Telegram brings its desktop app to the Windows Store

By Dan Thorp-Lancaster
last updated

Popular messaging service Telegram has brought its desktop app to the Windows Store. While it's not a universal app, the Telegram Desktop found on the Windows Store is essentially the same as the desktop app you could download directly from Telegram itself. The one big benefit of this listing, however, is that you can grab automatic updates directly through the Windows Store.

Since it shares the same guts as its strictly desktop (Win32) counterpart, Telegram Desktop features the same design, and animations that hit the app with its big 1.0 update in January. The release notes on the Windows Store also mention the following updates:

  • Send MP4/MOV files as videos that will play right inside Telegram.
  • Click on the date in any chat to quickly jump to messages from a specific day.
  • Change your phone number in Settings.
  • Edit who can see your last seen time and who can add you to groups in Settings.
  • Edit your list of blocked users in Settings.
  • Bug fixes and other minor improvements.

While this version of Telegram was brought to the Windows Store using Microsoft's desktop bridge for turning existing desktop apps into UWP apps, Telegram has hinted in the past that it has plans for a full universal app. Whether that means we could still expect to see a desktop version built from scratch for Windows 10 is still a bit of a mystery.

In any case, if you're down for checking out the Windows Store version of Telegram Desktop, you should be able to download it to your PC now.

Download Telegram Desktop from the Windows Store (opens in new tab)

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. 

20 Comments
  • What about voice calling?
  • ......
  • It really is a step forward, and it has a lot of options (unusual in store apps), good performance, notifications... but no dark theme!!!
  • There's an entire theme manager. I use one that is nice and dark.
  • If it is a traditional desktop application, it is not an app. It is either a program or application. The article states it the app was brought from the desktop to the store but it wasn't an app until converted and placed in the store. Minor detail but called legacy programs apps muddles the waters when you talk to someone like Amazon about their Windows app and they talked about their program as if it is the same.
  • I'm pretty sure that "App" is short form of "App"lication
  • Exactly. Because when Mobile was first created app was considered a subset of application, ergo "app". Notice the difference. They are not the same. Of course now app SDKs are nearly as powerful as application SDKs but they are still separate. You attempt to join them is the reason why it is confusing to ask a business to make an app and they direct you to a legacy application seeming confused when you say that it is not the same.
  • It is still a program/application regardless what platform.. app is just hipster name for application
  • Not when you are trying to communicate with companies and they misinterpret based on bridging two different technologies. In application development the devil is in the details. By that same statement PMA and Qi wireless charging are the same because they are both wireless chargers. App went from hipster to technical.
  • I still see them as same. It is just a "software" run on different platform.
  • Great!! Was waiting for it. Am using the web app.. Thank you Telegram :D
  • Finally.
  • Still waiting on a UWP app, just so that notifications work properly. They appear in the current desktop version, but don't stay in the notification shade. That's what I would like. Otherwise, desktop app is awesome.
  • Do it have a mobile version
  • yea. not as uwp tho, but they've had it for ages now.
  • Yay
  • How do I uninstall the .exe version?
  • Open the start menu, scroll until you find it, right click, and uninstall.
  • Except it's not listed under 'Program and features'...
  • .