Skype

Description of App

Skype keeps the world talking. Say “hello” with an instant message, voice or video call – all for free*, no matter what device they use Skype on. Skype is available on phones, tablets, PCs, and Macs.

• Video calls – Don’t just hear the cheers, see them! Get together with 1 or 24 of your friends and family on a HD video call. Watch everyone’s smiles and cries when you tell them “We’re engaged!!!"
• Chat – Reach people instantly. Send messages to your friends, grab someone’s attention with @ mentions, or create a group chat to plan a family reunion.
• Share – Send photos and videos with your family and friends. Save shared photos and videos to your camera roll. Share your screen to make travel plans with friends or present designs to your team.
• Voice calls – Camera shy? Make voice calls to anyone in the world on Skype. You can also call mobile and landlines at low rates.
• Express yourself – Liven up conversations with emoticons, click on the “+” in chat to send a Giphy or images from the web, and annotate images with words, lines and more.

*Skype to Skype calls are free. Operator data charges may apply. We recommend using an unlimited data plan or WiFi connection.

Call landline and mobile phone numbers and send SMS messages anywhere in the world at affordable prices using Skype. Reach non-Skype users or contacts who are not online by choosing Skype Credit or Skype subscriptions.

Choose Skype Credit as a pay-as-you-go option to call and SMS. If you call specific destinations, save even more with monthly subscriptions. Skype subscriptions are monthly calling plans that let you make unlimited, or fixed-minute calls to landlines (and mobiles where applicable). Subscriptions begin at $2.99 a month for US, and can vary by destination. To make an in-app purchase, open the app, go to the Call tab, and tap on the Skype to Phone banner. Skype Credit and Subscriptions purchased from the Skype app will be charged to your iTunes account when the purchase is confirmed.

Your account will be charged for Skype subscription renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Your subscription is renewed automatically unless auto-renewal is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period of subscription.

You can manage your subscription by going to your Apple ID account settings and choosing the auto-renewal option or turning it off any time after your purchase.

• Privacy and Cookies policy: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=507539
• Microsoft Services Agreement: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=530144

Version

8.60

Free or Paid

Free

Apple Watch Support

Yes

Device(s) App Was Tested On

iPhone

iOS Version

13.5.1

Accessibility Comments

Appears to be very accessible.

VoiceOver Performance

VoiceOver reads all page elements.

Button Labeling

All buttons are clearly labeled.

Usability

The app is fully accessible with VoiceOver and is easy to navigate and use.

Developer's Twitter Username

@Skype

Recommendations

16 people have recommended this app

Most recently recommended by Scott Davert 2 years ago

Options

Comments

By kevinchao89 on Friday, August 6, 2010 - 16:51

This Skype for iOS app is extremely useful as it may not be always practical or comfortable to talk on Skype in front of a computer. for iPad 3G and iPhone, it is possible to make calls over 3G, which really opens up the communication possibilities. There are limitations compared to desktop client, which include: no file transfer, no video calls, no custom sounds and other features. However, core functions are there, calls, chat, history and my info. As of version 2.0, it isn't possible to flick in any Skype window while in an active call.

By AppleVis on Thursday, October 6, 2011 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

I don't use Skype myself, but I gather that the latest update (version 3.5.84 released on 27 September) has some serious accessibility issues for VoiceOver users.

The contacts list and dial pad appear to be the main problem areas.

Anybody able to confirm this?

By Deng on Thursday, October 6, 2011 - 16:51

Well, I just downloaded the app today, and it seems like the contacts lists are all fine. The real problem is when you are trying to make a call. The numbers are there, but are in 1 image.
The dial pad still displays as an image to VoiceOver. I know that Skype has certainly been made aware of this problem
Hi all. I heard the podcast detailing the issues in 3.6, and I've held off updating. I've just noticed today that virsion 3.6.1 of skype has been released, and I'm wondering if it fixes any of these problems? It says that it fixes an audio bug on iOS 4, but I'm not sure weather skype have changed things under the hood.

By Morten on Friday, January 6, 2012 - 16:51

nothing has changed sins version 3.6

By ming on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 - 16:51

new version 3.7 have been released. still can not read text chat messages.
How on Earth do you screw up text chatting? For God's sake! Come on Skype, get your act together! I seriously wonder how you can screw text chatting up! It's utterly confusing. It's something you'd seriously have to work at--perhaps displaying the conversation as images? The next question after that would be, why? What is the point? *rolls eyes*

By Mello on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 - 16:51

works just fine and skype lets go of the audio so you don't have to kill it in the appswitcher

By Scott Davert on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team
I was hoping against all hope that they actually addressed the dial pad and text chatting functions, since the latest release mentions enhancements to both items. I was sadly disappointed in my optomistic outlook. Yes, the new skype provides enhancements all right: enhancements to inaccessibility.
Skype 4.0 is now fully accessible! You heard that correct! It is time to get our party hats and celebrate! Thank you for every person that have joined in with us for the Campaign of the Month when we told the developers of Skype to get this fixed! It is quite possible that we were finally heard! Whatever, it was that put the fire under them is a huge advancement on their part. So my hats off to them. Now, please keep it accessible for us. :O What's New in Version 4.0 This version works on iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPad and iPod touch. Skype requires iPhone OS version 4.3 or above. -New feature: ability to move own video preview -App auto restarts if unexpectedly shut down -Improved accessibility -Improved stability -Updated design for contacts and messages -New sign in screen -Other minor UI improvements -Bug fixes

By Joseph on Sunday, May 6, 2012 - 16:51

I just updated to skype4.0 on tmy ipod. not too badly done. I notice though that my messages tab keeps saying I have one new item, and there's nothing there. Any ideas as to why this might occur and any ways to fix it? Thanks!

By Deng on Sunday, May 6, 2012 - 16:51

Sometimes, my messages tab does that too. The way i fix this is to just double tap in to the messages tab, and scrole down the messages. It should say the person's name and the last message. Some of the names will also have a number by their name for example. Deng: Hi. 1 That number tells you that there is an unread message in the conversation, and to get rid of the number, just go in to the conversation, and you should be good. Hope this helped.

By Bahzad on Thursday, September 6, 2012 - 16:51

In reply to by Deng

A new version of Skype (version 4.1) was released to the app store with the following features: What's new in version 4.1 Send and receive photos Updated privacy setting Fixed bug related to Bluetooth and calls Minor visual improvements across the app Other minor bug fixes
Has anyone installed the new update? I skipped the last update which I think was in May as I heard they had screwed up accessibility. Would love to hear any thoughts before updating. Thanks
Hi all, well, i just used the new updated skype to get on skype with some friends and it works very well as far as I can tell.

By KE7ZUM on Thursday, September 6, 2012 - 16:51

In reply to by lelia

They do state that vo support is not fully here in this skype garage blog post located here. I just thought I'd warn you guys. At least they admit it. Now let's hope for a fix.

By AnonyMouse on Thursday, December 6, 2012 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

Now supports the iPhone 5.

What's New in Version 4.1.2

-Support for iPhone 5 display.
-Bug fixes.

By AnonyMouse on Thursday, December 6, 2012 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

What's New in Version 4.2

Chat with Messenger, Hotmail and Outlook.com contacts – sign in with and merge your Microsoft account.
New to Skype? Create a new account right from the app.
Tap and hold on instant messages to edit them.
Choose an emoticon while typing an instant message.
Animated emoticons for devices with a Retina display.
Edit saved phone numbers right from the dial pad.
Bug fixes.

By Ivan Cardenas on Thursday, December 6, 2012 - 16:51

In reply to by AnonyMouse

Hey all, Just updated Skype this afternoon and noticed a strange issue. When you type an IM, there is no send button on the screen. I use the RefreshaBraille display by APH insted of the actual iPhone just because it's easier for me. Any help would be great!
I'm sorry to hear that you cannot send messages to other people. I also have the latest version of skype, but the button is visible on my screen. I don't use a Braille display, so try to search for the button without the display to see if your results may differ. Good luck.
What's New in Version 4.2.2 This version gives us under-the-hood improvements that support future feature launches.

By AnonyMouse on Wednesday, February 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

Nice new feature where Skype automatically reconnects a dropped call when your WiFi or mobile network reception is poor. This will come in handy!

 

What's New in Version 4.5

 

✓ Skype automatically reconnects a dropped call when your WiFi or mobile network reception is poor

 

✓ General fixes
General fixes and improvements
One-to-one chats now appear in the correct order

 

By Scott Davert on Wednesday, March 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team
The orriginal app Entry has been updated to reflect the current version released on March 7. As far as I can tell, everything is still accessible! Woohoo!
I just downloaded this app (my wife's literally on the other side of the planet for two weeks, and it'd be nice to talk to each other / let her see my face)... Out of curiosity, does anybody know which camera the app uses for video calls? Can you switch between the front and rear-facing cameras mid-call? Just trying to get all my ducks in a row...

By miahtech on Monday, May 6, 2013 - 16:51

In reply to by Joseph Westhouse

It by default uses the front camera, but you can switch it to the rear one if you want.

By Matthew Bullis on Thursday, June 6, 2013 - 16:51

So I've installed this app and logged into my existing account. Am I able to search for friends through the app, and am I able to respond if someone wants to be accepted in my Skype account for future contact? If so, which tab do I use and where do I go? Thanks, Matthew
hi, yes, you can use this skype for nearly everything, excepting creating / rejoining group call,s and autoanswering. wish they would just put thos features in. that would make this soooo much better. anyways, to answer your questions. if somebody sends you a request, that will appear at the top of your people tab screen. it will say something like contact requests at the top of your screen, under the search field. anyways. i don't tend to get too many people sending me requests, so not had to do it often. ok, now as to your other question, doing searching for people and adding them / sending them a request. when you said searching for friends, i gather your talking about people you as yet do not have on your contact list. to do this, go to the people tab, then at the top right of your screen, there is an add button. when you press this, a context area appears, with the first option being search skype directory. after pressing search skype directory, you are presented with a search screen, with your focus already in the text field to start typing. just type in your search, and hit the search button in the bottom right of your keyboard on screen. then, the empty list in the middle of the screen, will fill up with any results you have gotten. be aware, this sometimes take up to about 10 seconds. depending. sometimes its fast, sometimes not so fast. so give it a few seconds to do your search and spit out the results. then, once you look through the list, and find somebody you want to look at, simply double tap their name / ID. this will takey ou to a screen something similar to the one you get when double tapping a name in your contact list. this includes buttons to IM, video call, voice call, view full profile, and so on. one button there, is add contact. double tap that, and it should open up a dialog where you can insert a message. something like that. then you should be done. its farely easy. now, on the other hand, if you were meaning how to search for friends in your own contact list, if you go to your people tab, find that search field again, just between the top set of buttons, and that contact requests button if it's there, and double tap that. and you can enter your search. never used this myself, but this should work.

By Michael Hansen on Saturday, July 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

In reply to by Serena

"What's New in Version 4.9 - Video messaging is now free and unlimited - Audio and video call stability improvements. - Share photos more reliably. - Improved accessibility for video messaging. - General fixes and improvements."

By AnonyMouse on Friday, September 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

What's New in Version 4.10

Call quality improvements
- Make HD quality video calls from your iPhone 5.
- General improvements to call quality and stability.

General fixes and improvements
- A redesigned country code picker on the dial pad.

By Jamie Pauls on Friday, September 6, 2013 - 16:51

When I am not focused on Skype and I receive a call, I have not figured out how to quickly get to Skype and answr a call. Today, when I went to app switcher to bring the app into focus, it looked like the app was there for a second and then disappeared from app switcher. Not sure if it was an error on my part or if the app did something strange. Any help will be appreciated.

By AnonyMouse on Sunday, October 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

Now we can join Group Calls from our iPhone! Awesome!

What's New in Version 4.12

- Join group voice calls from your iPhone
- Voice and video call quality improvements.
- Accessibility improvements.
- Dial pad improvements.
- Get help by accessing FAQs from the app.

By alex wallis on Sunday, October 6, 2013 - 16:51

Hi, just wondering can Skype for iPhone be used to chat by typing text as well as Voice calls? by typing text I mean ordinary Skype IMS not a text message. If so, how do you decide if you want to send a text IM or make a voice call?

By amro on Sunday, October 6, 2013 - 16:51

This comment has been deleted.

By Scott Davert on Sunday, October 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

In reply to by amro

I'm having a problem with my iPhone where Skype will no longer toggle between the speaker and ear piece. The button is interpreted as dimmed through VoiceOver, and double tapping or triple tapping it does nothing.
Hi Alex, yes, you can in fact do Skype chats on the iOS version of Skype. Either find the person you have already held a conversation with in the recent tab, or do the following. Tap people tab. Now either press it again to take the screen back to where you can select online / Skype users and so on, or do a two finger scrub to do the same. Select the one you wish to use, either online contacts, all contacts, Skype contacts, recently contacted, and so on, to display a list of contacts. I'd probably recommend you go with online contacts, as this will filter out all people who are not online. Now, find the person you wish to chat to, and tap their name. This screen that has popped up, contains things like their name, mood status, status, online, away, etc. Then, under those, there are several buttons. You have, video call, which would start a video call to that person, voice call which would start the voice call, and IM button. this one, is the one that you want to tap, to start text chatting to that person. The screen that will come up, contains the person's name as to who you are typing to, an action button which will let you do several things, depending on the particulars of your IM session. Things like video and voice call, so you can start a call to the person, video message, which lets you record a video message that will then be sent to the person, and send photo, which will let you either take a photo on the fly, or select one from your library. Moving on, you have a status line, showing their status, online and so on. Under those things, you will have a list of chats. this can sometimes go back a long way, so I don't recommend flicking through here. LOL. it could take you quite some time. Anyway's, if you tap down the bottom of your screen, you will find the tabs again, but if you flick once to the left from the people tab,you will find a show emoticons button, which lets you select icons to insert in to your messages. Then, if you keep flicking left, you will come to the type a message here, text field. Tap into this field, and you can start typing away to your contact! And as I said, if you scroll above that text field, you have your previous chats. So you can either run your finger down the screen to review them, or find the text field, and flick left. To answer a question, yes, messages will be automatically read as they come in. This works rather well, and I think this is probably the most accessible Skype chatting experience I've seen without scripts and plug ins. You can, of course, dictate, or type out your message on the virtual keyboard, or if you have one, a blue tooth keyboard. I use an apple wireless keyboard to type in the Skype chat on my iPhone sometimes. Anyway's, while this is a little long, I hope this will help you do what you are looking to do. Good luck, and let me know if this was not what you were looking for. Dallas

By amro on Sunday, October 6, 2013 - 16:51

hello guys could you tell me how to listen to voice messages on skype because I can't figure it out and double tapping on the message doesn't do anything and thanks

By AnonyMouse on Sunday, October 6, 2013 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

What's New in Version 4.13

- A refreshed look and feel for iOS 7.
- Accessibility improvements.
- General fixes and speed improvements.

By alex wallis on Wednesday, November 6, 2013 - 16:51

Hi, I just installed skype again from the app store, the latest version is 4.13, and when I started it I was given the prompt about push notifications. Unfortunately I can't find the date when this version came out on the app store, as in ios7 app store you seem to have to do allot of hunting around the screen for information and can't rely on being able to flick to all of it. However I can confirm that I have a setting in my notification center for Skype. Sometimes the app store doesn't prompt you to update an app and you have to search for it to then install the update or you have to delete and download it again.
hi, yes, i'm running the latest, i uninstalled and reinstalled yesterday, before my last post on here. and yes, i have skype in my notifications centre. however, i never got asked a new question for push after installing this latest version. so i'm not sure what's going on here.

By Serena on Wednesday, November 6, 2013 - 16:51

In reply to by Serena

hi. just had an idea, so i closed all versions of skype i am running on my computers. and still, no notifications. as far as i can tell, we are all running the same thing, but some people are being given an option that the rest of us aren't. i even got a friend of mine to test hers, and the answer is, no, notifications are not being sent through while skype is not in the app switcher. so although you are being asked about notifications when you open skype for the first time on the new one, are you actually getting notifications while its not in the app switcher? as in, have you closed it down completely, and then had somebody send you a message, and it has appeared on your screen? because, from the testing i have just done with a friend, this still is not happening.

By AnonyMouse on Thursday, February 6, 2014 - 16:51

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

What's New in Version 4.17

Two-way HD video calls are now supported on the iPhone 5S.
Receive chat messages even when Skype is closed.
Chat messages now sync much faster across all your devices.

 

By Ivan Cardenas on Thursday, February 6, 2014 - 16:51

In reply to by AnonyMouse

Hey all. Have just updated skype and answered yes to allow push notifications. My question is, how exactly are these notifications different to the local notifications we had in previous versions of the app? I ask because I see no difference when I get a chat message and the app is still in the app switcher. If I close the app, I'm signed out of skype.
Is anyone having volume issues with this version of Skype? I usually leave the app running in the background, and occasionally, if I make or receive a call, the volume level is dropped to the point where I can barely hear the other person. No amount of increasing the volume fixes the issue. I've found that closing the app completely, then reopening it and making the call again, usually fixes the issue. This problem was present in a previous release of Skype, then it seemed to go away in the last release, and now, with the latest update, it's back.