New audio-only chat app Clubhouse has blown up in popularity, but like any popular club, you need an invite to get off the waitlist. And unfortunately for Android phone owners, you'll have to keep waiting a couple of months longer no matter who you know.
Accessible on iOS only (for now), Clubhouse lets any member host and moderate discussions on any topic they wish, invite other members for interviews, or attend other members' talks and ask to join in on the chat.
- Our choices for the best Android phones that'll eventually have Clubhouse
- Plus the best Android apps of 2021 that you won't have to wait for
Celebrities like Oprah, Elon Musk and Tiffany Haddish have already made appearances, giving members the chance to ask them questions directly – making a Clubhouse invite a prized commodity.
Other popular apps like Discord, LinkedIn, Spotify and Twitter are rushing to steal Clubhouse's audio chatroom premise for its own networks; you could easily wait for those or try the Android Clubhouse alternatives already available. But if you're dead set on trying Clubhouse on Android, here's what we know about when it will officially arrive.
When is Clubhouse coming to Android?
In its January 2021 blog, Clubhouse announced that it would 'begin work on our Android app soon,' meaning it hadn't started the transition yet.
We don't know when its devs officially began the work, but CNBC reported in late February that Clubhouse had hired Android developer Mopewa Ogundipe – who tweeted that she was there to 'bring the party to Android' – to kickstart the process.
We don't have an official timetable for how long the Android port will take. However, according to Techcrunch, Clubhouse co-founder Paul Davison said in a weekly Townhall meeting on March 21 that the team was working 'really hard' on the Android app, but that it would take 'a couple of months' for it to arrive.
That gives us an ETA of late May or later, with the likely release date of Clubhouse for Android sometime in mid-summer 2021. We can't say more for certain, since it appears that even the Clubhouse developers don't have a firm idea. But we will update this page when the company announces a firmer release date.
One other important point: there are several fake Clubhouse apps on the Google Play Store, plus Android malware disguised as Clubhouse invites making the rounds. Until Clubhouse officially announces its Android port, don't use any of these fakes or tap on any suspicious links. They're not workarounds; they're traps.
Clubhouse Android alternatives
It's fair to say that Android users won't want to wait until July (or buy an iPhone 12) to access Clubhouse. But if you just want audio-only chatrooms with friends or famous people, other popular Android apps will be adding the feature – potentially much earlier than Clubhouse's Android launch.
Twitter Spaces is the first of these. It lets Twitter users create voice chat rooms and invite followers to chat on various topics. The functionality is available on iOS and Android, although at the moment only iOS users may create spaces; Android users can only join them for now. But at least you don't need an invite to join in the discussion.
Your other Android alternative is Discord, which launched its new live audio rooms on March 31. Discord lets anyone and everyone talk in voice chat, but now Community servers can create Stage Channels where only certain members have permission to talk and everyone else is listen-only by default.
As for future competitors, Facebook is building a Clubhouse rival according to the New York Times; TechCrunch confirmed that LinkedIn is building a tool for audio networking; and Spotify acquired sports audio app Locker Room in order to repurpose its tech and let musicians and podcasters 'connect with audiences in real time.'
We don't know when these new Clubhouse rivals will arrive, but they could give Android users some exciting alternatives for chatting with famous people or strangers who share their hobbies.
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