The Facebook Messenger desktop app for Mac and Windows has been officially discontinued. As of December 15, 2025, users will no longer be able to access the native app, but will be redirected to the Facebook website, Messenger.com.
The app was launched at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it never caught on to the level of business-focused competitors like Zoom. It lacked key features like screen sharing and easy call connections. As early as 2023, Facebook began integrating Messenger back into the main app, signaling the decline of the standalone solution.
The technology foundation of the app has changed several times. It was initially based on Electron on Mac, then moved to React Native Desktop, and later to Catalyst, which allowed for porting iPad apps to macOS. This approach has been criticized by both developers and users, with the former pointing out the extra work, and the latter the lack of a \u201cnative\u201d app feel. On Windows, Messenger became a progressive web app last year.
In the fall, Meta warned users that the app would be discontinued by the end of the year, and urged them to set a PIN to save their chat history. Users without a Facebook account were redirected to Messenger.com after the shutdown, where they could sign in without creating a profile. More information is available in Facebook's Help Center, which has separate instructions for Mac and Windows.<\/p>\n