Viber vs WhatsApp
One of these two can call an ordinary telephone number and the other cannot. If you have been comparing them on features, that is the difference that decides it.
vs
Viber can dial a real telephone number and WhatsApp cannot. Viber Out is a paid, credit-based service inside the Viber app that calls landlines and mobiles worldwide; WhatsApp reaches only other people running WhatsApp. Everything else about the two — free app-to-app calls, messaging, a phone number to register — is broadly the same.
The catch with Viber Out is in the billing rather than the rate: it bills per minute and, per Viber's own published terms, rounds each call up to the next whole minute. On the short calls most people make to family that is a real surcharge, and it does not appear in any rate comparison. Viber does state that there are no connection fees.
Side by side
Pick what you care about and the differences reorder.
3 of 8 fields differ; 3 are the same.
How to read this comparison
Work down in this order and most comparisons resolve in under a minute. First, can it reach the number you actually need — a service that only calls its own users is not a cheaper version of one that dials a landline, it is a different thing. Second, what are the billing terms: the unit a call is measured in, and whether a fixed fee is added to each one. Third, what happens to money you do not spend.
The per-minute rate is deliberately not the first question here, and it is the only question most comparisons ask. At the same advertised rate, a service that rounds every call up to a whole minute and adds a per-call fee can cost close to double another on the short calls that make up most people's actual usage. The rate is the number that gets compared because it is the number that gets published.
Where they actually differ
Calls a phone number
Viber Out: Dials real phone numbers. WhatsApp: Only reaches its own users. This is not a difference of degree. An app that reaches only other installs of itself is a different product, and no price advantage makes it an alternative when the person you need is on a landline, has no smartphone, or will not install anything. Settle this first — everything below only matters once both services can actually reach the number you are trying to call.
Billing unit
Viber Out bills rounded up; WhatsApp bills app to app only. At an identical per-minute rate those produce different bills, and the gap is widest exactly where most people call. Rounding a 35-second call up to a whole minute is a surcharge of roughly seventy per cent on that call, and it appears in no rate comparison anywhere, because the rate has not changed.
Subscription
Viber Out: Offers a subscription. WhatsApp: No subscription. A subscription is cheaper per minute once you pass its break-even point and more expensive in every month you do not, which makes choosing one a bet on your own future behaviour. Prepaid credit is the opposite trade: a worse unit price in exchange for no commitment.
Where they are the same
- Connection fee: both none.
- Credit expiry: both never.
- Account required: both account required.
What each one is
Viber Out
Viber Out is a paid VoIP feature within the Rakuten Viber app that lets users call mobile and landline numbers worldwide from the app using prepaid credit or subscriptions.
WhatsApp is a cross‑platform messaging and VoIP app that provides end‑to‑end‑encrypted text messaging, voice and video calls, and media sharing between users over the internet, but does not offer PSTN calling to regular phone numbers.
How each one bills you
As published by Viber Out
- per minute (rounded up to the next minute).
- None (no connection fees or hidden costs stated for Viber Out).
- Viber Out credit is advertised as prepaid 'World Credit'; official documentation describes balance consumption and auto‑recharge but does not state a fixed expiry date.
As published by WhatsApp
- none
- No calling credit is used for consumer WhatsApp; usage depends on internet connectivity provided by the user’s operator or Wi‑Fi.
What each one asks of you
As published by Viber Out
Users register Viber with a mobile phone number and then can purchase Viber Out credit or plans linked to that account.
As published by WhatsApp
Registration requires a mobile phone number for SMS or call verification; the number serves as the primary account identifier.
Plans, where each one sells them
As published by Viber Out
Offers World Credit (pay‑as‑you‑go credit), World Unlimited Plan for unlimited calls to 60 countries, Unlimited Country Plans for unlimited calls to a single country, and Minutes Country Plans with monthly minute bundles.
As published by WhatsApp
Consumer app has no in‑app subscription for calling; WhatsApp Business is also free to download, with business API usage billed separately by Meta partners.
Published rates
The corridor prices each provider published at the time of the research. An empty list means the provider does not publish its rates outside its own app, which is itself worth knowing before you top up.
Viber Out
- United States, landline: $0.019/min (approximate per‑minute rate; VAT/tax not specified).
- United States, mobile: $0.019/min (approximate per‑minute rate; VAT/tax not specified).
- United Kingdom, landline: $0.019/min (approximate per‑minute rate; VAT/tax not specified).
- United Kingdom, mobile: $0.059/min (approximate per‑minute rate; VAT/tax not specified).
- India, mobile: $0.015/min (approximate per‑minute rate; VAT/tax not specified).
Source, as recorded: Viber Out international call rates index and explanatory article on Viber Out pricing.
WhatsApp publishes no per-country rates outside its own app.
Source, as recorded: WhatsApp consumer apps do not provide paid PSTN calling; calls are app‑to‑app over data.
What each one does
Viber Out
- Lets Viber users call mobile and landline numbers in over 60 countries at per‑minute rates.
- Provides multiple Viber Out products: World Credit, World Unlimited Plan, Unlimited Country Plans, and Minutes Country Plans.
- No connection fees are mentioned; billing is per minute and rounded up.
- Uses the same Viber app used for free Viber‑to‑Viber messaging and calls.
- Supports VoIP calling over Wi‑Fi or mobile data, with rates denominated in USD or EUR depending on phone number region.
- Automatic top‑up can be configured to prevent running out of Viber Out credit.
- Desktop apps for Windows and macOS mirror the mobile account once activated via mobile.
- Supports international SMS at a separate per‑message rate.
- Provides end‑to‑end‑encrypted messaging and voice/video calls between WhatsApp users.
- Supports group chats and group voice/video calls (up to 32 participants on mobile as per recent app descriptions).
- Available on mobile apps, WhatsApp Web, and desktop clients, with chats synced across devices.
- Uses phone numbers as identifiers, eliminating separate usernames.
- Offers free international messaging and calls over data without per‑minute charges from WhatsApp itself.
- Owned and operated by Meta Platforms, Inc.
- WhatsApp Business app adds business‑oriented messaging tools while using the same underlying calling and messaging infrastructure.
- As of 2020 it had more than 2 billion active users worldwide, and remains one of the most widely used messaging apps globally.
What users complain about
Viber Out
- Some reviewers note rate variability between landlines and mobiles, with significantly higher prices for mobiles in certain destinations.
- User feedback on third‑party review sites mentions occasional call quality issues over mobile data compared with Wi‑Fi.
- There are complaints about confusion around available plans and finding the best combination of World Credit vs subscriptions for specific destinations.
- Some reviewers express concerns about metadata and data sharing with parent company Meta, despite message content being end‑to‑end encrypted.
- Enterprise and privacy‑focused reviewers sometimes criticise limited multi‑device independence, as a phone number and device are still central to account setup for most users.
- Crowded chats and high message volume can make long‑term conversation management difficult according to user reviews on app‑analysis sites.
About each company
| Founded | — | 2009 |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Tokyo, Japan (Rakuten Group global HQ; Viber branded as Rakuten Viber). | Menlo Park, California, United States (under Meta Platforms). |
| Users | Hundreds of millions of monthly active users for Rakuten Viber overall; official about page states 'over a billion people worldwide'. | Over 2 billion active users worldwide as of 2020; remains one of the most‑used messaging services globally. |
| Store rating | 4.2 (developer listing aggregate rating for Rakuten Viber Messenger). | 4.7 (Google Play developer page aggregate rating, hundreds of millions of reviews). |
If neither of them fits
Both of the services above bill per minute or cannot dial a phone at all. If what you need is to call an ordinary number and pay only for the seconds you talk, that is what we publish — and the same nine fields are in the table above, in the first row, marked as ours.
Rates from $0.03 a minute across 41 destinations, billed per second with no connection fee and credit that does not expire.
What Telvio does and does not doSources and dates
Every value on this page is quoted from the provider's own published material, gathered in a structured research pass on 2026-03-18. Where a provider published no answer, the page says so rather than estimating. Nothing here is a review: call quality, reliability and support are not assessed, because they cannot be established from published material.
Bottom line
WhatsApp is free and reaches only other WhatsApp users. Viber does the same and additionally sells Viber Out, which dials ordinary landlines and mobiles worldwide.
Viber Out bills per minute rounded up to the next whole minute, with no connection fee. Rounding costs most on short calls and is invisible in a per-minute rate comparison.
If everybody you call is on WhatsApp, WhatsApp is free and this is not a contest. If anybody is not, only one of these two can reach them.
Frequently asked questions
Can Viber Out call a landline or mobile number?
Yes. Viber Out dials ordinary landline and mobile numbers, so the person you are calling does not need to install anything.
Can WhatsApp call a landline or mobile number?
No. WhatsApp reaches only other installs of itself, so it cannot call a landline or a mobile belonging to somebody who has not installed it.
Does Viber Out charge a connection fee?
No separate connection fee is published for Viber Out, so the cost of a call is the per-minute rate applied to the billed time.
Does WhatsApp charge a connection fee?
No separate connection fee is published for WhatsApp, so the cost of a call is the per-minute rate applied to the billed time.
Does unused credit expire on Viber Out or WhatsApp?
Credit on Viber Out does not expire according to its published terms. Credit on WhatsApp does not expire according to its published terms. Expiry costs most when you top up in large amounts and call infrequently.
Which is cheaper for short calls, Viber Out or WhatsApp?
Neither publishes per-country rates in a form that allows a like-for-like table, so the comparison rests on billing terms. Viber Out bills rounded up, WhatsApp bills app to app only. On calls of under a minute the billing unit and any per-call fee change the total more than the headline rate does.
Do Viber Out and WhatsApp require an account?
Viber Out: Account required. WhatsApp: Account required. Every service in this comparison set except one requires you to identify yourself before you can call.
Which devices do Viber Out and WhatsApp run on?
Viber Out runs on iOS, Android, Web, Windows, macOS. WhatsApp runs on iOS, Android, Web, Windows, macOS. These are the platforms each provider publishes.
