s channels enable one-way broadcasts to large audiences with verification badges for authentic accounts. For some countries like India, WhatsApp also integrates with UPI payments within chats to send money as easily as sending a message.

3. Business Tools

WhatsApp Business app offers product catalogs, automated messages, quick replies, and customer labels. The Business API supports large-scale customer engagement with CRM integrations and Meta Ads connectivity, assisting businesses with a global reach.

Arattai's business features are simpler but strategically powerful for specific users. Basic tools include broadcast channels for announcements and content sharing. The Zoho ecosystem integration adds a feather to the cap for Arattai. Businesses using Zoho CRM, Flow, or Creator can automate lead generation, link chats to support tickets, and trigger workflows directly from conversations. These offer an unmatched value for existing Zoho customers.

4. Group Chats and File Sharing

Group capacity is nearly identical: Arattai supports 1,000 members while WhatsApp allows 1,024. Both enable admin controls and broadcast channels for one-way announcements. However, Arattai offers a privacy advantage by hiding phone numbers of group participants, whereas WhatsApp displays them to all members.

Both permit file transfers, covering photos, videos, documents, and contacts. But Arattai performs better when sharing files over slow networks due to its optimization for Indian infrastructure. WhatsApp's media compression can reduce quality, while Arattai uses less aggressive compression.

5. Device and Network Compatibility

Arattai requires minimal RAM, allowing it to perform smoothly on budget smartphones and older devices. You can also connect up to 5 devices, including Android TV. WhatsApp, while available on Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and web browsers, is more resource-intensive. It can lag on low-end devices and struggles on slower networks. Multi-device support allows four companion devices plus the primary phone. 

6. Arattai vs WhatsApp Security Comparison

Privacy and security add up to a gold standard for messaging apps. Its adherence to these basic policies can make or break its user trust, usage, and overall app popularity. WhatsApp provides complete end-to-end encryption for all communications streams, like texts, calls, and media. It has made it clear that no third party, including Meta, can access your content. 

Arattai Messenger offers partial encryption: voice and video calls are end-to-end encrypted, but text messages are not. Zoho is actively developing full encryption for texts. Also, Arattai stores data on India-based servers, whereas WhatsApp uses Meta's global infrastructure. Additionally, Arattai follows a no-data monetization policy with zero ads, while WhatsApp operates within Meta's ad-driven ecosystem, raising data-sharing concerns.

7. User Experience and Accessibility

WhatsApp delivers a polished, intuitive interface refined over 15 years. Its familiar design requires no learning curve. Arattai also offers a clean, minimalist design that loads instantly, even on low-end smartphones. The interface prioritizes speed over visual flourishes. 

Crucially, Arattai provides strong regional language support, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, and others, with culturally relevant interfaces and stickers designed for Indian users. While Arattai is easy to navigate, its powerful business capabilities, particularly Zoho ecosystem integration, work best when properly configured.

8. Popularity, Reach, and Community

WhatsApp has over 3.7 billion users globally, with India as its largest market at 500 million active users. It's deeply embedded in the household, business communication, and education, and more globally. 

Arattai is the challenger with momentum. According to what Zoho CEO Mani Vembu told BBC (in Oct 2025), the daily sign-ups surged from 3,000 to 350,000 following government endorsements from Indian Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Ashwini Vaishnaw. 

Adoption of Arattai can also include privacy concerns after Meta's 2021 policy controversies. The sentiments for Arattai are curious but cautious, because people are trying Arattai Messenger while keeping WhatsApp as their primary platform. Most importantly, Arattai's limited user base means you'll struggle to find contacts on the platform, restricting its practical usability despite strong features. Although, Arattai is gaining popularity because of India’s ‘Made in India’ push.

Want to explore similar apps like WhatsApp? Read 5 Must-Have Messaging Apps For Android and iOS.

Arattai vs WhatsApp: Which is Better for You?

Now that we have briefly talked about WhatsApp vs Arattai comparison, let us help you in choosing the right one for you.

Choose WhatsApp if you need complete end-to-end encryption for all communications, especially text messages. It's essential for businesses requiring payment integration, product catalogs, and customer reach at scale. WhatsApp's huge user base means everyone you know is already there. If you have international contacts, travel frequently, or need proven reliability backed by 15 years of development, WhatsApp remains irreplaceable.

Choose Arattai if you're already using Zoho products, like its CRM, Flow, and Creator integrations, which deliver real business value. It's an excellent app for users with budget smartphones or poor 2G/3G connectivity. The built-in meeting scheduler and ad-free experience add professional utility.

Conclusion

The decision isn't about which app is "better," but which privacy model you prioritize today. WhatsApp's dominance is built on its massive network and, crucially, its default, universal end-to-end encryption for all messages. This creates a genuine hesitation for users evaluating Arattai.

While Arattai offers the significant benefit of data sovereignty, keeping data on Indian servers via Zoho—it comes with a clear trade-off. As it stands, encryption is not applied to text messages, only to voice and video calls. This is the specific pain point that prevents a full-scale switch for many.

However, Zoho is not ignoring this. The company has publicly confirmed that full encryption for chats is in development, giving hope that this trade-off is temporary.

Ultimately, the choice reflects your primary concern. For now, most users will maintain WhatsApp  for its encrypted, universal network, while adopting Arattai for professional teams or contexts where Zoho integration and, most importantly, data sovereignty, provide a more tangible benefit than message-level encryption.

Also read: WhatsApp vs Signal vs Telegram