28/02/2026
Recently, social media giant Meta announced that it plans to discontinue the standalone Messenger website from April 2026. Following the discontinuation, users who want to access Messenger on a computer will need to log in through Facebook instead. The company said that once the website is removed, users visiting the Messenger website will be automatically redirected to Facebook messages.
Meta’s decision will come as a significant change for people who use Messenger without an active Facebook account. However, the company mentioned in its support page that they will only be able to access their chats through the mobile app. Web access without a Facebook login will not be supported. Meta also clarified that users can restore their chat history using a PIN they created when setting up secure backups. They will also have the option to reset the PIN in case they forget.
The update follows Meta’s earlier decision to shut down Messenger’s standalone desktop app for Windows and Mac. According to a report from TechCrunch, some users have expressed frustration with having to rely on Facebook's main website. These criticisms primarily come from those who have deactivated their Facebook accounts yet continued using Messenger.
Messenger began all the way back in 2008 as “Facebook Chat” before launching as a standalone app in 2011. In 2014, Facebook removed messaging from its main mobile app to push users towards Messenger. However, in 2023, the company started merging Messenger features back into the Facebook app, which marked a major change in Meta’s strategy.
