# Bitfocus Companion vs Zulip

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Bitfocus Companion | Zulip |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 68/100 | 82/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #10 of 104 in Home Automation | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 2 345 | 26 133 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +46 | +190 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 20 ✓ | 6 |
| Latest release | v5.1.1 · 21 Oct 2026 ✓ | 12.3 · 21 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | Other | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Typescript | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Zulip scores 82/100 against 68/100 for Bitfocus Companion, so it is the safer default.

Bitfocus Companion ships more often: 20 stable releases in the past year, against 6 for Zulip.

Zulip is growing faster right now (+190 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Bitfocus Companion](https://selfhost.directory/project/bitfocus-companion) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/bitfocus-companion.md)
- [Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/project/zulip) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/zulip.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/bitfocus-companion-vs-zulip