What is Zalo?

Posted by Dan Taylor

Zalo is a popular messaging app in Vietnam, akin to WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger in other parts of the world. It was launched by VNG Corporation in 2012 and has since grown to become one of the most widely used communication platforms in the country.

Zalo offers a range of features, including text messaging, voice and video calls, file sharing, and even integration with various services like online shopping, bill payments, and government services.

Zalo’s popularity is attributed to its fast, reliable messaging capabilities and localization for Vietnamese users. It also supports official accounts for businesses, enabling companies to interact with customers, run promotions, and provide customer support.

Additionally, Zalo includes social media elements, such as status updates and public groups, making it a hybrid between a messaging app and a social network.

Its strong presence in Vietnam is a result of Zalo being tailored specifically for the Vietnamese market, offering better optimization and localization compared to global competitors.

How does Zalo compare to Facebook?

Zalo and Facebook serve different primary purposes in Vietnam, but there are key areas of overlap, particularly in messaging and social interaction. Here’s how they compare:

1. Core Purpose:

  • Zalo: Primarily a messaging app with social elements. Its main focus is fast, reliable communication, including texting, voice and video calls, and file sharing. Zalo also integrates with various local services like bill payments, government services, and online shopping.
  • Facebook: A global social networking platform designed for broader social interaction, where users connect through posts, photos, videos, groups, and pages. Facebook Messenger is a part of the Facebook ecosystem, serving as a dedicated chat feature.

2. User Base:

  • Zalo: Most users are based in Vietnam. Zalo is developed by VNG Corporation, a Vietnamese tech company, and is highly localized for the Vietnamese market.
  • Facebook: Has a global user base, including millions in Vietnam. Itā€™s more internationally oriented, making it popular for connecting with people worldwide.

3. Features:

  • Zalo:
    • Messaging and Calls: Offers text, voice, and video calls similar to Messenger, but optimized for Vietnamese users.
    • Integration with Local Services: Zalo Pay allows bill payments, online purchases, and money transfers. Zalo also integrates with government services, such as receiving notifications or applying for certain permits.
    • Social Features: Includes status updates, public group chats, and official accounts for businesses, but its social features are more limited compared to Facebook.
  • Facebook:
    • Broader Social Interaction: Users post updates, share photos and videos, create and join groups, like pages, and engage with a global network.
    • Marketplace and Events: Facebook has features like Facebook Marketplace for buying/selling and the ability to create and attend events, which Zalo doesnā€™t emphasize.
    • Advertising and Business Tools: Facebookā€™s powerful ad platform enables businesses to target users more effectively than Zalo.

4. Local Optimization:

  • Zalo: Tailored for the Vietnamese market with its interface, services, and support for the Vietnamese language, making it more intuitive for local users. Itā€™s known for fast, reliable messaging with minimal downtime.
  • Facebook: Though it supports Vietnamese language and is popular in Vietnam, it is not as tightly integrated with local services and doesnā€™t provide the same level of localized optimization as Zalo.

5. Privacy and Data Concerns:

  • Zalo: Being a local app, many Vietnamese users trust Zalo to be more secure and private in terms of local regulations, although it still faces scrutiny regarding privacy policies.
  • Facebook: Has faced global privacy controversies, including in Vietnam, over its data collection practices. However, Facebookā€™s transparency efforts and privacy tools are more visible compared to Zalo.

6. Business and E-commerce:

  • Zalo: Businesses can create official accounts to interact with customers, manage support, and offer promotions. Zalo Pay integration facilitates direct transactions, making it a growing platform for local businesses.
  • Facebook: Facebookā€™s ecosystem for businesses is much more extensive, offering advertising, business pages, Messenger for customer service, and tools like Facebook Shops for e-commerce.

7. Reach:

  • Zalo: Primarily for domestic use in Vietnam, with the majority of its services tailored to local users and businesses.
  • Facebook: A global platform that allows for connections beyond Vietnam, making it better suited for those who want to interact internationally.

Zalo is often the preferred choice in Vietnam for everyday messaging and localized services, while Facebook offers a more robust platform for broader social interactions and business advertising. Many users in Vietnam use both apps for different purposes: Zalo for domestic, personal communications, and Facebook for global networking and entertainment.