Seeking Advice: Building an Instant Messaging System from Scratch

API
1

Hello everyone,

I’m planning to build an instant messaging application (web or mobile), and I’d love to tap into this community for feedback and guidance.

What I’m Aiming For

  • 1:1 and group chat support

  • Real‑time messaging via WebSockets or similar

  • Offline message storage and message history sync

  • User presence indicators (online/offline)

  • Optional multimedia support (images, maybe files later)

  • Push or real-time notifications

  • Scalable architecture capable of handling moderate traffic

  • Exploring open-source options like XMPP, Matrix, and ejabberd, but I’m also looking into commercial platforms that offer full-featured instant messaging software as a foundation or reference point.

  • Some solutions provide scalable messaging with built-in support for features like real-time notifications, offline sync, and end-to-end encryption — which might save time compared to building everything from scratch.

Thanks in advance for any advice, links to resources, or personal experiences! I’m eager to get started and would value your guidance on this journey.

2

Open-source options like XMPP/ejabberd and Matrix are solid and flexible, but they require significant effort for scaling, push notifications, media handling, and maintenance.

If you want faster time-to-market, a white-label solution can help. I personally use Mirrorfly white-label software — it’s secure, customizable, and already supports real-time messaging, offline sync, presence, notifications, and scalability, which saves a lot of development time.

It really comes down to whether you want to build the messaging infrastructure yourself or focus on your product and UX.