Emberclear
FreeEnd-to-end encrypted multi-device chat built on the Nostr protocol. Messages only decrypt on your device. Open-source, no server-side data, fully auditable.
How to install Emberclear as a PWA
Frequently asked questions about Emberclear
What makes Emberclear different from Signal?
Signal is the gold-standard mobile-first E2E messenger backed by Signal Foundation with phone-number identity and a dedicated server. Emberclear is browser-first, requires no phone number, and uses self-generated keypairs as identity. Signal has stronger UX, larger user base, and more rigorous formal audits; Emberclear is lighter, more anonymous (no phone-number requirement), and easier to self-host. For mainstream secure messaging, Signal is the safer pick; for anonymity-preserving cryptographic chat, Emberclear is closer to the use case.
Is Emberclear free?
Yes — Emberclear is free, MIT-licensed, and has no paid tier. The hosted instance is free, and self-hosting is straightforward via the open repository. The maintainer NullVoxPopuli runs the project as an open-source side project and does not monetize. Because there is no per-user server cost on a self-hosted instance, total cost of ownership is effectively just VPS hosting (~$5-$10/month).
How does Emberclear compare to Briar or Session?
Briar is Tor-based, mobile-first, and supports Bluetooth mesh for fully offline communication. Session is Signal-fork-based with onion routing via the Loki network and no phone-number requirement. Emberclear is browser-first and uses public WebRTC or relay servers for delivery. Briar and Session offer stronger network-layer anonymity (Tor and Loki respectively); Emberclear offers easier access (browser-only) and a cleaner audit surface (single Ember.js codebase). For high-threat models, Briar or Session; for pseudonymous browser chat, Emberclear.
Can I use Emberclear offline?
Emberclear's PWA shell caches for offline access to the UI and local data, but sending and receiving messages requires connectivity to the signaling/relay layer. Cryptographic operations happen entirely in-browser, so the encryption itself works offline; only transport requires a network. Multi-device sync depends on the chosen relay being reachable, which is why some users self-host the relay component for full control.
Who uses Emberclear in production?
Emberclear's user base is small and concentrated among privacy-conscious developers, the Ember.js community (the framework's reference "secure app" example), and users who want pseudonymous E2E chat without registering a phone number. It is also referenced in academic security curricula as a teaching example because the codebase is compact and the cryptographic primitives are clearly named. Production deployments are mostly self-hosted by small teams or individuals.
Where Emberclear is heading (12-24 months)
- →Lack of independent formal cryptographic audit (compared to Signal's multiple audits) keeps it from being a recommendation for high-stakes journalism.
- →Native mobile apps would close the largest UX gap vs Signal and Element.
- →Wider relay network (currently centralized) would improve reliability without compromising the E2E model.
Related questions
ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini usually suggest these next.
- What cryptographic primitives does Emberclear use?
- How is identity established without a phone number?
- Can I self-host Emberclear?
- Does Emberclear support group chat?
- Has Emberclear been formally audited?
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