# Deft vs Zulip

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

| | Deft | Zulip |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 49/100 | 82/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #17 of 30 in Collaboration | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 731 | 26 133 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +190 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 0 | 6 ✓ |
| Latest release | — | 12.3 · 21 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Moderate ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Typescript | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Zulip scores 82/100 against 49/100 for Deft, so it is the safer default.

Zulip ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for Deft.

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

## Details

- [Deft](https://selfhost.directory/project/deft) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/deft.md)
- [Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/project/zulip) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/zulip.md)

## Related comparisons

- [Discourse vs Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/compare/discourse-vs-zulip)
- [Rocket.Chat vs Zulip](https://selfhost.directory/compare/rocketchat-vs-zulip)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/deft-vs-zulip