Getting started with Stitch

Create your account

Stitch is account-based, which means you sign up with an email address and a username instead of a phone number. To get started, download Stitch from the App Store or Google Play, or open the web app in your browser, and choose to create an account. You will enter your email, pick a password, and choose a username that other people will use to find and add you.

After you sign up, Stitch sends a verification message to your email address. Open it and follow the link to confirm the address belongs to you. Verifying your email is important: it secures your account, helps you recover access if you are ever signed out, and keeps the network free of throwaway accounts. Pick a username you are comfortable sharing, since it is how friends will connect with you.

Find your way around

Stitch is organized into a few main areas you can switch between from the tab bar. Chats is where your conversations live, with the most recent at the top. Calls keeps a history of your voice and video calls so you can call someone back with a tap. Stories shows the moments people you are connected with have shared. Contacts is where you find people, send and accept requests, and manage who you talk to. Settings holds your profile, notification preferences, privacy controls, and account options.

On the web app the layout adapts to a larger screen, but the same areas are present, and everything is tied to your account rather than a single device. That means the chats and contacts you set up on your phone are there when you sign in on the web.

Add your first contacts

Because Stitch connects people by username, the first thing to do is add a few people. Open the Contacts tab and search for someone by their Stitch username, then send a contact request. When they accept, you will be connected and can message or call each other. If someone wants to add you, share your username with them so they can send you a request, which you can then accept.

You stay in control of these connections. You decide which requests to accept, and you can block or report anyone at any time. Building up your contacts is what makes the rest of Stitch useful, since chats, calls, and stories all revolve around the people you are connected with.

Send your first message

Open the Chats tab and start a new conversation with one of your contacts. Type your message in the input bar at the bottom and send it — on a desktop keyboard you can press Enter. Beyond plain text, you can attach photos and videos, record a voice note, send a GIF or a file, and add emoji. Long-press any message to reply to it directly, react with an emoji, or forward it elsewhere.

If you want to try something a little more advanced, you can schedule a message to send later, or turn on disappearing messages so a conversation cleans itself up on a timer you choose. None of this is required to get going — a simple text message is all it takes to start talking.

Make a call and share a story

When you would rather talk, open a contact or a chat and start a voice or video call. Calls run over your internet connection and are free to place. You can mute your microphone, turn your camera on or off, and switch cameras while you talk. To reach more than one person at once, group calls are available on supported mobile clients.

Stories are a lighter way to stay in touch. From the Stories area you can post a photo or a short update that the people you are connected with can view for a limited time before it disappears on its own. You can see who watched, which makes stories a relaxed way to share a moment without sending a direct message to everyone.

Next steps

Once you are set up, it is worth spending a minute in Settings to choose your notification preferences and review your privacy controls so Stitch behaves the way you want. If you ever get stuck, the rest of the Help Center has focused guides for accounts, chats and groups, calls, stories, and privacy, and you can always reach a person through the contact page.