Chat.
The house group chat, where the house actually lives.
Every household already has a group chat — it's just buried in a messaging app, three scrolls away from the chore list and calendar it's usually about. The Shack's chat puts the conversation next to the things it references: one shared thread, everyone in the house, live on every phone.
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Messages arrive in real time, a burst of texts coalesces into a single notification (switchable, like every notification in The Shack), and kids are first-class participants — it's a family chat where the family actually is.
Why houses use it
One thread, whole house
No channels to manage, nobody left off the group — if you're in the household, you're in the chat.
Genuinely real-time
Messages appear on every phone the moment they're sent, over the same live connection the shopping list uses.
Kids included
Kid accounts can chat out of the box — and households that don't want that can switch the screen off per member.
Notifications that behave
A burst of messages is one push, not twelve, and chat notifications have their own switch in notification settings.
Tidy-up built in
Delete your own messages any time; the household admin can moderate anything.
Don’t take our word for it — click around a real household.
The live demo is the actual app with a pretend house in it. No signup, nothing to install.
How to use Chat in The Shack
- 01
Open Chat
It's in the nav for every member, next to everything the conversation is about.
- 02
Say something
Enter sends, the house sees it instantly, unread messages badge the nav.
- 03
Keep living in the app
"Did you see the bill?" links one tap away from the bill itself.
Common questions
Is there a household chat or messaging feature?
Yes — one real-time message thread per household. Everyone in the house is in it, messages arrive instantly on every device, and unread messages show as a badge in the navigation.
Can kids use the chat?
Yes, by default — kid accounts can read and send messages. Per-member screen permissions let a household switch chat off for anyone.
Will a busy chat spam me with notifications?
No — rapid messages coalesce into a single notification, and chat notifications are individually switchable (or pick the Minimal preset and they're off entirely).
Put chat on autopilot.
Create a household, invite your housemates, and have everything under control by tonight.
No credit card required. Works on any phone, tablet or laptop.