# Olares vs Rocket.Chat

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

| | Olares | Rocket.Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 65/100 | 82/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #4 of 22 in Home Server | #1 of 13 in Instant Messaging |
| GitHub stars | 5 332 | 46 350 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +46 | +180 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 135 ✓ | 36 |
| Latest release | 1.12.8-20261028 · 28 Oct 2026 ✓ | 8.5.4 · 16 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Other |
| Main language | Go | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

Rocket.Chat scores 82/100 against 65/100 for Olares, so it is the safer default.

Olares ships more often: 135 stable releases in the past year, against 36 for Rocket.Chat.

If you want the quickest setup, Rocket.Chat is easier to run; Olares needs more configuration.

Rocket.Chat is growing faster right now (+180 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Olares](https://selfhost.directory/project/olares) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/olares.md)
- [Rocket.Chat](https://selfhost.directory/project/rocketchat) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/rocketchat.md)

## Related comparisons

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

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/olares-vs-rocketchat