NextChatvsZulip
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| NextChat | Zulip | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 81/100 | 82/100 |
| Rank in category | #12 of 125 in AI | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 88 911 | 26 133 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +105 | +190 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 0 | 6 |
| Latest release | — | 12.3 · 21 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Easy | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Main language | Typescript | Python |
Which one should you pick?
Zulip scores 82/100 against 81/100 for NextChat, so it is the safer default.
Zulip ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for NextChat.
If you want the quickest setup, NextChat is easier to run; Zulip needs more configuration.
NextChat details →Zulip details →
Swap a project
Keep NextChat, compare it with
Keep Zulip, compare it with