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Telegram Desktop vs Telegram for macOS: catalog facts
Telegram Desktop	Telegram for macOS
Freemium Free to use. Telegram Premium is an optional subscription for larger uploads, faster…	Free Free to download and use; the client source is under GPL v2.
Windows, macOS, Linux	macOS
Official client with published source and build instructions Cloud chats sync instantly across every device you sign in on	Native macOS app rather than a cross-platform port Open source client under the GPL v2
Ordinary chats are not end-to-end encrypted and Telegram holds the keys Secret chats are not available in the desktop client	Messages are stored on Telegram's servers macOS only; other platforms use different clients
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-3.0	License: GPL-2.0
Account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 21, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 1, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.