OpenWAvsZulip
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| OpenWA | Zulip | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 77/100 | 82/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 19 in API Management | #1 of 110 in Chat |
| GitHub stars | 16 351 | 26 133 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +345 | +190 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 3 | 6 |
| Latest release | v0.26.0 · 28 Oct 2026 | 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 77/100 for OpenWA, so it is the safer default.
Zulip ships more often: 6 stable releases in the past year, against 3 for OpenWA.
If you want the quickest setup, OpenWA is easier to run; Zulip needs more configuration.
OpenWA details →Zulip details →
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