WhatsApp and Telegram are two of the most popular messaging apps worldwide. Both allow users to communicate with individuals and groups, but there are some key differences between the two platforms.
One of the standout features of Telegram is the ability to create channels, which allow broadcasting messages to an unlimited number of subscribers. WhatsApp, on the other hand, does not have a native channel feature.
What are Telegram channels?
Telegram channels are a one-way broadcasting tool that allows sending messages to an unlimited number of subscribers. Some key features of Telegram channels include:
- Public by default – anyone can view channel contents and subscribe
- Unlimited subscribers – channels have no limits on how many users can subscribe
- One-way communication – only channel admins can post, subscribers receive messages
- Variety of uses – channels used for broadcasting news, promotions, content distribution, and more
Channels on Telegram have become a popular tool for businesses, organizations, media outlets, and public figures to disseminate information to large audiences. Some major brands and publishers now have Telegram channels with millions of subscribers.
WhatsApp does not have native channels
Unlike Telegram, WhatsApp does not have a built-in channel feature. Instead, WhatsApp offers the following messaging options:
- Individual chats – message other users 1:1
- Group chats – message up to 256 users in a group
- Broadcast lists – send 1-way messages to lists of up to 256 users
- WhatsApp Business API – used by businesses to interact with customers
While WhatsApp allows broad messaging through broadcast lists and the business API, these tools have significant limitations compared to Telegram channels:
- Broadcast lists capped at 256 recipients
- Cannot expose broadcast lists publicly – members must be manually added
- Business API requires integration and is focused on customer service
As a result, WhatsApp lacks an effective native tool for broadcasting openly to a massive audience, which is the function Telegram channels provide.
Workarounds for creating WhatsApp “channels”
While WhatsApp does not have built-in channels, some users simulate channel-like functionality through workarounds such as:
- WhatsApp Groups -Joining groups up to the 256 user limit to receive broadcasts.
- Repeated broadcast lists – Maintaining multiple 256-user broadcast lists.
- Link sharing – Sharing links to external channel-like tools through WhatsApp.
However, all these workarounds have limitations. Groups max out at 256 users, broadcast lists also have a 256 recipient limit, and external tools often require extra apps or registration.
Key differences between Telegram channels and WhatsApp workarounds
| Feature | Telegram Channels | WhatsApp Workarounds |
|---|---|---|
| Audience size | Unlimited subscribers | Max 256 recipients |
| Discoverability | Public by default | Must be invited to groups/lists |
| Integration | Native tool built into Telegram | Requires multiple workarounds |
| Usability | Easy subscription and built for broadcasting | Not designed for channel uses |
As this table illustrates, native Telegram channels offer significant advantages over WhatsApp workarounds, including unlimited audience size, public access by default, built-in integration, and a straightforward user experience designed specifically for broadcasting.
Major examples of Telegram channels
Here are some major examples of popular and influential Telegram channels across different categories:
News and journalism channels
- The Wall Street Journal – 2.2 million subscribers
- Associated Press – 2 million subscribers
- Financial Times – 910,000 subscribers
- The New York Times – 580,000 subscribers
These channels allow major news outlets to rapidly distribute stories and breaking news updates to massive audiences.
Entertainment channels
- Netflix – 95,000 subscribers
- Marvel – 190,000 subscribers
- Star Wars – 117,000 subscribers
- Game of Thrones – 84,000 subscribers
Entertainment brands use channels to engage fans, build hype for new releases, share multimedia content, and drive viewership.
Lifestyle and culture channels
- Product Hunt – 37,000 subscribers
- TED – 190,000 subscribers
- NPR – 11,000 subscribers
- Google Arts & Culture – 18,000 subscribers
These channels deliver content focused on technology, ideas, arts, and culture to niche audiences.
Regional and local channels
- @breakingnyc – 250,000 NYC subscribers
- @betterchicago – 125,000 Chicago subscribers
- @bayareabites – 35,500 SF Bay Area subscribers
- @voxhouston – 27,000 Houston subscribers
Local Telegram channels provide city-specific news, events, alerts, and more for residents.
Benefits of using Telegram channels
Here are some of the major benefits of Telegram channels that explain their popularity:
- Unlimited reach – Channels have no limits on subscribers, allowing truly massive audiences.
- Improved engagement – Users actively subscribe to channels, rather than being passively added to groups.
- Targeted interests – Tailor channel topics to specific verticals and audiences.
- Multimedia content – Include links, images, videos, files, polls and more.
- Analytics – View subscriber stats and measure channel performance.
- Revenue opportunities – Channels can be monetized via sponsorships, promotions and ads.
These benefits make Telegram channels useful for organizations, media companies, content creators, local info hubs, niche communities and more.
Drawbacks of WhatsApp workarounds
In contrast, attempting to recreate channel functionality on WhatsApp has several drawbacks:
- Very limited reach – Capped at 256 recipients
- Difficult to manage multiple broadcast lists/groups
- No native analytics for tracking reach/engagement
- Not designed for one-way broadcasting use cases
- Requires manual work adding recipients to groups/lists
- No opportunities for monetization
These limitations make WhatsApp poor for public broadcasting compared to purpose-built Telegram channels. Workarounds feel more spammy and are not scalable.
Conclusion
Telegram provides native channel functionality that enables broadcasting to unlimited public audiences – a use case WhatsApp is not designed for and cannot replicate well. While it is possible to simulate channels through WhatsApp workarounds, these options have severe limitations in terms of reach, integration, analytics and user experience.
For organizations, media companies, content creators and others wanting to reach wide audiences with public broadcasts, Telegram channels are vastly superior to any WhatsApp workaround. Those with broadcasting needs may find switching to Telegram worth doing to gain access to its robust, purpose-built channel tools.
Going forward, Telegram is likely to continue expanding its channels and adding additional features as that product sees increasing adoption. WhatsApp, however, shows no signs of developing a native broadcasting solution – it remains optimized primarily for private communication. As a result, the functionality gap between the two apps for public content distribution will likely remain or widen further.
In summary, Telegram offers some of the most powerful native channel tools among major messaging platforms. WhatsApp has no equivalent feature set, and crude workarounds come with significant limitations. For those wanting to reach wide audiences, Telegram clearly leads over WhatsApp when it comes to enabling communication via channels.