# Lathe vs Zulip

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

| | Lathe | Zulip |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 52/100 | 82/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #7 of 30 in Education | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 1 708 | 26 133 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +190 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 6 | 6 |
| Latest release | v0.5.0 · 20 Jul 2026 | 12.3 · 21 Sept 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes ✓ |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Go | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Zulip scores 82/100 against 52/100 for Lathe, so it is the safer default.

If you want the quickest setup, Lathe is easier to run; Zulip needs more configuration.

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

## Details

- [Lathe](https://selfhost.directory/project/lathe) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/lathe.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/lathe-vs-zulip