Yea’ There is an official Facebook app but if you’re struggling with data, battery and memory drain, then you need an alternative. Also having to download two separate apps just to be able to send Facebook messages has been pretty annoying. However, you can very well live with the official Facebook stock app but there are few alternatives that you should give a try. There are many apps but here we’ve compiled a list of top best alternatives to stock Facebook app.
1. Facebook Lite
Facebook Lite is a standalone app and very fast that can replace the regular Facebook app. It is an official alternative to Facebook. Facebook Lite uses less system resources, less data, and is configured to work even with the slowest data connections. It works on 2G networks meaning it won’t cost you so much data. It has a functioning Facebook Messenger built- in and it gets the basic stuff done quite well. It’s the fastest version of Facebook you’ll find. The app is compatible with most Android phones, even older ones. The app is built to take up little space, and is recommended for people with low-end Android phones.
2. Swipe
Swipe for Facebook is one of the newer Facebook apps. Swipe places a heavier emphasis on UX and UI design than the other apps here. The UI has been tweaked to give it more of a Material Design feel and you can change the UI to mimic different styles. The app is slightly more battery-intensive than the other wrappers found on this page. Swipe functions more like the official app. Its name comes from its tab-swiping navigation system, which allows you to scroll through your news feed, friend requests, notifications, and more, just by swiping left and right. It also has a pin lock feature, themes and Facebook Messenger support.
3. Fast
Fast is one of the oldest Facebook apps available and has over 8 million downloads and quite a lot of users swear by this Facebook app. Its awesomeness is it allows users to pretty much design their own layout with options for customizing. It has most of the same features as the official Facebook app. It boasts Facebook chat support, Fast has its issues, but it’s a good effort and works well. Fast comes in a very small file.
4. Tinfoil for Facebook
Tinfoil is a little bit older, its an app made to enhance the functionality of another app, and thus it doesn’t exactly have any special features to write home about. It is a web-wrapped for Facebook and so most of the functionality is the same as the mobile website version of Facebook. Tinfoil is the original, open-source Facebook site wrapper. It receives less regular updates than Metal (see below), but it remains a decent choice. Its UI is less polished than Metal’s and there’s no notification shade bar.
5. Metal (Notification shade bar)
Metal is based on Tinfoil, is unique in this list in that it provides a notification shade bar. You can access your news feed, friend requests, messages and notifications. Like most, this is a web-wrapper with some tweaks and additional features included to improve the experience. It is fast, and offers additional features like customizing notifications, using floating windows and changing themes. It’s an ad-free app and also comes with a dark mode option.
6. Toffeed
Another wrapper app, It’s clean, fast and also has an omnipresent circular button placed at the bottom right of the screen that you can press to make a post. Another feature of note is that Toffeed enables more granular notification sync frequency options than any other app listed. Anything down to five minutes is possible, with smaller increments than Metal. This determines not only notification timeliness but also how battery-intensive the app is.
Have you tried any of these Facebook app alternatives? Share your views in comments, Thanks!