# How Talklio works

> You make a private space, add up to five people and give each one a password. Talklio hands you a single link to share. Each person taps their name, types their password and lands in a private, end-to-end encrypted chat with you. Messages delete after 24 hours, and the space closes after 30 days.

Talklio is deliberately simple. There's no account, no contact list and no profile. There's a space, a link, and the handful of people you choose. Here's the whole thing, start to finish.

## Step 1: Make a space

Go to [talklio.app/new](/new) and fill in three things:

1. **Your name.** This is what the other people will see. It can be your real name, a nickname or an inside joke. Talklio doesn't check.
2. **Your password.** At least six characters. You'll use it to get back into your space on any device. Write it down somewhere sensible, because there is no "forgot password" button. Only you hold the key.
3. **Your people.** Add between one and five people. For each one, type the name they'll use and a password for them. Tap the dice to get an easy-to-say password like `mango-42-river`.

![The Talklio create screen with fields for your name, password and up to five people](/img/shots/create.webp "Step 1: add yourself and your people")

Tick the box to confirm you're 18 or over, then tap **Create my space**. Your phone does a little work at this point, scrambling the passwords before anything leaves your device, so give it a second.

## Step 2: Share the link

You'll get one private link that looks something like this:

`https://talklio.app/s/Ab3dE5gH7jK9#k=…`

Everything after the `#k=` is the secret key that encrypts your messages. Browsers never send that part to a web server, which means we never see it. Treat the whole link like a house key.

Below the link you'll see each person with their password and two buttons. **Invite** opens your phone's share menu with a friendly message and the link. **Password** copies just that person's password.

![The Talklio share screen with one private link and an invite button for each person](/img/shots/share.webp "Step 2: one link, plus an invite and password for each person")

We'd suggest sending the link in one place and the password somewhere else (or saying it out loud). That way, if a message gets seen by the wrong person, they still can't get in.

## Step 3: They join

When someone opens the link, they see the people in the space as little avatar cards. They tap their own name, enter their password, confirm they're 18 or over, and they're in. They don't make an account and they don't give us anything about themselves.

![The Talklio join screen where each person taps their name](/img/shots/login.webp "Step 3: tap your name and type your password")

If they get the password wrong a few times, Talklio locks that name for a while to stop guessing. If they've forgotten it, you can set a new one for them from the **People** screen.

## Step 4: Talk

Once you're both in, it feels like any messaging app:

- **Messages, photos and voice notes**, all end-to-end encrypted
- **Voice and video calls** straight from the chat
- **Replies, emoji reactions and highlights** (star a message to find it fast)
- **Typing indicators, online status and read receipts**, so you know when they've seen it
- **Notifications** when someone messages or calls, if you add Talklio to your home screen

As the owner, you'll see an inbox with each person listed separately. Tap a name to open your chat with them. There's a full tour on the [features page](/features).

![The Talklio owner inbox with separate chats for Sam, Theo and Priya](/img/shots/inbox.webp "The owner's inbox: one private chat per person")

## It's not a group chat

This is the part that surprises people. In a Talklio space, each person you add gets their own private one-to-one chat with you. Jess can't see what you say to Val. Val doesn't know what Charl sent you. The guests can see each other's names on the login screen, but that's all.

We built it this way because it matches how people actually lean on each other during a break from social media: a few separate conversations with the people who matter, rather than one noisy group.

## What disappears, and when

| What | When it's deleted |
| --- | --- |
| Each message, photo or voice note | 24 hours after it was sent |
| Call history entries | 24 hours after the call |
| A person you remove (and their whole chat) | Straight away |
| The entire space, everyone in it and the link | 30 days after it was created |
| Everything, if the owner taps "Delete this space now" | Straight away |

Deletion happens on our servers, not just on your screen. When a message reaches 24 hours, the space deletes its own copy and your app removes it from view. There's no archive and no backup for anyone to dig through later.

## Coming back to your space

On the same phone or computer, open the link again (or go to [talklio.app/app](/app)) and you'll be signed straight in. On a new device, open your full link and log in with your name and password. Your saved spaces live only on your own devices, never in a central account.

To get notifications on an iPhone, add Talklio to your Home Screen first (Safari, then Share, then Add to Home Screen). Then open it, paste your link, and tap **Turn on**. On Android and computers you can switch notifications on straight from the browser.

## When the 30 days are up

The space closes automatically. The link stops working and everything inside is wiped. If you still want to talk, the owner can make a new space in under a minute and send out a fresh link. Some people like that rhythm: a clean slate every month.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can a guest invite someone else?

No. Only the owner can add or remove people, and a space can have up to five guests at a time.

### What if I lose the link?

If you've opened it on a device before, it's saved there, so go to [talklio.app/app](/app) on that device. Otherwise, ask the owner to send it again. If the owner loses it on every device, the space can't be recovered, because nobody else has the key. That's the trade-off for real privacy.

### Can I change someone's password?

Yes. The owner can open **People**, tap the key icon next to a name and set a new password. That person is logged out everywhere until they use the new one.

### How do I leave a space?

Guests can tap their avatar, then **Leave and delete my chat**. Your chat with the owner is deleted immediately and you won't be able to get back in with that name.

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Source: https://talklio.app/how-it-works · Updated 2026-10-10