Marco Polo App: 5 Things You Need to Know

This is what you need to know about the Marco Polo app before you use it — including that when you install it, friends who are already on Marco Polo will know that you’ve joined.

As we spend more time social distancing, video apps are becoming more popular. The Marco Polo app is rising to the top since it allows you to watch and respond on your own time.

This is what you need to know about the free Marco Polo app for iPhone and Android.

What is the Marco Polo App?

Marco Polo is a video chat app that lets you leave video messages for people, making it easier to connect with friends even when you are both too busy to get onto a video call at the same time.

Think of it like recording a video message to send to a friend, but instead of these messages taking up space in your camera roll, you can simply record and send in the app.

The experience feels a little like Snapchat, but the videos are only shared with the person or a group.

You can download Marco Polo for the iPhone or iPad from the App Store and or Android from Google Play.

Friends Can See That You’ve Joined Marco Polo

One of the biggest warnings that you need to know about using Marco Polo before you sign up is once you log in and verify your number you will show up as a suggested contact for other people who have your phone number.

This means that friends already on Marco Polo will be able to see you without searching for you. It’s not a huge deal for everyone, but it is something that you will want to keep in mind.

Read: Best Video Chat Apps in 2020

Is Marco Polo Free?

The Marco Polo app is free to download and to use, but there are in-app purchases.

You can subscribe to Marco Polo for a monthly fee of $9.99 or a $99.99 annual subscription. Right now the annual subscription is $29.99 for the first year.

With a Marco Polo subscription, you are supporting the app and you can view your past Polos at any time.

You can use Marco Polo without a subscription, but since there are no ads, this is how you support the app.

Is Marco Polo Safe?

Marco Polo is not like Snapchat or Instagram where you can go live or whare with a wide audience.

The Marco Polo app allows you to send and receive videos from individuals or groups that are in your contacts.

This works by email or phone number, and you can find people by either of these options.

If you don’t share your kid’s phone number or your phone number with people, they can’t find you.

Marco Polo also lets you block people by tapping on the three dots to the right of someone. If you are concerned about your kids using the app, you may want to have them chat with groups only and include you in the group. You can also look back and review their video chats.

Can You Delete Marco Polo Chats?

You can delete a Marco Polo that you’ve sent and if you do this fast enough you can stop the other person from seeing it.

Once someone sees the video, you can still delete it, but you can’t really recall it anymore. If they watched the video, you will see a small circle with their profile photo on it.

To delete a Marco Polo, you need to tap and hold on the video at the bottom. When the menu pops up, you need to tap on Delete. When prompted tap Delete again.

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