Element X
by Element Creations Ltd. · AGPL-3.0-or-later · open source
The new app from Element for Matrix, the open network for encrypted chat. It replaces Element Classic, which Element is retiring at the end of 2026.
Needs:Android 7.0+ · 64-bit ARM · a Matrix account
2113 Apps is independent, not affiliated with or endorsed by Element Creations Ltd.. Official sources: element.io · source code on GitHub.
- Version
- 26.09.1
- Size
- 117.7 MB
- Requires
- Android 7.0+
- Updated
- 2026-09-07
Screenshots
Introduction
Element X is a messenger for Matrix, an open, decentralised network for chat and calls, made by the company Element (New Vector Ltd.). You sign in to a Matrix server, matrix.org by default or one run by your organisation or yourself, and can talk to people on any other Matrix server. Private chats and calls are end-to-end encrypted.
Element X and Element Classic
Element is replacing its older app, now called Element Classic. Its FAQ: “The Element Classic app will be sunset on 31.12.2026 - on this date the app will be removed from the stores and will receive no updates.” Existing installs keep working after that, but from 15 November 2026 Classic shows a banner inviting users to switch.
What Element X has: chats and rooms, Spaces, voice and video calls one-to-one and in groups (through Element Call), sharing your location, including live location for a chosen time, polls (new in 26.09.1: with several answers allowed), voice messages, and signing in on a new device by confirming it from another one or with your recovery key.
What it still lacks, from the same FAQ: threads, which are “in progress and needs to be activated in Labs”, widgets and slash commands. Calls made with Classic’s Jitsi integration don’t connect to Element X’s calls.
Notifications need a second app
This build gets push notifications only through UnifiedPush, an open alternative to Google’s push service. You install a distributor app, ntfy for example, and choose it in Element X’s notification settings. Without one there are no notifications while the app is closed, and there’s no mode that checks for messages on its own; a request for one is open (#4586). The Play version uses Google’s push service instead.
What goes online
From the source code of version 26.09.1 and Element’s privacy notice:
- Your Matrix server, for everything you send and receive.
- Push notifications through your UnifiedPush distributor and a push gateway, when you set them up.
- Analytics, only if you agree when asked after signing in; they are off by default and go to Element’s own analytics service.
- Crash reporting: the Sentry library is in the app, which is why our scan lists it, but this build has no reporting address configured, so it never starts. Bug reports go to Element only when you send one.
- Maps from MapTiler, when a location is shown; Element’s privacy notice says it uses MapTiler “to provide the images used to display maps”, and the request contains the coordinates.
- Calls through the call service your server advertises.
About this file
- This is Element’s own build of version 26.09.1 for F-Droid, published by Element on 1 September 2026 and signed with Element’s key: byte for byte the 64-bit ARM file (
app-fdroid-arm64-v8a-release-signed.apk) on Element’s GitHub release, which F-Droid distributes after building the same file from source. It contains no Google Play services or Firebase code. - F-Droid has been stuck on 26.09.1 since a newer analytics library added Firebase code it can’t build (#7801, open). Element’s GitHub has 26.09.4. Two fixes this version lacks: a blank screen at launch after about a week without opening the app (#7689, fixed in 26.09.3), and calls failing with MISSING_MATRIX_RTC_TRANSPORT on some self-hosted servers until the server is updated (#7659).
- Element Classic can hand your sign-in over to Element X, but going by Classic’s code that only works with the Play version of Element X; with this one you sign in and confirm the new session with another device or your recovery key.
- The screenshots are Element’s promotional images from its F-Droid listing, with made-up names.
- The 117.7 MB file is for 64-bit ARM phones, runs on Android 7.0 and later and declares 22 permissions, among them the microphone and camera for calls and voice messages, the camera also for photos and signing in by QR code, location for sharing it, notifications, and fingerprint unlock.
- Element X is licensed under the AGPL-3.0, or under a commercial licence from Element. We aren’t affiliated with Element. The source of this version is at https://github.com/element-hq/element-x-android/tree/v26.09.1.
What’s inside the APK
Trackers
Code from these SDKs is in the package. That shows it is bundled, not how it is used.
Native code
Needs a 64-bit ARM phone; 32-bit-only devices are not supported.
Android versions
Built for Android 17 (target API 37).
Permissions
5 of them need your approval first.
CPU types in this build: arm64-v8a (64-bit ARM, almost every phone since 2017).
Asks you first (5)
Android shows a prompt before the app can use these.
- Approximate location · ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION
- Precise location · ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION
- Use the camera · CAMERA
- Show notifications (Android 13+) · POST_NOTIFICATIONS
- Record audio with the microphone · RECORD_AUDIO
You switch these on in Settings (1)
Special app access. Nothing is granted until you turn it on yourself.
- Install unknown apps · REQUEST_INSTALL_PACKAGES
Granted at install (15)
Low-risk permissions Android grants automatically, plus any we have not classified.
- ACCESS_LOCAL_NETWORK
- ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE
- ACCESS_WIFI_STATE
- FOREGROUND_SERVICE
- FOREGROUND_SERVICE_LOCATION
- FOREGROUND_SERVICE_MICROPHONE
- INTERNET
- MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS
- RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED
- REQUEST_IGNORE_BATTERY_OPTIMIZATIONS
- USE_BIOMETRIC
- USE_FINGERPRINT
- USE_FULL_SCREEN_INTENT
- VIBRATE
- WAKE_LOCK
Defined by other apps (1)
Permissions that belong to another app or to this app itself.
- io.element.android.x.DYNAMIC_RECEIVER_NOT_EXPORTED_PERMISSION
More Information
- Package name
- io.element.android.x
- Version
- 26.09.1 (build 202609012)
- File size
- 117.7 MB (117,664,325 bytes)
- Requires
- Android 7.0 or later
- Category
- Productivity
- License
- AGPL-3.0-or-later
- Developer
- Element Creations Ltd.
- Source code
- github.com/element-hq/element-x-android
- Released
- Sep 7, 2026
- Signed by
- The developer. F-Droid publishes a developer-signed APK only when its own build from the source code reproduces it.
- Signer SHA-256
- 6a2fdc3148049ce0d5c6e85010723b83fb207d20c7477f5c22ac53c877e92d47
- File SHA-256
- ceb076564298cd0aef4688ad79058b55638d196b9beb5ac47ab421d757335bf3
- Checked
- , against the F-Droid index · how we check · verify it yourself
Common questions
Is this APK the official Element X release?
Yes. It is the developer-signed release of Element X 26.09.1 that F-Droid distributes, which F-Droid publishes only when its own build from the source code reproduces it. Its SHA-256 matches F-Droid’s signed index, and it is signed with the developer’s certificate (SHA-256 6a2fdc3148049ce0d5c6e85010723b83fb207d20c7477f5c22ac53c877e92d47).
What Android version does Element X need?
Android 7.0 or later (API level 24). Version 26.09.1 is built for Android 17 (target API 37). Needs a 64-bit ARM phone; 32-bit-only devices are not supported.
Can Element X access the internet?
Yes. The APK requests Android’s internet permission. In total it declares 22 permissions, and 5 of them need your approval first.
Does Element X contain trackers?
Yes. Version 26.09.1 contains code from Sentry, which matches an Exodus Privacy tracker signature. That shows the code is bundled, not how the app uses it.
Is Element X open source?
Yes. Element X is released under the AGPL-3.0-or-later licence, and its source code is published at https://github.com/element-hq/element-x-android.
How do notifications work without Google Play services?
Only through UnifiedPush, so you need a separate distributor app such as ntfy. Without one this build gets no notifications in the background, and it has no fallback that checks for messages itself. An Element developer’s advice: “you need to install a UnifiedPush distributor … Then Element X will detect the new available distributor and you will be able to change the push provider from the notification settings.”
Element X or Element Classic?
Element X. Element says Classic “will be sunset on 31.12.2026 - on this date the app will be removed from the stores and will receive no updates”, and from 15 November it shows a banner asking users to switch. Element X still lacks a few things Classic has: threads are only in its Labs settings, and widgets and slash commands are missing.
Does it work with my server?
It works with matrix.org, the default, and with servers that support native sliding sync, the newer way of syncing that Element X relies on. With an older server the app says the account provider “does not support sliding sync. An upgrade to the server is needed”.
Can I install it over the Play Store version?
No. This is Element’s own build for F-Droid, signed with Element’s key, while the Play version is signed with Google’s, so Android won’t update one with the other. Element’s later F-Droid builds on GitHub use the same key as this file and install over it.
Recent releases
| Version | Released | Size | Requires |
|---|---|---|---|
| v26.09.1 · this download | Sep 7, 2026 | 117.7 MB | Android 7.0+ |
| v26.08.1 | Aug 23, 2026 | 124.4 MB | Android 7.0+ |
| v26.08.0 | Aug 10, 2026 | 125.3 MB | Android 7.0+ |
Versions currently kept in the F-Droid repository. We host and check only the newest one. Full changelog.
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