Guide · updated 2026-10-05

Which bitchat APK to install

Version 2.0.1 ships four signed files. They are the same release, cut for different hardware. Pick once, check the hash, and install that file. Installing a second “just in case” does not make the mesh stronger.

Start with the universal file

The universal APK is 49.5 MB and the filename is bitchat-android-universal.apk. The Android project points most people here because the package includes the native code for more than one kind of processor. You do not need to open a settings screen first. If the phone can run Android 8.0 (API 26), this is the file that is supposed to fit.

The cost of that convenience is size. 49.5 MB is the download. The installed app is larger, because Android unpacks it. Clear a bit of extra space before you start, then delete the APK from Downloads after the install if you need the room back. Deleting the installer does not uninstall the app.

ARM64, when you want the smaller phone build

The ARM64 file is 19.1 MB, named bitchat-android-arm64.apk. It is the right smaller build for a 64-bit ARM phone, which is nearly every handset sold in recent years. The chat behavior is the phone app, not a cut-down feature set. You are trading extra processor builds for a shorter download.

If you want to confirm the processor before you download it, the reliable check is on a computer with the phone plugged in: adb shell getprop ro.product.cpu.abi. An answer of arm64-v8a means the ARM64 file matches. An answer of armeabi-v7a means the phone is 32-bit ARM and should take the universal file instead. You do not need that command if you are willing to download the larger universal package.

A mismatch looks like a failed install, often “app not installed” or a parse error. That message means Android did not find native code for the processor. It is not Play Protect calling the file dangerous. Switch to the universal APK and check the hash again.

The watch file is not a phone file

The Wear OS APK is 4.3 MB. It belongs on a watch. The phone build will not turn a watch into a handset app, and the watch build will not give a phone the mesh screen you expect. Pairing a watch to a phone does not copy one package onto the other. The Wear OS guide covers what version 2.0.1 says the watch can do.

x86_64 is for emulators and unusual devices

The x86_64 APK is 20.8 MB. Use it for an Android emulator, or for the rare tablet or PC image that actually runs that instruction set. A normal phone in a pocket is not that device. If a friend sends you only this file for a handset, ask for the universal build instead of forcing the install.

Already installed from Play

The Play package name is com.bitchat.droid. Android will install this mirror over an existing copy only when the signing certificate matches the one already on the phone. If the system says the package conflicts, the two copies were signed differently. The way through is to uninstall the existing app, which deletes that phone’s local bitchat data, and then install the checked APK as a new app. Do that only if you meant to leave the Play copy.

Store availability changes by country. A missing Play listing is not a reason to take a file from a chat group. Use the download page or the GitHub release, and stop if the SHA-256 disagrees. The longer version of that check is how to read a hash and a Play Protect warning.