Anonymous messages apps: the complete guide

Anonymous messages apps — also called anonymous Q&A apps — turn your story into a mailbox. Instead of comments or DMs that show who wrote them, friends send messages through a link, and the app hides their identity from you. The idea took off with Instagram stories: post a link, ask a question, and answer the best replies on your next story.

Loomii is one of these apps. You claim a username, which becomes your link (loomii.link/yourname). Friends open it in any browser — no download, no account — and type a message. It arrives in your Loomii inbox on Android, where you can read it, unlock hints, report or block, and reply on your story with a ready-made card.

Tip: Only you need the app. Everyone who sends you messages just needs to tap your link.

Anonymous feedback is older than social media — suggestion boxes and secret-admirer notes did the same job. Online, anonymous Q&A sites appeared in the early 2010s, letting people post questions to a public profile without signing their name. In 2017 an app built around honest anonymous feedback went viral worldwide, and anonymous messaging became a mainstream trend.

The big change came when Instagram and Snapchat let everyone add links to stories. Instead of a public profile that anyone could find, people could post a link to their friends for a day, collect messages and answer them on their story. That “link on your story” format is what apps like Loomii are built for today, with games, quizzes and templates on top.

• Honesty: friends say things they’d never say with their name attached — usually compliments, not criticism.
• Something to post: a game gives you a reason to put up a story and something to answer afterwards.
• Curiosity: guessing who sent what is half the fun.
• Low effort for friends: one tap, type, send. No account, no app.
• Connection: shy people find it easier to reach out.

1. You install the app and pick a username. That becomes your public link.
2. You choose a game or question — “Ask me anything”, “Rate me 1–10”, “Confess something” — which visitors see when they open the link.
3. You post the link on your story with the Link sticker, in your bio, or in a WhatsApp status.
4. Friends tap it and type a message. They don’t sign in, so their name and number are never attached.
5. The message lands in your inbox. Filters move bullying messages to a Hidden folder automatically.
6. You reply on your story — the app puts the question on a card so the sender stays anonymous.

Because senders never log in, the app genuinely doesn’t know who they are. It only sees what every website sees — which app the link was opened from, the device type and a rough area — which is why honest apps can offer “hints” but never names. More on that in can you find out who sent an anonymous message?.

Your link works anywhere you can post a web address, but each app has its own trick for making it tappable:

• Instagram story: add it with the Link sticker. Instagram’s own Questions sticker isn’t anonymous, so the link is what keeps senders hidden. Put it in your bio too so it outlives the story.
• Snapchat: attach it to a snap with the paperclip icon and post to My Story. Friends swipe or tap to open it.
• WhatsApp status: paste it into a text status or photo caption — links there are tappable. Your contacts are people who know you, which makes for great replies.

Post the same link on all three. Loomii tags each message with where it came from, so you’ll learn which app your friends actually use.

One clear prompt beats “send me anything” every time. Three ways to get more replies:

• 100+ anonymous questions: fun, deep, spicy-but-kind, school and festival questions you can copy straight onto your story.
• Rate me, Crush and Confession games: each Loomii game has its own link, so you can run a different game every day — Rate me for quick scores, Crush for gossip, Confession for secrets, Honest opinion for feedback and Q&A for big moments.
• “How well do you know me?” quiz: write multiple-choice questions about yourself and share a link; a scoreboard shows who knows you best. It’s free.

Rotate prompts every day or two, answer the best replies publicly, and use seasonal backgrounds — Loomii has story templates for Diwali, Holi, Navratri, Eid, Christmas and many more festivals.

Anonymity makes people more honest, and occasionally meaner. The app you choose should handle that for you. The essentials:

• An abuse filter that hides bullying words before you see them, plus your own hidden words.
• Block and report from the message, with a real moderation team behind it.
• A pause switch to stop new messages instantly.
• No fake messages — and any app-written prompts clearly labelled.
• Hints that are honest about what they can show.

Read the full checklist in are anonymous message apps safe?. Parents can start with our parents’ guide to anonymous apps, and anyone tempted by “see who sent it” offers should read what anonymous apps can really reveal.

Loomii is for people aged 13 and over. It doesn’t ask for your phone number, email or contacts, and you can delete your account and data at any time.

Most anonymous Q&A apps share the same core idea, so the differences are in the details: games, design, safety, honesty and price.

• NGL alternatives: the main options in India and what each is best for.
• Loomii vs NGL: a side-by-side look at links, games, templates, safety, hints and price.
• How to choose an anonymous Q&A app: a 10-point checklist to run any app through before posting its link.

1. Write one specific question on the story image.
2. Make the Link sticker big and put it in the middle.
3. Post in the evening, when friends are scrolling.
4. Use a game instead of a blank “ask me anything”.
5. Change the game or question every day or two.
6. Answer a few replies publicly so people see you read them.
7. Keep your link in your bio and a Highlight.
8. Share on Instagram, Snapchat and WhatsApp at once.
9. Use festival and seasonal templates around big days.
10. Run a quiz now and then — scoreboards bring people back.

Anonymous Q&A is popular with teenagers, so it comes up at home and in classrooms. The most useful approach is practical rather than alarmed: know how the apps work, check their safety tools, and agree on simple habits such as posting to close friends, blocking instead of replying to mean messages, and telling an adult when something feels wrong.

Loomii is for people aged 13 and over; its terms ask 13–17 year olds to have a parent’s or guardian’s permission. The parents’ guide walks through the settings and conversations in detail.

• Anonymous link: a personal web address that lets people message you without their name.
• Link sticker: Instagram’s story sticker that makes a link tappable.
• AMA: “ask me anything”.
• Rate me, Crush, Confession, Honest opinion, Q&A: Loomii’s story games, each with its own link.
• Quiz: “How well do you know me?” — multiple-choice questions with a scoreboard.
• Hints: limited clues about a sender from real data (app used, device type, rough area), never a name.
• Hidden folder: where filtered messages go, out of your main inbox.
• Special Daily: optional fun questions written by Loomii, always labelled.
• Coins: optional in-app currency for extra games, templates and hints.

1. Install Loomii from Google Play — it’s free, and new accounts get 100 coins.
2. Pick a username (your link) and confirm you’re 13 or older.
3. Choose a game, or keep “Ask me anything”.
4. Tap Share to make a story image, then add your link with the Link sticker.
5. Read messages as they arrive and reply on your story.

Want free coins? Invite friends from Settings → Invite friends: you earn points when they join and use Loomii, and points swap for coins or real Loomii merch.